The 87th Flying Training Squadron is part of the

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 ...

47th Flying Training Wing based at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas. It operates

T-38 Talon The Northrop T-38 Talon is a two-seat, twinjet supersonic jet trainer. It was the world's first, and the most produced, supersonic trainer. The T-38 remains in service in several air forces. The United States Air Force (USAF) operates the most ...

aircraft conducting flight training. The squadron is one of the oldest in the United States Air Force, its origins dating to 18 August 1917 when it was organized at

Selfridge Field Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located in Harrison Township, Michigan, near Mount Clemens. Selfridge Field was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the Unit ...

, Mount Clemens, Michigan as a pilot training Squadron during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The squadron saw combat 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 ...

, and became part of Air Defense Command, later

Aerospace Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was established in 1946, briefly ina ...

and finally Tactical Air Command during the Cold War.

History

World War I

It was activated as the 87th Aero Squadron. the 87th saw brief service in the 1910s and again in the 1930s.

World War II

It was reactivated in 1942 when it was transferred to

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

to fight against

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Afrika Korps 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 ...

. Following the German defeat and withdrawal from North Africa the 87th participated in the Allied

Invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis powers ( Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany). It bega ...

and Invasion of Italy and subsequent drive up the Italian Peninsula. During the Allied offensive in Italy the squadron was briefly dispatched to support the invasion of Southern France in 1944. Following the war the 87th was stationed in Austria for a short time before its return to the United States and inactivation.

Air Defense Command

87th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron North American F-86D-30-NA Sabre 51-6035 1956 Lockbourne AFB

87th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron-F-106-flightline

The 87th was again activated at Sioux City Municipal Airport, Iowa in 1952 to provide air defense of the central United States. Equipped with the North American F-51D Mustang, it was later equipped with the North American F-86D Sabre in 1953 prior to being reassigned to USAFE, stationed at

RAF Bentwaters Royal Air Force Bentwaters or more simply RAF Bentwaters, now known as Bentwaters Parks, is a former Royal Air Force station about northeast of London and east-northeast of Ipswich, near Woodbridge, Suffolk in England. Its name was taken fro ...

, England in 1954 assisting in the air defense of the United Kingdom. It was returned to CONUS in 1956 at

Lockbourne Air Force Base Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base is an Ohio Air National Guard installation located near Lockbourne in southern Franklin County. The base was named for the famous early aviator and Columbus native Eddie Rickenbacker. It is the home of ...

, Ohio with an air defense mission over the Ohio Valley. It was uas upgraded to the North American F-86L Sabre in 1957, an improved version of the F-86D which incorporated the

Semi Automatic Ground Environment The Semi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) was a system of large computers and associated networking equipment that coordinated data from many radar sites and processed it to produce a single unified image of the airspace over a wide area. SA ...

, or SAGE computer-controlled direction system for intercepts; upgraded again in 1960 to the supersonic

Convair F-102 Delta Dagger The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was an American interceptor aircraft designed and manufactured by Convair. Built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s, it entered service in 1956. Its main purpos ...

interceptor. The 87th was re-equipped with new McDonnell F-101B Voodoo supersonic interceptor, and the F-101F operational and conversion trainer in 1960. The two-seat trainer version was equipped with dual controls, but carried the same armament as the F-101B and were fully combat-capable. On 22 October 1962, before President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

told Americans that missiles were in place in Cuba, the squadron dispersed one-third of its force, equipped with nuclear tipped missiles to Clinton County Air Force Base at the start of the Cuban Missile Crisis. These planes returned to Lockbourne after the crisis. The F-101Bs were transferred to the Air National Guard in 1968 and the squadron moved to

Duluth International Airport : ''For the United States Air Force use of this facility, see Duluth Air National Guard Base.'' Duluth International Airport is a city-owned public-use joint civil-military airport located five nautical miles (9 km) northwest of the centra ...

, Minnesota. At Duluth, was upgraded to the

Convair F-106 Delta Dart The Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft of the United States Air Force from the 1960s through to the 1980s. Designed as the so-called "Ultimate Interceptor", it proved to be the last specialist interceptor i ...

s. During this period the squadron became known for its ability to perform cold weather operations. The squadron was again moved to K. I. Sawyer Air Force Base, Michigan in 1971. Inactivated in 1985 after budget cuts forced the cancellation of its scheduled conversion to the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle.

Flying training

The squadron was reactivated in 1990 and its mission changed to providing flight training. Today the squadron operates

Northrop T-38 Talon The Northrop T-38 Talon is a two-seat, twinjet supersonic jet trainer. It was the world's first, and the most produced, supersonic trainer. The T-38 remains in service in several air forces. The United States Air Force (USAF) operates the most ...

aircraft providing training to pilot students on track to operate fighters or bombers.

Lineage

87th Aero Squadron * Designated as the 87th Aero Squadron and organized, on 18 August 1917 : Redesignated Squadron B, Park Field on 25 July 1918 * Demobilized on 1 December 1918 * Reconstituted and consolidated on 1 December 1936 with 87th Pursuit Squadron as the 87th Pursuit SquadronLineage, including assignments, stations and aircraft in Bailey 87th Pursuit Squadron * Constituted as the 87th Pursuit Squadron on 19 February 1935 * Organized on 1 March 1935 * Inactivated 1 September 1936 * Disbanded on 1 January 1938 * Reconstituted and consolidated on 21 March 1979 with 87th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron as the 87th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron 87th Flying Training Squadron * Constituted as the 87th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor) on 13 January 1942 : Redesignated 87th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor) (Twin Engine) on 31 January 1942 * Activated on 9 February 1942 : Redesignated 87th Fighter Squadron (Twin Engine) on 15 May 1942 : Redesignated 87th Fighter Squadron, Single Engine on 21 August 1944 * Inactivated on 15 July 1947 : Redesignated 87th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron on 11 September 1952 * Activated on 1 November 1952 * Inactivated on 8 September 1955 * Activated on 8 April 1956 * Inactivated on 1 October 1985 : Redesignated 87th Flying Training Squadron on 9 Feb 1990 * Activated on 2 Apr 1990

Assignments

* III Corps Observation Group, 18 August 1917 – 1 December 1918 *

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 ...

(attached to

Air Corps Tactical School The Air Corps Tactical School, also known as ACTS and "the Tactical School", was a military professional development school for officers of the United States Army Air Service and United States Army Air Corps, the first such school in the world. C ...

, 1 March 1935 – 1 September 1936 * 79th Pursuit Group (later 79th Fighter Group), 9 February 1942 – 15 July 1947 *

31st Air Division The 31st Air Division (31st AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command, assigned to Tenth Air Force, being stationed at Sioux City Municipal Airport, Iowa. It was inactivated on 31 ...

, 1 Nov 1952 *

521st Air Defense Group The 521st Air Defense Group is a disbanded United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 31st Air Division at Sioux City Municipal Airport, Iowa, where it was inactivated in 1955. The group was originally activated as a ...

, 16 Feb 1953 *

Third Air Force The Third Air Force (Air Forces Europe) (3 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA). Its headquarters is Ramstein Air Base, Germany. It is responsible for all U.S. air forces in ...

. 21 December 1954 – 8 September 1955 *

58th Air Division The 58th Air Division (58th AD) is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command, based at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. It was inactivated on 1 February 1959. History World War II B-29 ...

, 8 April 1956 *

30th Air Division The 30th Air Division (30th AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command, assigned to Tenth Air Force, being stationed at Sioux City Municipal Airport, Iowa. It was inactivated on ...

, 1 September 1958 *

Detroit Air Defense Sector The Detroit Air Defense Sector (DEADS) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the Air Defense Command (ADC) 26th Air Division at Custer Air Force Station (AFS), Michigan. It was inactivated on 1 Apri ...

, 8 April 1959 *

34th Air Division The 34th Air Division (34th AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command at Custer Air Force Station, Michigan. It was inactivated on 31 December 1969. History Assigned to Air De ...

, 1 April 1966 * 343d Fighter Group, 30 September 1968 * 23d Air Division, 28 August 1970 *

21st Air Division The 21st Air Division (21st AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Tactical Air Command, being stationed at Griffiss Air Force Base, New York. It was inactivated on 23 September 1983. History World W ...

, 1 August 1981 * 24th Air Division, 23 September 1983 – 1 October 1985 * 47th Flying Training Wing, 2 April 1990 * 47th Operations Group, 15 December 1991 – present

Stations

* Kelly Field, Texas, 18 August 1917 *

, Michigan, September 1917 * Park Field, Tennessee, December 1917 - 1 December 1918 *

Maxwell Field Maxwell Air Force Base , officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation under the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The installation is located in Montgomery, Alabama, United States. O ...

, Alabama, 1 March 1935 – 1 September 1936 *

Dale Mabry Field : ''For the World War II use of the airport, see Dale Mabry Army Airfield'' Dale Mabry Field is a former airport 3.4 miles west of Tallahassee, Florida. It was replaced in 1961 by Tallahassee Regional Airport (now Tallahassee International Ai ...

, Florida, 9 February 1942 *

Morris Field Charlotte Douglas International Airport (IATA: CLT, ICAO: KCLT, FAA LID: CLT), typically referred to as Charlotte Douglas, Douglas Airport, or simply CLT, is an international airport in Charlotte, North Carolina, located roughly six miles west ...

, North Carolina, 1 May 1942 * Rentschler Field, Connecticut, 25 June 1942 – 28 September 1942 * LG 174, Egypt, 12 November 1942 *

Gazala Gazala, or ʿAyn al-Ġazāla ( ), is a small Libyan village near the coast in the northeastern portion of the country. It is located west of Tobruk. History In the late 1930s (during the Italian occupation of Libya), the village was the site of ...

(LG 150), Libya, 24 January 1943 * Darraugh North Landing Ground, Libya, c. 7 February 1943 * Castel Benito Airport, Libya, c. 27 February 1943 * Causeway Airfield, Tunisia, 13 March 1943 * Malta, 4 July 1943 * Sicily, 17 July 1943 * Southern Italy, 15 September 1943 * Salsola Airfield, Italy, 4 October 1943 * Madna Airfield, Italy, 17 November 1943 *

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, 17 January 1944 * Pomigliano Airfield, Italy, 1 May 1944 * Serragia Airfield, Corsica, France, 11 June 1944 * Saint Raphael-Frejus Airfield (Y-12), France, 22 August 1944 * Valence Airfield (Y-23), France, 1 September 1944 * Iesi Airfield, Italy, 4 October 1944 * Fano Airfield, Italy, 6 December 1944 * Cesenatico Airfield, Italy, 21 March 1945 * Horsching Airfield, Austria, 27 July 1945 *

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, 25 June 1947 – 15 July 1947 * Sioux City Municipal Airport, Iowa, 1 November 1952 * RAF Bentwaters, England, 13 December 1954 – 8 September 1955 * Lockbourne Air Force Base, Ohio, 8 April 1956 * Duluth International Airport, Minnesota, 30 Sep 1968 * K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base, Michigan, 1 May 1971 – 1 Oct 1985 * Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, 2 Apr 1990 – presentStation information in Bailey, except as noted

Aircraft

Curtiss P-40 Warhawk The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground-attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time an ...

(1942–1944) * Republic P-47 Thunderbolt (1944–1947) * North American F-51D Mustang (1952–1953) * North American F-86D Sabre Interceptor (1953–1955, 1956–1957) * North American F-86L Sabre Interceptor (SAGE) (1957-1958) * Convair F-102 Delta Dagger (1958–1960) * McDonnell F-101B Voodoo (1960–1968) * Convair F-106 Delta Dart (1968–1985) * Northrop T-38 Talon (1990–present)

References

Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * * McMullen, Richard F. (1964) "The Fighter Interceptor Force 1962-1964" ADC Historical Study No. 27, Air Defense Command, Ent Air Force Base, CO (Confidential, declassified 22 Mar 2000) * * ''NORAD/CONAD Participation in the Cuban Missile Crisis'', Historical Reference Paper No. 8, Directorate of Command History Continental Air Defense Command, Ent AFB, CO, 1 Feb 63 (Top Secret NOFORN declassified 9 March 1996) * "ADCOM's Fighter Interceptor Squadrons". ''The Interceptor'' (January 1979) Aerospace Defense Command, (Volume 21, Number 1)

External links

87th Flying Training Squadron Fact Sheet
{{USAAF 12th Air Force World War II Military units and formations in Texas 0087