The 85th Flying Training Squadron is part of the

47th Flying Training Wing The 47th Flying Training Wing is a United States Air Force pilot training wing based at Laughlin Air Force Base, near Del Rio, Texas. It is one of five pilot training units in the Air Force's Air Education and Training Command which conduct ...

based at

Laughlin Air Force Base Laughlin Air Force Base is a facility of the United States Air Force located east of Del Rio, Texas. Overview Laughlin AFB, the largest pilot training base in the US Air Force, is home to the 47th Flying Training Wing of the Air Education and ...

, Texas. It operates Beechcraft T-6 Texan II aircraft conducting flight training.

Mission

The current mission of the 85th Flying Training Wing is to take recent undergraduate pilots, from Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps or the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...

and qualify them to fly the T-6 Texan II aircraft.

History

World War II

The 85th was first activated as a bombardment squadron shortly before the United States entered

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 ...

. Stationed 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 it flew antisubmarine patrols following the

attack on Pearl Harbor 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, j ...

. The squadron was sent to North Africa to participate in

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

operations in the

Mediterranean Theater of Operations The Mediterranean Theater of Operations, United States Army (MTOUSA), originally called the North African Theater of Operations, United States Army (NATOUSA), was a military formation of the United States Army that supervised all U.S. Army forc ...

in late 1942 where it specialized in conducting low-level bombing missions against Axis forces. The unit 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 ...

for actions against German forces at

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, ...

in February 1943. Following the Axis defeat in North Africa the 85th participated in the reduction of Pantellaria and

Lampedusa Lampedusa ( , , ; scn, Lampidusa ; grc, Λοπαδοῦσσα and Λοπαδοῦσα and Λοπαδυῦσσα, Lopadoûssa; mt, Lampeduża) is the largest island of the Italian Pelagie Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. The ''comune'' of L ...

and the invasion of Sicily in the summer of 1943. The squadron next supported the

British Eighth Army The Eighth Army was an Allied field army formation of the British Army during the Second World War, fighting in the North African and Italian campaigns. Units came from Australia, British India, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Free French Forces, ...

during the invasion of Italy and continued to lead support combat support throughout the Italian Campaign, earning it a second Distinguished Unit Citation for actions in the

Po Valley The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...

21–24 April 1945. In August and September 1944 the 85th briefly broke off from the Italian Campaign to support the invasion of southern France.

Cold War

Following the Second World War the squadron remained an active bomber unit. It was the first squadron to operate the North American B-45 Tornado, the US Air Force's first jet bomber. It later transitioned to the Douglas B-66 Destroyer before being inactivated in May 1962.

Pilot training

The squadron was reactivated a decade later as a flying training squadron, replacing the 3645th Pilot Training Squadron at

, Texas.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 85th Bombardment Squadron (Light) on 20 November 1940 : Activated on 15 January 1941 : Redesignated 85th Bombardment Squadron, Light on 20 August 1943 : Redesignated 85th Bombardment Squadron, Light (Night Attack) on 16 April 1946 : Redesignated 85th Bombardment Squadron, Light, Jet on 23 June 1948 : Redesignated 85th Bombardment Squadron, Light on 16 November 1950 : Redesignated 85th Bombardment Squadron, Tactical on 1 October 1955 : Discontinued and inactivated on 22 June 1962 * Redesignated 85th Flying Training Squadron on 22 March 1972 : Activated on 1 September 1972

Assignments

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 ...

, 15 January 1941 *

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 ...

, 2 October 1949 * Ninth Air Force (attached to

363d Tactical Reconnaissance Group 363rd or 363d may refer to: * 363d Expeditionary Operations Group, inactive United States Air Force unit * 363d Bombardment Squadron or 19th Antisubmarine Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit * 363d Fighter Squadron or 164th Airlift Squa ...

), 17 October 1949 *

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 ...

, 1 Aug 1950 (remained attached to 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Group until 31 August 1950, then to

363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing The 363rd Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing (363 ISRW) is a United States Air Force unit. The group is assigned to the United States Air Force Sixteenth Air Force, stationed at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia. The mission ...

) * 47th Bombardment Group, 12 Mar 1951 (attached to

47th Bombardment Wing The 47th Flying Training Wing is a United States Air Force pilot training wing based at Laughlin Air Force Base, near Del Rio, Texas. It is one of five pilot training units in the Air Force's Air Education and Training Command which conducts ...

after 17 Nov 1952) * 47th Bombardment Wing, 8 February 1955 – 22 June 1962 * 47th Flying Training Wing, 1 September 1972 * 47th Operations Group, 15 December 1991 – present

Stations

* McChord Field,

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 on ...

(1941) *

Army Air Base Fresno Fresno Yosemite International Airport is a joint military/public airport in Fresno, California, United States. It is the primary commercial airport for the San Joaquin Valley and three national parks: Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon. It o ...

, California, 11 August 1941 *

Will Rogers Field Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

, Oklahoma, 17 February 1942 * Greensboro Army Air Base, North Carolina, 16 July–17 October 1942 *

Mediouna Airfield Mediouna may refer to: *Mediouna, Algeria Mediouna is a town and commune in Relizane Province, Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , ...

, French Morocco, c. 17 November 1942 *

Thelepte Airfield Thelepte Airfield is an airfield in Tunisia, located about 20 km southwest of Kasserine. It currently is active and in use. It was used by the United States Army Air Force Twelfth Air Force in 1943 during the North African Campaign again ...

, Tunisia, 9 January 1943 *

Youks-les-Bains Airfield Youks-les-Bains Airfield is an abandoned military airfield in Algeria, located about 20 km northwest of Tebessa. The airfield today consists of several agricultural fields, with the faint remains of its main runway, parts of a taxiway and ...

, Algeria, 16 February 1943 * Canrobert Airfield, Algeria, 27 February 1943 * Thelepte Airfield, Tunisia, 30 March 1943 *

Souk-el-Arba Airfield The Souk-el-Arba Airfields are a pair of World War II military airfields in Tunisia, located near what was at the time the village of Souk-el-Arba but since 1966 has been known as Jendouba. The location is approximately 130 km west-southwes ...

, Tunisia, 16 April 1943 *

Soliman Airfield Soliman Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield in Tunisia, located approximately 12 km west-northwest of Manzil Bū Zalafah, and 39 km southeast of Tunis. It was a temporary airfield, not designed for heavy bomber or ...

, Tunisia, 1 June 1943 *

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

, 22 July 1943 *

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, Italy, 12 August 1943 * Grottaglie Airfield, Italy, 24 September 1943 *

Vincenzo 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 strat ...

, Italy, 15 October 1943 *

Vesuvius Airfield Vesuvius Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield in Italy, located approximately east-northeast of San Giuseppe Vesuvianom about east of Naples. It was an all-weather temporary field built by the XII Engineer Command using a g ...

, Italy, 11 January 1944 *

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, 22 March 1944 * Vesuvius Airfield, Italy, 25 April 1944 * Ponte Galeria Airfield, Italy, 13 Jun 1944 *

Ombrone Airfield Ombrone Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield in Italy, located approximately 5 km south-west of Grosseto, and about 150 km northwest of Rome. It was a temporary airfield built by the US Army Corps of Engineers. T ...

, Italy, 26 June 1944 * Poretta Airfield,

Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...

, France, 15 July 1944 * Salon-de-Provence Airfield (Y-16), France, 4 Sep 1944 *

Follonica Airfield Follonica Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield in Italy, located in the vicinity of Follonica in Tuscany; about 180 km northwest of Rome. It was an all-weather temporary field built by the United States Army Air Force X ...

, Italy, 16 September 1944 *

Rosignano Airfield Rosignano Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield in Italy, located near the comune of Rosignano Marittimo in the Province of Livorno in Tuscany. The area was captured by the Fifth Army in the early summer of 1944, and the air ...

, Italy, 4 October 1944 *

Grosseto Airport Grosseto Airport ( it, Aeroporto di Grosseto) is an airport in central Italy, located west of Grosseto in the Italian region of Tuscany. Although it is classified as a "joint use" facility, Grosseto Airport is primarily an Italian Air Force ( ...

, Italy, 10 December 1944 *

Pisa Airfield Pisa International Airport ( it, Aeroporto Internazionale di Pisa) , also named Galileo Galilei Airport is an airport located in Pisa, Italy. It is the main airport in Tuscany and the 10th in Italy in terms of passengers. It is named after Galil ...

, Italy, 17–23 June 1945 *

Seymour Johnson Field Seymour Johnson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Goldsboro, North Carolina. The base is named for U.S. Navy Lt. Seymour A. Johnson, a test pilot from Goldsboro who died in an airplane crash near Norbeck, Maryland, ...

, North Carolina, c. 11 July 1945 * Lake Charles Army Air Field, Louisiana, 9 September 1945 * Biggs Field, Texas, 20 October 1946 *

Barksdale Air Force Base Barksdale Air Force Base (Barksdale AFB) is a United States Air Force (USAF) base in northwest Louisiana, United States, in Bossier Parish. It is contiguous to Bossier City, Louisiana, along the base's western and northwestern edge. Barksdale AFB ...

, Louisiana, 19 November 1948 *

Langley Air Force Base Langley Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Hampton, Virginia, adjacent to Newport News, Virginia, Newport News. It was one of List of airfields of the Training Section of the United States Army Air Service, thirty-two ...

, Virginia, 17 October 1949 – 21 May 1952 * RAF Sculthorpe, England, 31 May 1952 – 22 June 1962 * Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, 1 September 1972 – present)Station information in Bailey, except as noted.

Aircraft

* B-18 Bolo (1941–1942) *

DB-7 Boston The Douglas A-20 Havoc (company designation DB-7) is an American medium bomber, attack aircraft, night intruder, night fighter, and reconnaissance aircraft of World War II. Designed to meet an Army Air Corps requirement for a bomber, it was ...

(1941–1942) *

A-20 Havoc The Douglas A-20 Havoc (company designation DB-7) is an American medium bomber, attack aircraft, night intruder, night fighter, and reconnaissance aircraft of World War II. Designed to meet an Army Air Corps requirement for a bomber, it was or ...

(1941–1945) *

A-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 ...

(later, B-26) (1945–1949, 1950–1951) * North American B-45 Tornado (1949–1957) * Douglas B-66 Destroyer (1958–1962) *

T-37 Tweet The Cessna T-37 Tweet (designated Model 318 by Cessna) is a small, economical twin-engined jet trainer type which flew for decades as a primary trainer for the United States Air Force (USAF) and in the air forces of several other nations. The T ...