The 74th Reconnaissance Squadron is an active

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, part of the

9th Reconnaissance Wing The 9th Reconnaissance Wing (9 RW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command and Sixteenth Air Force. It is stationed at Beale Air Force Base, California. The wing is also the host unit at Beale. Its mission is to ...

Beale Air Force Base Beale Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base located approximately east of Marysville, California. It is located outside Linda, about east of the towns of Marysville and Yuba City, and about north of Sacramento. The host ...

, California. 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 active 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 opposing ...

as the 74th Aero Squadron. In 1933 it was consolidated with the 74th Pursuit Squadron, which had been organized as a

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 ...

training organization in 1927, activating in the Panama Canal Zone, where it served during

as the 74th Bombardment Squadron. During the Korean War, the

was redesignated the 135th Bombardment Squadron and assigned to the

106th Bombardment Wing 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

, a federalized Air National Guard unit, at

March Air Force Base March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB) is located in Riverside County, California between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Command's ...

, California. It was inactivated on 1 December 1952 when the 106th Wing was returned to the National Guard and replaced by the regular 320th Bombardment Wing. The squadron was reactivated as a reconnaissance unit in December 2019.

History

Aero Squadron

The first predecessor of the

was established at

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the st ...

in February 1918 as the 74th Aero Squadron,This was the second Air Service unit designated as the 74th Aero Squadron. The first had been redesignated as the 486th Aero Squadron In July 1918, the 74th moved to the

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

area, where it served, probably with

Airco DH.4 The Aircraft Manufacturing Company Limited (Airco) was an early British aircraft manufacturer. Established during 1912, it grew rapidly during the First World War, referring to itself as the largest aircraft company in the world by 1918. Ai ...

aircraft as a tactical defense unit until it was demobilized in January 1919. It was again organized at

Langley Field Langley may refer to: People * Langley (surname), a common English surname, including a list of notable people with the name * Dawn Langley Simmons (1922–2000), English author and biographer * Elizabeth Langley (born 1933), Canadian perfo ...

, Virginia in June, but was again demobilized on 25 September 1919

Interwar years

74th Attack Squadron flight Northrup A-17s

74th Attack Squadron flight Northrup A-17 Ground Crew

The second predecessor of the unit was constituted as the 74th Attack Squadron in October 1927 as a Regular Army Inactive unit and allotted to the

Eighth Corps Area A Corps area was a geographically-based organizational structure (military district) of the United States Army used to accomplish administrative, training and tactical tasks from 1920 to 1942. Each corps area included divisions of the Regular Army ...

. Although inactive as a regular unit, it was partially organized with

personnel at

Fort Crockett Fort Crockett is a government reservation on Galveston Island overlooking the Gulf of Mexico originally built as a defense installation to protect the city and harbor of Galveston and to secure the entrance to Galveston Bay, thus protecting the c ...

, Texas.

Organized Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed Forces. Since July 2020 ...

officers assigned to the unit participated in summer training at Fort Crockett with elements of the

3d Attack Group The 3rd Operations Group is the operational flying component of the United States Air Force 3rd Wing. It is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska, and is assigned to Pacific Air Forces' Eleventh Air Force. The group is a co ...

. In May 1929, it was redesignated the 74th Pursuit Squadron and assigned to the

18th 18 (eighteen) is the natural number following 17 and preceding 19. In mathematics * Eighteen is a composite number, its divisors being 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9. Three of these divisors (3, 6 and 9) add up to 18, hence 18 is a semiperfect number. ...

, then to the

20th Pursuit Group The 20th Operations Group (20 OG) is the flying component of the 20th Fighter Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force Air Combat Command. It is stationed at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is a successor organization of the 20t ...

for administration.Clay, p. 1425 The squadron was activated as a regular unit in October 1933 at

Albrook Field Albrook Air Force Station is a former United States Air Force facility in Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern ...

, Panama Canal Zone and equipped with

Boeing P-12 The Boeing P-12/F4B was an American pursuit aircraft that was operated by the United States Army Air Corps , United States Marine Corps, and United States Navy. Design and development Developed as a private venture to replace the Boeing F2B a ...

s, while its reservists remained at Fort Crockett. It was assigned to the

16th Pursuit Group The 1st Special Operations Wing (1 SOW) at Hurlburt Field, Florida is one of three United States Air Force active duty Special Operations wings and falls under the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). The 1st Special Operations Wing is ...

at Albrook. Three years later the two squadrons were consolidated into a single unit. The squadron was redesignated the 74th Attack Squadron on 1 September 1937 and equipped with

Northrop A-17 The Northrop A-17, a development of the Northrop Gamma 2F model, was a two-seat, single-engine, monoplane, attack bomber built in 1935 by the Northrop Corporation for the United States Army Air Corps. When in British Commonwealth service during W ...

s. Reorganized and redesignated 74th Bombardment Squadron on 1 November 1939. Redesignated as the 74th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 6 December 1939. Relieved from assignment to the 16th Pursuit Group. Designated as the 74th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) at Albrook Field circa 5 March 1940, converting to Douglas

B-18 Bolo The Douglas B-18 Bolo is an American heavy bomber which served with the United States Army Air Corps and the Royal Canadian Air Force (as the Digby) during the late 1930s and early 1940s. The Bolo was developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company f ...

. On 20 November 1940, the squadron was again re-designated as the 74th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy). On 14 July, the squadron moved from Albrook to

Howard Field Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...

, in anticipation of receipt of its first Boeing B-17B Flying Fortress the following month.

World War II

B-24D Liberators Rio Hato Panama 1944 41-24063

The Squadron moved from Howard Field to Aguadulce Field, Panama, on 8 November 1941 and, following the

Pearl Harbor Attack The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, ...

, moved to Rio Hato Army Airfield on 11 December. By 16 January 1942, the unit had been transformed, and found itself at Guatemala City Airport, Guatemala, equipped with six Boeing B-17B's and four B-17E's taken over and consolidated from other units. In August 1942, the Squadron was assigned to the

40th Bombardment Group 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

and this assignment lasted until 12 May 1943. Began conversion to Consolidated B-24D Liberators in mid-1943. By October 1943, the 74th was the only Sixth Air Force tactical unit still operating from Guatemala City Airport and, the following month, ended its association with the

6th Bombardment Group Alec Trevelyan (006) is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1995 James Bond film '' GoldenEye'', the first film to feature actor Pierce Brosnan as Bond. Trevelyan is portrayed by actor Sean Bean. The likeness of Bean as Ale ...

, when that organization was disbanded. It subsequently fell directly under

VI Bomber Command The VI Bomber Command was a military formation of the United States Army Air Forces. Its last assignment was with Sixth Air Force. It was based throughout its service at Albrook Field, in the Panama Canal Zone. It was inactivated on 1 Novembe ...

. The period between April and August, the unit moved again to the remote Seymour Island AAF on the Galapagos Islands. The move accomplished, the unit engaged in patrols over the eastern Pacific. The unit returned to Aguadulce Field, Panama, on 13 February 1945 after only some seven months. In May. the Squadron moved to Rio Hato Field, remaining until the end of the war, being inactivated on 1 November 1946.

Korean War

The squadron was reactivated as the 135th Bombardment Squadron on 27 March 1951. It operated

B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is an American four-engined propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to its predecessor, the B-17 F ...

es as part of the Federalized 106th Bombardment Group, New York Air National Guard that was elevated to active duty at

, California during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. The 135th Bomb Squadron continued operations under SAC's Fifteenth Air Force until it was inactivated, with personnel and equipment being assigned to the 320th Bombardment Wing when the guardsmen were relieved from active duty on 1 December 1952.

Reconnaissance operations

The squadron was redesignated the 74th Reconnaissance Squadron and activated at

, California in December 2019. At Beale, it was assigned to the 9th Operations Group.

Lineage

; 74th Aero Squadron * Organized as the 74th Aero Squadron (Service) on 22 February 1918 : Demobilized on 28 January 1919 * Organized on 17 June 1919 : Demobilized on 25 September 1919 * Reconstituted and consolidated with the 74th Attack Squadron as the 74th Attack Squadron c. 16 October 1936Lineage information in Ream, Factsheet 74 Reconnaissance Squadron, except as noted. ; 74th Reconnaissance Squadron * Constituted as the 74th Attack Squadron on 18 October 1927 and organized as a Regular Army Inactive unit : Redesignated 74th Pursuit Squadron on 8 May 1929 : Activated on 1 October 1933 * Consolidated with the 74th Aero Squadron c. 5 December 1936 : Redesignated 74th Attack Squadron on 1 September 1937 : Redesignated 74th Bombardment Squadron on 1 November 1939 : Redesignated 74th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 6 December 1939 : Redesignated 74th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 20 November 1940 : Redesignated 74th Bombardment Squadron, Heavy c. August 1943 : Inactivated on 1 November 1946 * Redesignated: 135th Bombardment Squadron, Medium on 27 March 1951 : Activated on 1 May 1951 : Inactivated on 1 December 1952 * Redesignated 74th Reconnaissance Squadron on 4 December 2019 : Activated on 19 December 2019

Assignments

* Unknown, 1918–1919 * Allotted to

on 18 October 1927 * 18th Pursuit Group, 8 May 1929 * 20th Pursuit Group, 15 June 1932 * 16th Pursuit Group, 1 October 1933 *

, 1 February 1940 *

, 9 August 1942 * 6th Bombardment Group, 12 May 1943 *

, 1 November 1943 – 1 November 1946 * 106th Bombardment Group, 1 May 1951 * 106th Bombardment Wing, 16 June – 1 December 1952 * 9th Operations Group, 19 December 2019 – present

Stations

* Waco, Texas, 22 February 1918 * Call Field, Texas, 1 March 1918 *

Hazelhurst Field Roosevelt Field is a former airport, located east-southeast of Mineola, Long Island, New York. Originally called the Hempstead Plains Aerodrome, or sometimes Hempstead Plains field or the Garden City Aerodrome, it was a training field (Hazel ...

, New York, 29 July 1918 *

Roosevelt Field Roosevelt Field is a former airport, located east-southeast of Mineola, Long Island, New York. Originally called the Hempstead Plains Aerodrome, or sometimes Hempstead Plains field or the Garden City Aerodrome, it was a training field (Hazel ...

, New York, September 1918 * Garden City, New York, Unknown-28 January 1919 * Langley Field, Virginia, 17 June – 25 September 1919 * Fort Crockett, Texas, 18 October 1927 *

, Panama Canal Zone, 1 October 1933 *

, Panama Canal Zone, 14 July 1941 * Aguadulce Airfield, Panama, 8 November 1941 * Rio Hato Airfield, Panama, c. 11 December 1941 *

Guatemala City Guatemala City ( es, Ciudad de Guatemala), known locally as Guatemala or Guate, is the capital and largest city of Guatemala, and the most populous urban area in Central America. The city is located in the south-central part of the country, ne ...

, Guatemala, 9 January 1942 * Rio Hato Airfield, Panama, c. 7 April 1944 *

Seymour Island Airfield Seymour Galapagos Ecological Airport (Spanish: ''Aeropuerto Ecológico Galápagos Seymour'') is an airport serving the island of Baltra, one of the Galápagos Islands in Ecuador. Facilities The airport became the world's first "green" airp ...

Galápagos Islands The Galápagos Islands (Spanish: , , ) are an archipelago of volcanic islands. They are distributed on each side of the equator in the Pacific Ocean, surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere, and are part of the Republic of Ecuador ...

, Ecuador, c. 21 August 1944 * Aguadulce Airfield, Panama, 13 February 1945 * Rio Hato Airfield, Panama, 3. May 1945-1 November 1946 * March Air Force Base, California, 1 May 1951 – 1 December 1952 * Beale Air Force Base, California, 19 December 2019 – present

Aircraft

* DH-4 Liberty Plane, 1918–1919 * Boeing P-12, 1933–1937 * OA-3, 1933–1937 * B-6, 1933–1937 * Northrop A-17 Nomad, 1937–1940 * A-8, 1937–1940 * 0A-9, 1937–1940 *

Douglas B-18 Bolo The Douglas B-18 Bolo is an American heavy bomber which served with the United States Army Air Corps and the Royal Canadian Air Force (as the Digby) during the late 1930s and early 1940s. The Bolo was developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company ...

, 1939–1942 * Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, 1942–1943 * Consolidated B-24 Liberator, 1942–1946 * Boeing B-29 Superfortress, 1951–1952

References

Notes

; Explanatory Notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

AFHRA Document 00044435 74th Bombardment Squadron, 1918-1941

AFHRA Document 00044436 74th Bombardment Squadron, 1941–1942

AFHRA Document 00044458 74th Bombardment Squadron, 1942–1945

AFHRA Document 00044437 74th Bombardment Squadron, 1944

AFHRA Document 00044438 74th Bombardment Squadron, 1944

AFHRA 135th Bombardment Squadron, 1951–1952
* http://www.footnote.com/image/#19955968 * http://www.footnote.com/image/#19067759 * {{USAAF 6th Air Force World War II Reconnaissance squadrons of the United States Air Force