The 57th Air Division is an inactive

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

unit. Its last assignment was with the Fifteenth Air Force, based at

Minot Air Force Base Minot Air Force Base is a U.S. Air Force installation in Ward County, North Dakota, north of the city of Minot via U.S. Route 83. In the 2020 census, the base was counted as a CDP with a total population of 5,017, down from 5,521 i ...

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, So ...

. It was inactivated on 24 June 1991.

History

"Established as the 8th Pursuit Wing, it conducted training from 1940 to 1941. As a paper unit, it moved to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and then to

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

in December 1942." It finally gained personnel and aircraft, and became operational as the 57 Bombardment Wing in March 1944. "Initially, the 57th flew close air support missions against enemy troops and gun emplacements in the vicinity of

Anzio Anzio (, also , ) is a town and ''comune'' on the coast of the Lazio region of Italy, about south of Rome. Well known for its seaside harbour setting, it is a fishing port and a departure point for ferries and hydroplanes to the Pontine Islands ...

, Italy; later, it flew bombing missions against railway marshalling yards at Foligno,

Littoria Latina () is the capital of the province of Latina in the Lazio region, in central Italy. , the city has 126,612 inhabitants and is the second-largest city of the region, after the national capital Rome. It was founded in 1932 under the fascist ...

, and

Terni Terni ( , ; lat, Interamna (Nahars)) is a city in the southern portion of the region of Umbria in central Italy. It is near the border with Lazio. The city is the capital of the province of Terni, located in the plain of the Nera river. It is ...

, Italy. Between 19 March 1944 and 11 May 1944 the 57th took part in Operation Strangle to destroy Italian marshalling yards, railroad repair facilities and other rail targets such as bridges, tunnels, and viaducts. It continued to fly close air support and interdiction missions in Italy throughout the war, and supported the invasion of southern France on 15 August 1944." The unit was inactivated at the end of the war. Reactivated as an intermediate command echelon of Strategic Air Command in 1951, the 57th Air Division assumed a supervisory role of subordinate bombardment units. "Its units trained to conduct long range bombardment, air refueling, and strategic reconnaissance operations around the world. Between 1965 and 1969, division units supported

Operation Arc Light During Operation Arc Light (sometimes Arclight) from 1965 to 1973, the United States Air Force deployed B-52 Stratofortresses from bases in the U.S. Territory of Guam to provide battlefield air interdiction during the Vietnam War. This included ...

bombing and Operation Young Tiger air refueling operations in Southeast Asia. In 1980 the 57th reorganized to employ Strategic Air Command conventional strategic forces (bomber, tanker, and reconnaissance) in crisis situations worldwide." It was inactivated in June 1991 due to budget constraints and the reduction of forces after the end of the Cold War.

Lineage

* Established as the 8th Pursuit Wing on 19 October 1940 : Activated on 6 November 1940 : Inactivated on 1 November 1941 * Redesignated 8th Fighter Wing on 6 July 1942 : Activated on 24 July 1942 : Redesignated 57th Bombardment Wing on 6 April 1943 : Inactivated on 12 September 1945 * Redesignated 57th Air Division on 10 April 1951 : Organized on 16 April 1951 : Discontinued on 16 June 1952 : Inactivated on 16 June 1952 * Activated on 16 June 1952 : Inactivated on 2 July 1969 * Activated on 22 January 1975 : Inactivated on 14 June 1991

Assignments

General Headquarters Air Force The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

, 6 November 1940 * Southeast Air District (later

Third Air Force The Third Air Force (Air Forces Europe) (3 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA). Its headquarters is Ramstein Air Base, Germany. It is responsible for all U.S. air forces in ...

), 16 January 1941 * Interceptor Command (of Third Air Force), 21 April 1941 * III Interceptor Command, c. 1 July – 1 November 1941 *

IX Fighter Command The IX Fighter Command was a United States Army Air Forces formation. Its last assignment was with the Ninth Air Force, based at Erlangen, Germany, wheret was inactivated on 16 November 1945. IX Fighter Command was the primary tactical fighter ...

, 24 July 1942 : Attached to III Fighter Command, 26 July – c. 28 October 1942 *

Ninth Air Force The Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is the Air Force Service Component of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), a joint De ...

, 22 December 1942 : Attached to IX Fighter Command, 22 December 1942 unknown 1943 *

Twelfth Air Force The Twelfth Air Force (12 AF; Air Forces Southern, (AFSOUTH)) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. The command is the air component to ...

, c. 23 August 1943 * XII Air Support Command, 31 August 1943 *

XII Bomber Command XII Bomber Command is an inactive United States Army Air Forces formation. Its last assignment was with the Twelfth Air Force, based in Corsica, France. It was constituted on 26 February 1942, activated on 13 March 1942, and inactivated on 10 J ...

, 1 January 1944 * Twelfth Air Force, 1 March 1944 * Army Air Forces Service Command, Mediterranean Theater of Operations, 15 August – 12 September 1945 * Fifteenth Air Force, 16 April 1951 16 June 1952 * Fifteenth Air Force, 16 June 1952 * Eighth Air Force, 4 September 1956 2 July 1969 * Fifteenth Air Force, 22 January 1975 14 June 1991

Components

Wings

; Bombardment Wings :

5th Bombardment Wing The 5th Bomb Wing (5 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to Air Force Global Strike Command's Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota. The wing is also the host unit at Minot. The 5 BW is one of only ...

: 22 January 1975 – 14 June 1991 :

17th Bombardment Wing 17 (seventeen) is the natural number following 16 and preceding 18. It is a prime number. Seventeen is the sum of the first four prime numbers. In mathematics 17 is the seventh prime number, which makes seventeen the fourth super-prime, as ...

: 1 July 1965 – 2 July 1968 :

19th Bombardment Wing The 19th Airlift Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Mobility Command's Eighteenth Air Force. It is stationed at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas. The wing is also the host unit at Little Rock. The Wing provides the ...

: 25 July 1968 – 2 July 1969 :

28th Bombardment Wing The 28th Bomb Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Eighth Air Force (8 AF) of the Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) and is stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota. The wing is also the "host unit" at Ellsworth ...

: 1 May 1982 – 23 January 1987 : 68th Bombardment Wing: 1 July 1964 – 1 July 1965; attached 10 August – 1 September 1966, assigned 2 September 1966 – 2 July 1969. :

92d Bombardment Wing 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Arabic digit In the Brahmi numerals, beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshat ...

: 16 April 1951 – 16 June 1952. 16 June 1952 – 4 September 1956 (detached 14 October 1954 – 12 January 1955 and 26 April – 6 July 1956); 23 January 1987 – 15 June 1988 : 98th Bombardment Wing: 16 April 1951 – 16 June 1952 (detached 16 April 1951 – 16 June 1952). 16 June 1952 – 25 November 1953 (detached entire period) : 99th Bombardment Wing (see 99th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing) : 111th Bombardment Wing (later 111 Strategic Reconnaissance Wing): 21 April 1951 – 1 January 1953 : 319th Bombardment Wing: 22 January 1975 – 1 May 1982; :

416th Bombardment Wing 416th may refer to: * 416th Air Expeditionary Operations Group, provisional unit assigned to the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command * 416th Bombardment Wing, inactive United States Air Force unit * 416th Engineer Command (TEC), US Army Re ...

: 2 July – 2 September 1966 (detached 10 August – 2 September 1966) : 465th Bombardment Wing: attached 10 August – 1 September 1966, assigned 2 September 1966 – 25 July 1968 :

499th Air Refueling Wing The 499th Air Refueling Wing is an inactive United States Air Force (USAF) unit that was last active at Westover AFB, Massachusetts in June 1966. The wing was first activated as the 499th Bombardment Group of the United States Army Air Forces, w ...

: 1 January 1963 – 25 June 1966 ; Strategic Missile Wings : 44th Strategic Missile Wing: 1 May 1982 – 23 January 1987 : 91st Strategic Missile Wing: 22 January 1975 – 14 June 1991 : 321st Strategic Missile Wing: 22 January 1975 – 1 May 1982; 23 January 1987 – 16 June 1988 ; Air Refueling Wings : 301st Air Refueling Wing: 15 November 1965 – 2 July 1966 : 4050th Air Refueling Wing: 4 September 1956 – 1 January 1963 ; Reconnaissance Wings : 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing: 1 April 1980 – 1 October 1982 : 99th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing (later 99th Bombardment Wing): 1 January 1953 – 2 July 1969 (detached 29 January – 25 April 1956; c. 1 October 1967-c. 1 April 1968 and c. 23 September 1968-c. 1 April 1969) : 111th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing (see 111th Bombardment Wing)

Groups

12th Bombardment Group 012 may refer to: * Tyrrell 012, a Formula One racing car * The dialing code for Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassi ...

: 1 November 1943 – 1 January 1944 (detached 1 November 1943 – 1 January 1944) :

47th Bombardment Group 47th may refer to: Chicago Transit Authority stations * 47th station (CTA Green Line), on the Green Line * 47th station (CTA Red Line) 47th is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, serving the Red Line. The station is loca ...

: 6 October – 10 December 1943 (detached entire period) : 49th Pursuit Group: 24 May – 2 October 1941 (detached 6 August – 2 October 1941) : 57th Fighter Group: 1 November 1943 – 1 January 1944 (detached entire period) : 79th Fighter Group: 1 November 1943 – 1 January 1944 (detached entire period) :

310th Bombardment Group 31 may refer to: * 31 (number) Years * 31 BC * AD 31 * 1931 CE ('31) * 2031 CE ('31) Music * ''Thirty One'' (Jana Kramer album), 2015 * ''Thirty One'' (Jarryd James album), 2015 * "Thirty One", a song by Karma to Burn from the album '' ...

: 15 March 1944 – 12 September 1945 (detached 20 August – 12 September 1945) : 319th Bombardment Group: 10 November 1944 – 10 January 1945 : 321st Bombardment Group: 1 November 1943 – 1 January 1944 (detached 4 November 1943 – 1 January 1944) 1 March 1944 – 12 September 1945 (detached 20 August – 12 September 1945) :

340th Bombardment Group 34 may refer to: * 34 (number), the natural number following 33 and preceding 35 * one of the years 34 BC, AD 34, 1934, 2034 * ''34'' (album), a 2015 album by Dre Murray * "#34" (song), a 1994 song by Dave Matthews Band * "34", a 2006 song by Sa ...

: 1 November 1943 – 1 January 1944 (detached 1 November 1943 – 1 January 1944); 1 March 1944 – 26 July 1945

Stations

Maxwell Field Maxwell Air Force Base , officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation under the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The installation is located in Montgomery, Alabama, United States. O ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

, 6 November 1940 * Army Air Base, West Palm Beach (later

Morrison Field Palm Beach International Airport is a public airport in Palm Beach County, Florida, located just west of the city of West Palm Beach, Florida, United States, which it serves as the primary airport for. It is also the primary airport for most o ...

), Florida, 16 May – 1 November 1941 * Drew Field, Florida, 24 July – 29 October 1942 * Bombay Airport, India, 29 November 1942 *

Deolali Deolali, or Devlali (), is a small hill station and a census town in Nashik district of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Now it is part of Nashik Metropolitan Region. Deolali has an important army base. Deolali Camp, one of the oldest Indian m ...

, India, 3 December 1942 * Port Tewfik (Suez), Egypt, 22 December 1942 * Landing Ground 91 (near Cairo), Egypt, 23 December 1942 *

RAF Kabrit The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

, Egypt, 12 February 1943 *

RAF Deversoir The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

, Egypt, 5 June 1943 *

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

, Tunisia, 28 August 1943 *

Lentini Lentini ( scn, Lintini, historically Liuntini; la, Leontīnī; grc, Λεοντῖνοι) is a town and in the Province of Syracuse, South East of Sicily (Southern Italy). History The city was founded by colonists from Naxos as Leontini in 72 ...

, Sicily, 4 September 1943 *

Capodichino Airport San Pietro a Patierno is a suburb of Naples, the chief city in Campania, Italy. Geography It is one of the largest suburbs of Naples and is relatively lightly populated compared to surrounding areas, with around 20,000 residents. The district of ...

, Italy, 7 October 1943 *

Foggia Airfield The Foggia Airfield Complex was a series of World War II military airfields located within a radius of Foggia, in the Province of Foggia, Italy. The airfields were used by the United States Army Air Force Fifteenth Air Force as part of the str ...

, Italy, 29 October 1943 *

Pollena Trocchia Pollena Trocchia is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Naples in the Italian region Campania, located about 11 km east of Naples. It was created in 1811 from two already existing villages, Pollena and Trocchia, both of ...

, Italy, 4 January 1944 * Ghisonaccia Airfield, Corsica, 20 April 1944 * Migliacharo, Corsica, c. 5 October 1944 * Fano Airfield, Italy, 7 April 1945 *

Pomigliano Airfield Pomigliano Airfield (40°55'40"N / 14°23'20"E) was a military airfield and base established in 1938–39 in Pomigliano d'Arco, southern Italy near Naples. It was attacked on several occasions by the United States Army Air Force. The airfield was ...

, Italy, 23 August – 12 September 1945 * Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, 16 April 1951 *

Westover Air Force Base Westover may refer to: People * Al Westover (born 1954), American professional basketball player in Australia * Arthur Westover (1864–1935), Canadian sport shooter and 1908 Olympian * Charles Westover (1934–1990), better known as Del Shannon, ...

, Massachusetts, 4 September 1956 – 2 July 1969 *

, North Dakota, 22 January 1975 – 14 June 1991

Campaigns

*Campaign Streamers: World War II: Naples Foggia (Air); Rome Arno

Aircraft and missiles

Seversky P-35 The Seversky P-35 is an American fighter aircraft built by the Seversky Aircraft Company in the late 1930s. A contemporary of the Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmitt Bf 109, the P-35 was the first single-seat fighter in United States Army Air Co ...

, 1941; *

Curtiss P-40 Warhawk The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground-attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time an ...

, 1941. *

North American B-25 Mitchell The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in ...

, 1941–1945; *

Martin B-26 Marauder The Martin B-26 Marauder is an American twin-engined medium bomber that saw extensive service during World War II. The B-26 was built at two locations: Baltimore, Maryland, and Omaha, Nebraska, by the Glenn L. Martin Company. First used in t ...

, 1944. *

Douglas B-26 Invader The Douglas A-26 Invader (designated B-26 between 1948 and 1965) is an American twin-engined light bomber and ground attack aircraft. Built by Douglas Aircraft Company during World War II, the Invader also saw service during several major Col ...

, 1951; * Boeing B-29 Superfortress, 1951–1952; * Boeing RB-29 Superfortress, 1951–1952; *

Convair B-36 Peacemaker The Convair B-36 "Peacemaker" is a strategic bomber that was built by Convair and operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1949 to 1959. The B-36 is the largest mass-produced Reciprocating engine, piston-engined aircraft ever built. It ...

, 1951–1954, 1954–1956; * Convair RB-36 Peacemaker], 1952–1956; * FICON project, Convair GRB-36 Peacemaker, 1955–1956; *

Republic RF-84F Thunderflash The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak was an American swept-wing turbojet fighter-bomber. While an evolutionary development of the straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet, the F-84F was a new design. The RF-84F Thunderflash was a photo reconnaissance version ...

, 1955–1956; * Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, 1956–1969, 1975–1991; *

Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter The Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter is a four-engined, piston-powered United States strategic tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It replaced the KB-29 and was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker. Design and developm ...

, 1956–1965; * Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, 1957–1969, 1975–1991; * Boeing EC-135 Looking Glass, 1964–1969. *

Minuteman III The LGM-30 Minuteman is an American land-based intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in service with the Air Force Global Strike Command. , the LGM-30G Minuteman III version is the only land-based ICBM in service in the United States and re ...

, 1975–1991; * Boeing C-135 Stratolifter, 1980–1982; *

Boeing E-4 The Boeing E-4 Advanced Airborne Command Post (AACP), the current "Nightwatch" aircraft, is a strategic command and control military aircraft operated by the United States Air Force (USAF). The E-4 series are specially modified from the Boeing ...

, 1980–1982; *EC-135 Looking Glass, 1980–1982; *

Boeing RC-135 The Boeing RC-135 is a family of large reconnaissance aircraft built by Boeing and modified by a number of companies, including General Dynamics, Lockheed, LTV, E-Systems, and L3 Technologies, and used by the United States Air Force and Royal ...

Cobra Ball, 1980–1982; * LGM-30F Minuteman II, 1982–1987.

References

Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * {{Navboxes , list = {{USAAF 12th Air Force World War II {{USAAF 9th Air Force UK {{USAAF 3d Air Force World War II Units and formations of Strategic Air Command 057