93d Air Refueling Squadron
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The 93rd Air Refueling 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, stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, where it is assigned to the
92nd Operations Group The 92d Operations Group (92 OG) is the flying component of the 92d Air Refueling Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command Eighteenth Air Force. The group is stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington. During ...
and operates the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft conducting
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 ...
missions. The earliest predecessor of the squadron is the 493rd Bombardment Squadron, which was activated in India in October 1942 and was equipped with Consolidated B-24 Liberators in January 1943. It participated in combat in the China Burma India Theater with the Liberator until
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 ...
, earning a Distinguished Unit Citation in March 1945. Dring the period in which Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers operated from India, it also transported gasoline to forward bases in China. After the end of hostilities, it returned to the United States for inactivation in January 1946. The 93rd Air Refueling Squadron was activated in March 1949 and equipped with
Boeing KB-29 Superfortress The Boeing KB-29 was a modified Boeing B-29 Superfortress for air refueling needs by the USAF. Two primary versions were developed and produced: KB-29M and KB-29P. The 509th and 43d Air Refueling Squadrons (Walker AFB, NM and Davis-Month ...
tankers. It upgraded to the
Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter The Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter is a four-engined, piston-powered United States strategic tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It replaced the KB-29 and was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker. Design and developm ...
in 1953, and the KC-135 in 1957. For most of its time at
Castle Air Force Base Castle Air Force Base (Castle AFB, 1941–1995) is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base in California, located northeast of Atwater, northwest of Merced, and about south of Sacramento. The Central Valley base in u ...
, California, it served as the training unit for KC-135 aircrews, but also maintained combat readiness to execute Strategic Air Command (SAC) missions. In September 1985 the two squadrons were consolidated into a single unit. When SAC inactivated in 1992, the squadron became part of Air Mobility Command. In March 1995, the squadron moved on paper to Fairchild.


History


World War II

The squadron was first activated as the 493rd Bombardment Squadron in nonoperational status at
Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...
, India,Some sources give the activation location as
New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament Ho ...
. However, its parent organization, the 7th Bombardment Group, was located at Karachi Airport on the day of the squadron's activation. Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 43-45.
and assigned to the 7th Bombardment Group on 25 Oct 1942. The squadron remained unmanned while the older squadrons of the 7th Group were converting to the Consolidated B-24 Liberator.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 43-45 When the group and squadron moved to Pandaveswar Airfield in early January 1943 it became operational with Liberators. It commenced combat operations on 26 Jan 1943. The squadron engaged in strategic bombardment operations, attacking communications targets (roads, railroads, etc.) in central and southern Burma, all without fighter escort due to the long distances involved. Primary targets were oil refineries, docks, depots, enemy airfields, marshalling yards, bridges, locomotive repair sheds, naval vessels, and troop concentrations. The 493rd moved to Tezgaon Airfield, India, on 17 Jun 1944, and assumed a new mission: transporting high-octane gasoline over
the Hump The Hump was the name given by Allied pilots in the Second World War to the eastern end of the Himalayan Mountains over which they flew military transport aircraft from India to China to resupply the Chinese war effort of Chiang Kai-shek an ...
to bases in China. This mission lasted until 5 October, at which time the squadron moved back to Pandaveswar to resume bombing missions. A detachment of the 493rd Squadron operated from Luliang Airfield, China from 17 December 1944 until 26 January 1945, hauling gasoline to Suichwan Airfield, China. The squadron proper began practice with Azon ("Azimuth only")
manual command to line of sight Manual command to line of sight (MCLOS) is a method for guiding guided missiles. With an MCLOS missile, the operator must track the missile and the target simultaneously and guide the missile to the target. Typically the missile is steered with a ...
bombs. Apparently the squadron was the only USAAF unit to use this weapon outside of the
European Theater of World War II The European theatre of World War II was one of the two main theatres of combat during World War II. It saw heavy fighting across Europe for almost six years, starting with Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 and ending with the ...
. The Azon bombs were radio controlled and could be steered left or right, although their trajectory could not be changed to shorten or lengthen their flight to target. The Azon trained crews and their B-24s were initially assigned to the 9th Bombardment Squadron. However, in December 1944, the crews and planes were reassigned to the 493rd and Azon missions began to be flown. Azon proved effective in attacks against bridges and rail lines. In early 1945 the squadron concentrated on attacks against the Burma-Thailand railroad, the most important line left to the enemy in Burma. On 19 March, the 493rd earned a Distinguished Unit Citation for attacks against rail lines and bridges in Thailand. The squadron also dropped propaganda leaflets in Thailand from June through September 1945 for the
Office of War Information The United States Office of War Information (OWI) was a United States government agency created during World War II. The OWI operated from June 1942 until September 1945. Through radio broadcasts, newspapers, posters, photographs, films and other ...
. After fighting ended in Burma the 493rd Bomb Squadron was ordered to practice Azon bombing in China, but soon "alerted" for inactivation. With its parent (7th Bomb Group) the 493rd staged through Dudhkundi, Kanchrapara, and Camp Angus (near Calcutta), departing Calcutta aboard the on 7 December 1945. The vessel reached the U.S. on 5 January 1946 and the squadron inactivated at
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, the following day


Strategic Air Command

Activated on 1 Mar 1949 as the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Medium, but was not manned until September 1950. Received
KB-29P Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is an American four-engined Propeller (aeronautics), 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 p ...
tankers, October 1950-Jun 1951. Became combat ready in October 1951. The 93rd ARS deployed to
RAF Upper Heyford RAF Upper Heyford was a Royal Air Force station located north-west of Bicester near the village of Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire, England. In the Second World War the airfield was used by Bomber Command. During the Cold War, Upper Heyford was one ...
,
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, 6 Dec 1951 – 6 Mar 1952, while the parent wing was at nearby
RAF Mildenhall Royal Air Force Mildenhall or RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located near Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as a Royal Air Force station, it primarily supports United States Air Force (USAF) operations, ...
. The squadron supported Operation FOX PETER II, the movement of the 31st Fighter-Escort Wing from the U.S. to Japan, in July 1952 using 11 KB-29Ps at
Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
and
Kwajalein Kwajalein Atoll (; Marshallese: ) is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island, which its majority English-speaking residents (about 1,000 mostly U.S. civil ...
to refuel some 58 F-84G fighters on their way to 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 squadron converted from KB-29s to
KC-97G Stratotanker The Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter is a four-engined, piston-powered United States strategic Tanker (aircraft), tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It replaced the KB-29 and was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker. D ...
s in November and December 1953. It undertook several oversea deployments, to Newfoundland,
Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...
, French Morocco, and
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
, in 1954–1956. The 93rd ARS began training its aircrews to operate Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers in May 1957. The squadron was the first Stratotanker squadron in the Air Force. It Began receiving KC-135s on 28 Jun 1957, three days after converting to KC-135 aircrew training as primary mission. Possessed 19 tankers in December 1957 and 39 by May 1958. Effective 1 Jul 1959, the resources of the 93rd ARS were divided with the 924th ARS, which unit assumed the SAC KC-135 aircrew training mission with 15 aircraft. The 93rd ARS, at the same time, resumed full-time air refueling with 20 KC-135s. This status lasted until 21 Aug 1963, when the 93rd ARS ceased standing alert and prepared to resume full-time KC-135 aircrew training. On 26 August the 93rd once again began KC-135 aircrew training as its primary mission. It retained Emergency War Order (EWO) commitments along with its training mission, but did not stand alert.


Modern era

The squadron's mission remained basically the same until 31 Mar 1995. Thousands of Strategic Air Command and some Air Mobility Command KC-135 aircrews received flight training from the 93 ARS. Each crew (pilot, copilot, navigator, and boom operator), after academic training with the 4017th Training Squadron at
Castle AFB Castle Air Force Base (Castle AFB, 1941–1995) is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base in California, located northeast of Atwater, northwest of Merced, and about south of Sacramento. The Central Valley base in unin ...
, received 45 days of flight training from the 93rd ARS. The squadron also provided specialized training of shorter duration to senior officers (such as wing commanders). For a period the 93rd ARS also sent instructor teams to locations where Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard units were converting to KC-135 tanker operations to help in-house training programs. On rare occasions the 93rd had deployed some of its aircraft and crews to meet its own EWO commitments or to meet needs exceeding the capability of the 924th ARS. A few such deployments occurred in 1980. With the BRAC-directed closure of Castle AFB, On 31 Mar 1995, the 93 ARS relocated to
Fairchild AFB Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base, located in the northwest United States in eastern Washington, approximately southwest of Spokane. The host unit at Fairchild is the 92nd Air Refueling Wing (92 ARW) assigned t ...
, Washington, and became a deployable air refueling squadron under the 92nd Air Refueling Wing (92 ARW).


Lineage

; 493rd Bombardment Squadron * Constituted as the 493rd Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 19 September 1942 : Activated on 25 October 1942 : Redesignated 493rd Bombardment Squadron, Heavy on 6 March 1944 : Inactivated on 6 January 1946 * Consolidated with the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron as the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron on 19 September 1985 ; 93rd Air Refueling Squadron : Constituted as the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Medium on 2 February 1949 : Activated on 1 March 1949 : Redesignated 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy on 1 February 1955 : Redesignated 93rd Air Refueling Squadron on 1 September 1991 : Inactivated on 31 March 1995 * Consolidated with the 493rd Bombardment Squadron on 19 September 1985 * Activated on 31 March 1995


Assignments

* 7th Bombardment Group, 25 October 1942 – 6 January 1946 * 93rd Bombardment Group, 1 March 1949 (attached to 93rd Bombardment Wing, 15 July 1950 – 30 January 1951 and after 10 February 1951 * 93rd Bombardment Wing, 16 June 1952 * 93rd Operations Group, 1 September 1991 * 398th Operations Group, 1 June 1992 – 31 March 1995 *
92nd Operations Group The 92d Operations Group (92 OG) is the flying component of the 92d Air Refueling Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command Eighteenth Air Force. The group is stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington. During ...
, 31 March 1995 – present


Stations

* Karachi, India, 25 October 1942 * Pandaveswar Airfield, India, 7 January 1943 * Tezgaon Airfield, India, 17 June 1944 * Pandaveswar Airfield, India, 5 October 1944 : Detachment at Luliang Airfield, China 17 December 1944 – 26 January 1945 * Dudhkundi Airfield, India, 31 October 1945 * Kanchrapara Airfield, India, 19 November 1945 * Camp Angus, India, 25 November – 7 December 1945 * Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, 5–6 January 1946 *
Castle Air Force Base Castle Air Force Base (Castle AFB, 1941–1995) is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base in California, located northeast of Atwater, northwest of Merced, and about south of Sacramento. The Central Valley base in u ...
, California, 1 March 1949 – 31 March 1995 : Deployed to
RAF Upper Heyford RAF Upper Heyford was a Royal Air Force station located north-west of Bicester near the village of Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire, England. In the Second World War the airfield was used by Bomber Command. During the Cold War, Upper Heyford was one ...
, England, 9 December 1951 – 6 March 1952 : Deployed to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona 1 April – 15 May 1954 : Deployed to
Ernest Harmon Air Force Base Ernest Harmon Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located in Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador. The base was built by the United States Army Air Forces in 1941 under the Destroyers for Bases Agreement with the United Ki ...
, Newfoundland, 19 June – 14 August 1954 : Deployed to
Thule Air Base Thule Air Base (pronounced or , kl, Qaanaaq Mitarfik, da, Thule Lufthavn), or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport , is the United States Space Force's northernmost base, and the northernmost installation of the U.S. Armed Forces, located north ...
, Greenland, 19 January – c. 15 March 1955 : Deployed to
Elmendorf Air Force Base Elmendorf Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) facility in Anchorage, Alaska. Originally known as Elmendorf Field, it became Elmendorf Air Force Base after World War II. It is the home of the Headquarters, Alaskan Air Command (AL ...
, Alaska, 2 November 1955 – 5 January 1956, 27 September – c. 24 December 1956 * Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, 31 March 1995 – present


Aircraft

* Consolidated B-24 Liberator (1943–1945) *
Boeing KB-29 Superfortress The Boeing KB-29 was a modified Boeing B-29 Superfortress for air refueling needs by the USAF. Two primary versions were developed and produced: KB-29M and KB-29P. The 509th and 43d Air Refueling Squadrons (Walker AFB, NM and Davis-Month ...
(1950–1953) *
Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter The Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter is a four-engined, piston-powered United States strategic tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It replaced the KB-29 and was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker. Design and developm ...
(1953–1957) * Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker (1957–1995, 1995–present)


See also


References


Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations


Bibliography

* * * * ; Further reading *


External links

* {{cite web , url= http://dainthecbi.com/493.html , title=Personnel of the 493rd Bombardment Squadron, access-date=6 April 2015 Military units and formations in Washington (state) 093