The 622d Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron is a provisional

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 Signal ...

unit, assigned to

United States Air Forces Europe United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

to activate or inactivate as needed. The

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

was first established during

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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

as the 22d Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron. It served in the

European Theater of Operations The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a Theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It commanded Army Ground For ...

, where it earned a

Distinguished Unit Citation The Presidential Unit Citation (PUC), originally called the Distinguished Unit Citation, is awarded to units of the uniformed services of the United States, and those of allied countries, for extraordinary heroism in action against an armed enem ...

and a French Croix de Guerre with Palm for its actions in combat. The unit was again active in the

reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US vi ...

as the 22d Reconnaissance Squadron from 1947 to 1949 but apparently was not equipped with its own aircraft. In 1985 the squadron was consolidated with the 622d Air Refueling Squadron. The 622d Air Refueling Squadron served with

Tactical Air Command Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. It was inactivated on 1 J ...

England Air Force Base England Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base in Louisiana, located northwest of Alexandria and about northwest of New Orleans. Originally known as Alexandria Army Air Base, on 23 June 1955 the facility was renamed England Ai ...

, Louisiana from July 1955 until April 1964, refueling tactical fighers and other tactical aircraft. It was converted to provisional status in 2000 and operated from Istres le Tube Airfield.

History

World War II

The first predecessor of the

was activated at

Peterson Field Peterson Space Force Base, previously Peterson Air Force Base, Peterson Field, and Army Air Base, Colorado Springs, is a U.S. Space Force Base that shares an airfield with the adjacent Colorado Springs Municipal Airport and is home to the Nor ...

, Colorado in September 1942 as the 22d Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron, a component of the

5th Photographic Group The 26th Information Operations Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with United States Air Forces in Europe at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, where it was inactivated on 5 July 2006. The wing was first establis ...

.Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 117 The outfit existed essentially on paper until 21 December 1943 when 12 officers and 129 enlisted men were transferred from the 10th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron. After training, the unit left Colorado Springs on 17 May 1943 and traveled to England aboard the . There it served as a photographic reconnaissance unit until the end of the war. The squadron arrived at the

RAF Mount Farm Royal Air Force Station Mount Farm or more simply RAF Mount Farm is a former Royal Air Force station located north of Dorchester, Oxfordshire, England. History USAAF use Mount Farm was originally a satellite airfield for the RAF Photograp ...

airfield on 8 June 1943. The unit was equipped with

Lockheed F-5 Lightning The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twi ...

photographic aircraft and its first mission was flown on 24 June 1943. The 22d Photographic Squadron, along with the 13th and 14th Photographic Squadrons into the on 7 July 1943, when the

7th Photographic Reconnaissance and Mapping Group The United States Air Force's 373d Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Group is a Twenty-Fifth Air Force unit located at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. Mission The 373 ISRG is the Department ...

transferred to England on paper.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 45–46 In 1943, the 22d was among the squadrons flying the first photo reconnaissance missions against

Peenemünde Peenemünde (, en, "Peene iverMouth") is a municipality on the Baltic Sea island of Usedom in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is part of the ''Amt'' (collective municipality) of Usedom-Nord. The communi ...

. It received a

for its coverage of bridges,

marshalling yard A classification yard (American and Canadian English (Canadian National Railway use)), marshalling yard (British, Hong Kong, Indian, Australian, and Canadian English (Canadian Pacific Railway use)) or shunting yard (Central Europe) is a railway ya ...

s, canals, highways, and other targets that contributed to the success of the Normandy Campaign. It provided reconnaissance support for the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive (military), offensive military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted fr ...

and the Rhine crossings. Its work was also recognized by the French, who awarded the unit the French Croix de Guerre with Palm.

Air Force Reserve

The squadron was redesignated as the 22d Reconnaissance Squadron in 1947 and activated the

. It apparently was not fully equipped and was inactivated in the summer of 1949 when

Continental Air Command Continental Air Command (ConAC) (1948–1968) was a Major Command of the United States Air Force (USAF) responsible primarily for administering the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve. During the Korean War, ConAC provided the necessary au ...

adopted the wing base organization for its reserve units.

Tactical Air Command

The 622d Air Refueling Squadron was established at

Alexandria Air Force Base Alexandria International Airport is a public use airport located four nautical miles (5 mi, 7 km) west of the central business district of Alexandria, in Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. The airport is operated by the ...

, Louisiana in 1955 to provide dedicated

air refueling Aerial refueling, also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from one aircraft (the tanker) to another (the receiver) while both aircraft a ...

, initially for

North American F-100 Super Sabre The North American F-100 Super Sabre is an American supersonic jet fighter aircraft that served with the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1954 to 1971 and with the Air National Guard (ANG) until 1979. The first of the Century Series of ...

s and later for other in-flight refueling capable

fighters,

fighter bomber A fighter-bomber is a fighter aircraft that has been modified, or used primarily, as a light bomber or attack aircraft. It differs from bomber and attack aircraft primarily in its origins, as a fighter that has been adapted into other roles, wh ...

s, and reconnaissance aircraft. The squadron was initially equipped with transferred

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 ...

Boeing KB-29M Superfortresses that were converted to aerial tankers using a British-developed probe and drogue refueling system. The squadron re-equipped with

Boeing KB-50 Superfortress The Boeing B-50 Superfortress is an American strategic bomber. A post–World War II revision of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, it was fitted with more powerful Pratt & Whitney R-4360 radial engines, stronger structure, a taller tail fin, and ot ...

tankers in 1957 which provided greater speed to refuel jet aircraft. KB-50s were modified about 1960 to the KB-50J configuration, which added a

General Electric J47 The General Electric J47 turbojet (GE company designation TG-190) was developed by General Electric from its earlier J35. It first flew in May 1948. The J47 was the first axial-flow turbojet approved for commercial use in the United States. It ...

turbojet engine underneath each wing in place of the auxiliary fuel tanks in order to increase the speed of the aircraft while conducting air refueling operations. By 1963 aircraft were phased out due to age. SAC, with KC-97s and KC-135s became the Air Force's single manager for air refueling. The squadron inactivated in early 1964 when KB-50Js sent to

Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center The 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (309th AMARG),Offici ...

at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona.

Recent operations

The consolidated squadron was converted to provisional status and redesignated the 622d Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron. It operated from Istres le Tube in France from 2000 to 2004, providing air refueling to aircraft supporting the NATO

Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina The Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina (SFOR) was a NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Bosnian war. Although SFOR was led by NATO, several non-NATO countries contributed troops. It ...

, Operation Joint Forge.

Lineage

; 22d Reconnaissance Squadron * Constituted as the 22d Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron on 14 July 1942 : Activated on 2 September 1942 : Redesignated 22d Photographic Squadron on 6 February 1943 : Redesignated 22d Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron on 13 November 1943 : Inactivated on 16 December 1945 : Redesignated 22d Reconnaissance Squadron, Photographic on 11 March 1947 * Activated in the reserve on 23 October 1947 : Inactivated on 27 June 1949 : Consolidated with the 622d Air Refueling Squadron as the 622d Air Refueling Squadron on 19 September 1985 (remained inactive)Department of the Air Force/MPM Letter 662q, 19 Sep 85, Subject: Reconstitution, Redesignation, and Consolidation of Selected Air Force Tactical Squadrons 622d Air Refueling Squadron * Constituted as the 622d Air Refueling Squadron, Fighter-Bomber on 1 July 1955 : Activated on 18 July 1955 : Redesignated 622d Air Refueling Squadron, Tactical on 1 July 1958 : Inactivated on 1 April 1964 * Consolidated with the 22d Reconnaissance Squadron as the 622d Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy on 19 September 1985 (remained inactive) * Converted to provisional status and redesignated 622d Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron on 7 July 2000 : Activated on 24 July 2000 : Inactivated on 22 December 2004

Assignments

* 5th Photographic Group (later 5th Photographic Reconnaissance and Mapping Group): 2 September 1942 (attached to

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 Force ...

after 8 June 1943) * 7th Photographic Reconnaissance and Mapping Group (later 7th Photographic Group, 7th Reconnaissance Group): 7 July 1943 – 21 November 1945 * 74th Reconnaissance Group: 23 October 1947 - 27 June 1949Assignments, Stations and Aircraft through 1949 in Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 117 *

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 ...

: 1 July 1955 (attached to

366th Fighter-Bomber Wing ("Fortune Favors the Bold") , colors= , colors_label= , march= , mascot= , battles= World War IIVietnam WarDesert StormOperation Enduring FreedomOperation Iraqi Freedom , anniversaries= , decorations= DUC PUC AFOUA w/ V Device RVGC w/ ...

)Ravenstein, pp. 194-195 *

Eighteenth Air Force Eighteenth Air Force (Air Forces Transportation) (18 AF) is the only Numbered Air Force (NAF) in Air Mobility Command (AMC) and one of the largest NAFs in the United States Air Force. 18 AF was activated on 28 March 1951, inactivated on 1 Janu ...

: 1 October 1957 (attached to

) *

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 U ...

: 1 January 1958 (attached to

until 1 July 1958) * 4505th Air Refueling Wing: 18 July 1958 * 4440th Aircraft Delivery Group: 8 October 1963 – 1 April 1964 (nonoperational) * 16th Expeditionary Operations Group 24 July 2000 – 22 December 2004

Stations

* Peterson Field, Colorado, 2 September 1942 – 17 May 1943 *

, England, 8 June 1943 (detachment operated from

Attlebridge Attlebridge is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is situated about 8 miles (13 km) north-west of Norwich, where the A1067 crosses the River Wensum. The civil parish has an area of 5.27 square kilometres and in ...

, England, 14 February - ''ca''. 6 March 1944) *

RAF Chalgrove Chalgrove is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire about southeast of Oxford. The parish includes the hamlet of Rofford and the former parish of Warpsgrove with which it merged in 1932. The 2011 Census recorded the parish populatio ...

, England, 26 March 1945 * Villacoublay Airfield, France, c. 14 October 1945 - ''ca''. 5 December 1945 *

Camp Kilmer Located in Central New Jersey, Camp Kilmer is a former United States Army camp that was activated in June 1942 as a staging area and part of an installation of the New York Port of Embarkation. The camp was organized as part of the Army Service ...

, New Jersey, 15 December 1945 – 15 December 1945 *

Stewart Field Stewart Air National Guard Base, located in Orange County, New York, is the base of the 105th Airlift Wing (105 AW), an Air Mobility Command unit of the New York Air National Guard and "host" wing for the installation. The airport also host ...

, New York, 23 October 1947 *

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2020 ...

, 5 March 1948 - 27 June 1949 * Alexandria Air Force Base (later England Air Force Base), Louisiana, 18 July 1955 – 1 April 1964Mueller, p. 168 *

Istres-Le Tubé Air Base Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (french: Base Aérienne 125 or BA 125) is a large multi-role tasked French Air and Space Force base located near Istres, northwest of Marseille, France. The airport facilities are also known as Istres - Le Tubé (ICA ...

, 24 July 2000 - 22 December 2004

Aircraft

Lockheed P-38 Lightning The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twi ...

, 1943-1945 * Lockheed F-5 Lightning, 1943-1945 *

Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Grif ...

, 1943-1945 *

North American P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter aircraft, fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team ...

, 1945 * Boeing KB-29M Superfortress, 1955-1957 * Boeing KB-50 Superfortress, 1957-1963 *

Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of transpor ...

, 2003-2004

Awards and campaigns

References

Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * * * *
TacTankers.com - 622d Air Refueling Squadron

External links

* * {{Tactical Air Command Air refueling squadrons of the United States Air Force Military units and formations established in 1942 1942 establishments in Colorado