The 878th Bombardment Squadron is a former

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

unit. It was activated in November 1943, equipped with

Boeing 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 Fl ...

bombers, and assigned to the

499th Bombardment Group 499th may refer to: *499th Air Refueling Wing, aerial refueling unit located at Westover AFB, Massachusetts *499th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit *499th Fighter-Bomber Squadron The 499th Fighter-Bomber Squadron is ...

. After training in the United States, it deployed to

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

, where it participated in the strategic bombing campaign against Japan, earning two

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 ...

s. After

V-J Day Victory over Japan Day (also known as V-J Day, Victory in the Pacific Day, or V-P Day) is the day on which Imperial Japan surrendered in World War II, in effect bringing the war to an end. The term has been applied to both of the days on ...

, it returned to the United States, where it was inactivated at

March Field March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Ma ...

, California on 16 February 1946.

History

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 activated at Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona in November 1943 as one of the original four squadrons of the

. Ten days later, a

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), a politically controlled appointment to an institution in order to circumvent the state and bring control to th ...

moved to

Smoky Hill Army Air Field Salina Regional Airport , formerly Salina Municipal Airport, is three miles southwest of Salina, Kansas, United States. The airport is owned by the Salina Airport Authority. It is used for general aviation, with service by one passenger airline, ...

, Kansas to begin

very heavy bomber training. The 878th trained in Kansas with early model B-29s, with frequent delays in training due to modifications of the aircraft correcting production deficiencies. When training was completed. the squadron moved to its combat base,

Isely Field Saipan International Airport , also known as Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport, is a public airport located on Saipan Island in the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The airport is owned by Commonwealth Port ...

, in the Mariana Islands in July 1944.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 565-566 The squadron did not arrive at its combat station until September 1944. The squadron's first missions were flown against targets on

Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...

and

Truk Island Chuuk Lagoon, previously Truk Atoll, is an atoll in the central Pacific. It lies about northeast of New Guinea, and is part of Chuuk State within the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). A protective reef, around, encloses a natural harbou ...

. On 24 November 1944, the squadron participated in the first raid on Japan by bombers based in the Mariana Islands. The squadron initially engaged in high altitude daylight attacks against industrial targets in Japan, It was awarded a

(DUC) for an attack on the

Mitsubishi The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries. Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group historically descended from the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870 ...

engine manufacturing plant in

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most pop ...

on 23 January 1945. In March 1945, the tactics of

Twentieth Air Force The Twentieth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) (20th AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming. 20 AF's primary mission is Interco ...

changed and the squadron began flying low level night attacks with

incendiaries Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using fire (and sometimes used as anti-personnel weaponry), that use materials such as napalm, th ...

against area targets. The squadron was diverted from strategic operations when it conducted a series of raids on

airfield An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...

s in

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surroun ...

to support

Operation Iceberg Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

, the landings on

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

in April 1945. The squadron earned a second DUC for this support. The squadron also dropped

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

leaflets in enemy territory. After

, the squadron dropped food and supplies to

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 ...

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

. It remained on Saipan until November and reassembled at

, California, where it was inactivated in February 1946.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 878th Bombardment Squadron, Very Heavy on 19 November 1943 : Activated on 20 November 1943 : Inactivated on 16 February 1946

Assignments

* 499th Bombardment Group, 20 November 1943 – 16 February 1946

Stations

* Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona, 20 November 1943 * Smoky Hill Army Air Field, Kansas, 1 December 1943 *

Clovis Army Air Field Cannon Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base, located approximately southwest of Clovis, New Mexico. It is under the jurisdiction of Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). The host unit at Cannon is the 27th Special Operatio ...

, New Mexico, 11 February 1944 * Smoky Hill Army Air Field, Kansas, 8 April–22 July 1944 * Isely Field, Saipan, Mariana Islands 22 September 1944 –c. November 1945 * March Field, California, c. November 1945 – 16 February 1946

Aircraft

Boeing 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 ...

, 1944 * Boeing B-29 Superfortress, 1944–1946

Awards and campaigns

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * Salmons, Harold Irvin Jr. "Crew History," post-war scrap book, circa 1947. {{USAAF 2d Air Force World War II Strategic bombing squadrons of the United States Army Air Forces Military units and formations established in 1943