The 5th Air Division (5th AD) is an inactive

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air 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 of the United States Army Si ...

unit. Its last assignment was with

Strategic Air Command Strategic Air Command (SAC) was both a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile ...

, based at

Sidi Slimane Air Base Sidi Slimane Air Base was a military air base in Sidi Slimane, a city in the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra region in Morocco. It is also known as the Fifth Royal Air Force Base, operated by the Royal Moroccan Air Force. History Built in 1951 by Atlas Co ...

, Morocco. It was inactivated on 15 July 1958. The unit's origins begin with its predecessor, the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

5th Bombardment Wing (5 BW). This unit was initially part of

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 ...

before being reassigned in November 1943 to the

Fifteenth Air Force The Fifteenth Air Force (15 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base. It was reactivated on 20 August 2020, merging the previous units of the Ninth Air Force ...

. The 5th BW engaged in heavy bombardment

B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...

operations against Germany. During the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...

, the 5th AD was an intermediate command echelon of

, absorbed the resources and responsibilities of the USAF Mission to Morocco as part of

Sixteenth Air Force The Sixteenth Air Force (Air Forces Cyber) (16 AF) is a United States Air Force (USAF) organization responsible for information warfare, which encompasses intelligence gathering and analysis, surveillance, reconnaissance, cyber warfare and ...

in 1957. Inactivated in end of 1957 when the USAF drew down its forces from Morocco at the request of the Moroccan government. It was replaced by the SAC

4310th Air Division The 4310th Air Division is a discontinued United States Air Force organization. It was last assigned to the Sixteenth Air Force at Nouasseur Air Base, Morocco. It was discontinued on 15 August 1963. History The 4310th Air Division was organize ...

which absorbed the mission and personnel of the 5th AD.

History

World War II

The 5th Air Division (5th AD) originated on 19 October 1940 at

McChord Field McChord Field is a United States Air Force base in the northwest United States, in Pierce County, Washington. South of Tacoma, McChord Field is the home of the 62d Airlift Wing, Air Mobility Command, the field's primary mission being worldw ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. Its initial mission was air defense of the northwest United States with three bombardment groups (12th, 17th and 39th) flying early

es (B-17C/D), as well as the B-18 Bolo and its B-23 Dragon variant. With the United States' entry into

, the mission of the 5th Bomb Wing was changed to that of a strategic heavy bomber wing, in July 1942 being initially assigned to the new

Eighth Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Forc ...

. However, the 5th Bomb Wing was reassigned to the

in October 1942, to support the Western Task Force being assembled for the

Operation Torch Operation Torch (8 November 1942 – 16 November 1942) was an Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of securing victory in North Africa while al ...

landings, planned for November. The 5th moved to North Africa in November, and its subordinate units began flying missions from

French Morocco The French protectorate in Morocco (french: Protectorat français au Maroc; ar, الحماية الفرنسية في المغرب), also known as French Morocco, was the period of French colonial rule in Morocco between 1912 to 1956. The prot ...

in late 1942. The 97th and 301st Bomb groups, both being transferred from

, were the pioneer heavy bomb groups in North Africa. Three weeks prior to the invasion saw a number of secret missions flown by the 97th BG. The first of these occurred on 18 October 1942 when General Mark Clark, commander of ground forces in the Western Task Force, flew to

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = "Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gibr ...

, along with a box containing $100,000 in gold 20 Franc coins, which were going to be paid to corrupt

Vichy France Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its t ...

officials in North Africa in order to secure their cooperation during the coming invasion. However, after Clark landed in Gibraltar, the coins were lost overboard when they were on the final leg of their journey. Also, on 5 November

General Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War I ...

and British General Kenneth Anderson was flown on a 97th BG B-17 were flown from Britainto Gibraltar. The following day, General James Doolittle, the newly named commander of

was flown to Gibraltar. Doolittle's B-17 was intercepted by four Ju-88s over the

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay (), known in Spain as the Gulf of Biscay ( es, Golfo de Vizcaya, eu, Bizkaiko Golkoa), and in France and some border regions as the Gulf of Gascony (french: Golfe de Gascogne, oc, Golf de Gasconha, br, Pleg-mor Gwaskogn), ...

, forcing the pilot to dive sharply and make a run for it just above the ocean's surface. The co-pilot of the aircraft was injured by a strafing run of one of the German aircraft, and Doolittle reached for the first aid kit and attended to the wounded man. Afterward, Doolittle sat in the co-pilot's seat and helped fly the aircraft to Gibraltar. Shortly after the invasion, the 97th and 301st moved from their bases in England to an airfield at Tafraoui, Algeria. The conditions in Algeria were sparse compared to that in England, but by 24 November the two groups attacked the docks at

Bizerte Bizerte or Bizerta ( ar, بنزرت, translit=Binzart , it, Biserta, french: link=no, Bizérte) the classical Hippo, is a city of Bizerte Governorate in Tunisia. It is the northernmost city in Africa, located 65 km (40mil) north of the cap ...

, Tunisia. As the American forces moved eastward, the 5th's units flew from Algeria beginning in January 1943, attacking coastal targets in Tunisia, and also concentrations of Rommel's

Afrika Corps The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (, }; DAK) was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African colonies, the f ...

. The 5th BW moved to Tunisia in August. Targets included airdromes, marshalling yards, bridges, and troop concentrations. In February 1943, the 5th, in direct support of ground operations, bombed enemy troop concentrations in the

Kasserine Pass The Battle of Kasserine Pass was a series of battles of the Tunisian campaign of World War II that took place in February 1943 at Kasserine Pass, a gap in the Grand Dorsal chain of the Atlas Mountains in west central Tunisia. The Axis forces, ...

. From its airfields in Tunisia, its subordinate units bombed

Pantelleria Pantelleria (; Sicilian: ''Pantiddirìa'', Maltese: ''Pantellerija'' or ''Qawsra''), the ancient Cossyra or Cossura, is an Italian island and comune in the Strait of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea, southwest of Sicily and east of the Tunisi ...

, Sicily, and marshaling yards and airdromes on the Italian mainland. By October, the 5th Bomb Wing consisted of the two B-17 groups as well as two P-38 equipped fighter groups (1st, 325th FG). On 1 November 1943,

was established as a second American strategic air force in the European Theater. It was hoped that the 15th AF stationed in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

would be able to operate when the Eighth Air Force in England was socked in by bad English weather. Twelfth Air Force would continue to operate, however it would be realigned as a tactical air force. The 97th and 301st were joined with three additional B-17 groups (2d, 98th 99th BG) with its reassignment to Fifteenth Air Force. Missions were flown from Tunisia in November against a Messerschmidt assembly plant in Austria, and against some Italian targets, however the wing and its groups were in the process of moving to new airfields captured around

Foggia Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known ...

in Italy in late September. Advanced echelons moved initially, working with engineering units to prepare the airfields and extend runways to accommodate the B-17. The 2d Bomb Group moved to Amendola airfield, while the 97th moved to the Foggia airfield, as its base at San Giovanni was still not ready. The 301st flew into Cerignola and the 99th into Tortorella. Once settled into their new bases around

the 5th began a series of raids, attacking enemy targets in Germany, Austria, Hungary,

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

, Greece, and Bulgaria. In June 1944, its groups began "shuttle bombing" and landing on airfields behind the Russian front. On these missions, American aircraft took off from airdromes in Italy, made a bombing attack, and landed on airdromes in the Soviet Union. Then they reversed the process. In August 1944, the 5th Wing supported

Operation Dragoon Operation Dragoon (initially Operation Anvil) was the code name for the landing operation of the Allied invasion of Provence ( Southern France) on 15August 1944. Despite initially designed to be executed in conjunction with Operation Overlord ...

, the invasion of Southern France. The 5th Bomb Wing continued strategic bombing missions until the Germans surrendered in May 1945. It was inactivated in Italy on 2 November 1945.

Cold War

(SAC) formed two new air divisions in early 1951. The

7th Air Division The 7th Air Division (7 AD) served the United States Air Force with distinction from early 1944 through early 1992, earning an outstanding unit decoration and a service streamer along the way. History Hawaii As the 7th Fighter Wing, the divis ...

was formed for its bases in England, while the 5th Wing was redesignated the 5th Air Division and activated at

Offutt Air Force Base Offutt Air Force Base is a U.S. Air Force base south of Omaha, adjacent to Bellevue in Sarpy County, Nebraska. It is the headquarters of the U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), the 557th Weather Wing, and the 55th Wing (55 WG) of the Ai ...

, Nebraska, where Maj Gen Archie J. Old, Jr. formed its

cadre Cadre may refer to: *Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff *Cadre (politics) In political contexts a cadre (, , ) consists of a person recognized as a capable militant within a political ...

before it moved overseas to control SAC units in Morocco. The 7th Division, led by Brig Gen Paul T. Cullen, was the first to deploy, leaving for England in March, but the

Douglas C-124 Globemaster II The Douglas C-124 Globemaster II, nicknamed "Old Shaky", is an American heavy-lift cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, California. The C-124 was the primary heavy-lift transport for United States Air Force (U ...

aircraft carrying General Cullen and his staff crashed in the Atlantic, leaving no survivors. General Old hastily flew to England, where he took command of the 7th Division until a permanent commander could arrive. Once a new commander was appointed in May, General Old and his staff proceeded to Morocco to establish the 5th Division

headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...

there. The division exercised jurisdiction over three bases built for SAC bombers in Morocco,

Ben Guerir Air Base Ben Guerir Air Base is a Royal Moroccan Air Force base in the Marraksh-Safi region, located about north of Marrakech, near the town of Ben Guerir. It previously served as a United States Air Force base and Transatlantic Abort Landing (TAL) s ...

, and Nouasseur Air Base.Schake, et al. p. 131The original plan was for five bases, all of them

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Ar ...

installations, but of this list only Nouasseur was used for deployed SAC bombers. The original agreement for the use of bases in Morocco had been negotiated in 1950, at a time when the country was still under French rule. The negotiations had not included the local

sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it c ...

, who became King Mohammed V when Morocco became fully independent in 1956. Although the kingdom honored other international commitments made by France, it insisted on new negotiations to determine the status of the division's bases. In 1957 the 5th Air Division was reassigned to

. Sixteenth Air Force also controlled four new bases in Spain that were being prepared for SAC use in anticipation of the possible loss of its Moroccan airfields. In September 1957, the B-47s at Sidi Slimane were put on ground alert, armed, fueled and ready to take off upon short notice. For the remainder of the division's existence in Morocco, this status, known as Reflex Action (usually shortened to just Reflex), would be the normal status for the Stratojets rotating through Morocco. From its headquarters the 5th supported, manned, trained, and equipped assigned units and prepared installations in support of Reflex operations until the end of 1957. The 1956 renegotiation of rights for its bases was complicated by the continuing French presence and desire for participation in the negotiations, which was opposed by Morocco, tying participation to the issue of

colonialism Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their reli ...

.Schake, et al. pp. 131–132 Finally, the USAF withdrew from Morocco at the request of the Moroccan government. The unit was inactivated on 15 January 1958, effectively being redesignated (though not in formal USAF lineage terms) the

Lineage

* Established as the 5th Bombardment Wing on 19 October 1940 : Activated on 18 December 1940 : Inactivated on 5 September 1941 * Activated on 10 July 1942 : Redesignated 5th Bombardment Wing, Heavy on 1 January 1945 : Inactivated on 2 November 1945 * Redesignated 5th Air Division on 10 January 1951 : Activated on 14 January 1951 : Inactivated on 25 January 1952 : Organized on 25 January 1952 : Inactivated on 15 January 1958

Assignments

* GHQ Air Force, 18 December 1940-unknown *

Second Air Force The Second Air Force (2 AF; ''2d Air Force'' in 1942) is a USAF numbered air force responsible for conducting basic military and technical training for Air Force enlisted members and non-flying officers. In World War II the CONUS unit defende ...

, unknown-5 September 1941 *

, 10 July 1942-unknown (attached to

First Air Force The First Air Force (Air Forces Northern; 1 AF-AFNORTH) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Its primary mission is the air defense of the C ...

) * XII Air Support Command, c. 13 October 1942 *

, 1 November 1943 – 15 September 1945 * Unknown, 16 September – 2 November 1945 *

, 14 January 1951 – 25 January 1952; 25 January 1952 *

, 1 July 1957 – 15 January 1958

Stations

, Washington, 18 December 1940 – 9 January 1941 * Fort George Wright, Washington. 9 January – 5 September 1941 *

Bolling Field The origins of the surname Bolling: English: from a nickname for someone with close-cropped hair or a large head, Middle English bolling "pollard", or for a heavy drinker, from Middle English bolling "excessive drinking". German (Bölling): from ...

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle (Washington, D.C.), Logan Circle, Jefferson Memoria ...

, 10–31 July 1942 * Westover Field, Massachusetts, c. 31 July – October 1942 *

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

, French Morocco, November 1942 * Oujda Airfield, French Morocco, December 1942 * Biskra Airfield, Algeria, c. January 1943 * Chateaudun Du Rhumel Airfield, Algeria, c. March 1943 *

Depienne Airfield Depienne Airfield is a World War II airfield in Tunisia, located approximately 12 km northeast of El Fahs, and 53 km southwest of Tunis. The airfield was first used by the German Luftwaffe in 1941 and 1942, and was captured by the Bri ...

, Tunisia, August 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, December 1943 – 2 November 1945 * Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, 14 January – 25 May 1951 * Rabat/Sale Airfield, French Morocco, 25 May 1951 – 25 January 1952 *

, French Morocco (later, Morocco), 29 May 1954 – 15 January 1958

Components

Wings

* (Numerous Strategic Air Command Wings were attached to the Division while deployed from the United States to Morocco for rotating Operation Reflex deployments 1951–1958)

Groups

* 1st Fighter Group: May 1943, January – 27 March 1944 *

2d Bombardment Group 002, 0O2, O02, OO2, or 002 may refer to: Airports *0O2, Baker Airport *O02, Nervino Airport Astronomy *1996 OO2, the minor planet 7499 L'Aquila *1990 OO2, the asteroid 9175 Graun Fiction *002, fictional British 00 Agent *'' 002 Operazione Lu ...

: 1 November 1943 – 15 December 1945 * 12th Bombardment Group: 15 January – December 1941 * 14th Fighter Group: May – 10 July 1943; 14–25 July 1943; September–November 1943 * 17th Bombardment Group: 18 December 1940 – 25 May 1941 * 39th Bombardment Group: 15 January – 5 September 1941 *

47th Bombardment Group 47th may refer to: Chicago Transit Authority stations * 47th station (CTA Green Line) 47th is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's "L" system, located in the Grand Boulevard community area of Chicago, Illinois and serving the Green ...

: October–December 1942; 22 January – 18 February 1943 * 68th Reconnaissance Group: November 1943 – April 1944 *

82d Fighter Group 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of ...

: 13 January – 27 March 1944 * 97th Bombardment Group: January 1943 – 29 October 1945 * 98th Bombardment Group: 1–17 November 1943 * 99th Bombardment Group: 1 November 1943 – November 1945 * 301st Bombardment Group: January 1943 – 10 July 1945 *

325th Fighter Group 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

: 22 October 1943 – 26 March 1944 * 376th Bombardment Group: 1–17 November 1943 * 463d Bombardment Group: 9 March 1944 – 25 September 1945 *

483d Bombardment Group 483rd or 483d may refer to: *483d Bombardment Squadron or 303d Air Refueling Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit *483d Tactical Airlift Wing, tactical airlift and composite wing assigned to Pacific Air Forces during the Vietnam War See ...

: 17 March 1944 – 25 September 1945

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* * * {{Navboxes , list = {{USAAF 12th Air Force World War II {{USAAF 15th Air Force World War II {{USAAF 2d Air Force World War II Military units and formations established in 1951 Military units and formations disestablished in 1958 005