The 41st Electronic Combat Squadron is a

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. Its current assignment is with the

55th Electronic Combat Group The 55th Electronic Combat Group, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, provides combat-ready EC-130H Compass Call aircraft, crews, maintenance and operational support to combatant commanders. The group is a Geographically Separated Unit (GSU) that ...

Davis–Monthan Air Force Base Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DM AFB) is a United States Air Force base southeast of downtown Tucson, Arizona. It was established in 1925 as Davis–Monthan Landing Field. The host unit for Davis–Monthan AFB is the 355th Wing (355 WG) assi ...

, Arizona as a geographically separated unit from its parent wing, the

55th Wing The 55th Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to Air Combat Command. The wing is primarily stationed at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, but maintains one of its groups and associated squadrons at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ar ...

at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska. It operates the Lockheed EC-130H Compass Call communications-jamming aircraft. 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, ...

is one of the oldest in the United States Air Force, its origins dating to 14 June 1917, when it was organized at Kelly Field, Texas. It served overseas in France as part of the American Expeditionary Forces 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 also 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 Tactical Air Command (TAC) during the Cold War.

History

World War I

The squadron's origins date to the 9th Balloon Company of the

Observation Balloon Service in World War I United States Army Balloon Squadrons and companies organized under the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps and served overseas with the United States Army Air Service before and during World War I. There were also French, British, and German Ballo ...

, which served with the French 17th and 32nd Army Corps, and the III and IV Army Corps,

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

, from 16 August – 11 November 1918.

World War II

The squadron provided air defense for Panama Canal, January 1942 – May 1944, with occasional antisubmarine patrols over the Caribbean and Pacific, especially during May and June 1942; deployed to Western Pacific in June 1945, but never entered combat.

Cold War

The squadron was reactivated at

Shaw Air Force Base Shaw Air Force Base (Shaw AFB) is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located approximately west-northwest of downtown Sumter, South Carolina. It is one of the largest military bases operated by the United States, and is under the jurisdict ...

, South Carolina, where it was assigned to the

432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group 43 may refer to: * 43 (number) * one of the years 43 BC, AD 43, 1943, 2043 * Licor 43, also known as "Cuarenta Y Tres" ("Forty-three" in Spanish) * George W. Bush, 43rd President of the United States, nicknamed "Bush 43" to distinguish from his f ...

and equipped with

Douglas RB-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 ...

aircraft. In 1956 as deliveries of the Douglas RB-66B Destroyer to the Air Force increased, the squadron was equipped with the newer jet aircraft.Knaack, p. 419

From the 1960s

The unit fought in Southeast Asia, c. November 1965 – 31 October 1969. The unit was tasked with command, control, and communications countermeasures from 1982 onwards. It flew electronic countermeasures missions from the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...

during

Operation Desert Shield The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

Operation Desert Storm 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-Ma ...

from 27 August 1990 – 17 April 1991.

Lineage

* Organized as Company A, 4th Balloon Squadron on 13 November 1917 : Redesignated 9th Balloon Company on 25 July 1918 : Redesignated 9th Airship Company on 30 August 1921 : Redesignated 9th Airship Squadron on 26 October 1933 : Redesignated 1st Observation Squadron on 1 June 1937 : Redesignated 1st Observation Squadron (Medium) on 13 January 1942 : Redesignated 1st Observation Squadron on 4 July 1942 : Redesignated 1st Reconnaissance Squadron (Special) on 25 June 1943 : Redesignated 41st Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron on 25 November 1944 : Redesignated 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron on 24 January 1946 : Inactivated on 17 June 1946 * Redesignated 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, Night-Photographic on 14 January 1954 : Activated on 18 March 1954 : Inactivated on 18 May 1959 * Redesignated 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, Photo-Jet and activated on 30 June 1965 (not organized) : Organized on 1 October 1965 : Redesignated 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron on 8 October 1966 : Redesignated: 41st Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron on 15 March 1967 : Inactivated on 31 October 1969 * Redesignated 41st Electronic Combat Squadron on 17 June 1980 : Activated on 1 July 1980

Assignments

* Unknown, 13 November 1917 * Balloon Wing, IV Army Corps, 5 August 1918 * Balloon Wing, III Army Corps, 21 September 1918 * Balloon Group, III Army Corps, 8 October 1918 * 2d Balloon Group,

First Army (United States) First Army is the oldest and longest-established field army of the United States Army. It served as a theater army, having seen service in both World War I and World War II, and supplied the US army with soldiers and equipment during the Korea ...

, c. 20 November 1918 – December 1918 * Unknown, December 1918 – May 1919 * Army Balloon School,

Fort Omaha Fort Omaha, originally known as Sherman Barracks and then Omaha Barracks, is an Indian War-era United States Army supply installation. Located at 5730 North 30th Street, with the entrance at North 30th and Fort Streets in modern-day North Omaha, ...

, Nebraska, May 1919 * Fourth Corps Area, October 1921 *

1st Airship Group The 21st Airship Group was a unit of the United States Army Air Corps. It was last assigned to the 3d Wing at Scott Field, Illinois. It was originally activated under a different name in 1921, and disbanded on 27 May 1939. A predecessor of the ...

(later 21st Airship Group), 19 July 1922 *

Sixth Corps Area Sixth Corps Area was a Corps area, effectively a military district, of the United States Army from 1921 to the 1940s. The headquarters was established at Fort Sheridan, Illinois, in August 1920, from portions of the former Central Department, but t ...

, 1 June 1937 * Seventh Corps Area (attached to Cavalry School), 15 June 1937 * Cavalry School, c. 1939 *

Second United States Army Second Army was most recently located at Fort Belvoir, Virginia as a Direct Reporting Unit to Headquarters U.S. Army, Chief Information Officer (CIO)/G-6. Under the CIO/G-6, Second Army served as the single point of contact for Army missions a ...

, 3 October 1940 : Two flights attached to Cavalry School to c. April 1941 : Third flight remained assigned to Cavalry School throughout period *

II Air Support Command The II Air Support Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Third Air Force at Biggs Field, Texas, as the II Tactical Air Division, where it was inactivated on 22 December 1945. The command was organized in S ...

, 1 September 1941 : Flight attached to Cavalry School to c. December 1941 *

72d Observation Group 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion, mythology, s ...

(later 72d Reconnaissance) Group), 26 September 1941 : Attached to

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 ...

, 10 April 1942 – c. June 1942 *

Sixth Air Force Sixth is the ordinal form of the number six. * The Sixth Amendment, to the U.S. Constitution * A keg of beer, equal to 5 U.S. gallons or barrel * The fraction Music * Sixth interval (music)s: ** major sixth, a musical interval ** minor si ...

, 1 November 1943 * II Tactical Air Division, 24 May 1944 * III Tactical Air Division, 24 June 1944 *

III Tactical Air Command The III Tactical Air Command was a United States Army Air Forces formation. Its last assignment was with Third Air Force stationed at Barksdale Field, Louisiana. It was disbanded on 24 October 1945. The command was established in 1941 as the 3rd ...

, 1 October 1944 * III Tactical Air Division, 4 December 1944 * 7th Fighter Wing, 18 April 1945 * AAF, Pacific Ocean Area (attached to

XXI Bomber Command The XXI Bomber Command was a unit of the Twentieth Air Force in the Mariana Islands for strategic bombing during World War II. The command was established at Smoky Hill Army Air Field, Kansas on 1 March 1944. After a period of organization an ...

), 13 June 1945 * United States Army Forces, Middle Pacific (attached to

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 ...

), 16 July 1945 * 315th Bombardment Wing, 18 September 1945 *

VII Fighter Command The VII Fighter Command was a command and control organization of the United States Army Air Forces. Its last assignment was with Far East Air Forces. The Headquarters were based at several locations with forward command moving with the campaign ...

(later 46th Fighter Wing), 4 January 1946 – 17 June 1946 * 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group, 18 March 1954 * 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 8 February 1958 – 18 May 1959 * Tactical Air Command, 20 June 1965 (not organized * 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 1 October 1965 *

Thirteenth Air Force The Thirteenth Air Force (Air Forces Pacific) (13 AF) was a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It was last headquartered at Hickam Air Force Base on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. 13 AF has never been sta ...

, 20 October 1965 * 460th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 18 February 1966 * 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 18 September 1966 *

355th Tactical Fighter Wing 355th may refer to: Aviation * 355th Fighter Squadron, an inactive United States Air Force unit *355th Fighter Wing 355th may refer to: Aviation *355th Fighter Squadron, an inactive United States Air Force unit *355th Fighter Wing, a United States ...

, 15 August 1967 – 31 October 1969 *

552d Airborne Warning and Control Wing The 552d Air Control Wing is an operational wing of the United States Air Force. It has been based at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma since July 1976, operating the Boeing E-3 Sentry. It includes the 552d Operations Group, 552d Maintenance Gro ...

(later 552d Airborne Warning and Control Division), 1 July 1980 *

28th Air Division The 28th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Tactical Air Command at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. It was inactivated on 29 May 1992. History Established in December ...

, 1 April 1985 : Attached to Air Division Provisional, 15, 5 December 1990 – 17 April 1991 * 355th Operations Group, 1 May 1992 *

, 2006 – Present

Stations

, Nebraska, 13 November 1917 * Camp Morrison, Virginia, 9 February 1918 – 29 June 1918 * Camp de Meucon,

Morbihan Morbihan ( , ; br, Mor-Bihan ) is a department in the administrative region of Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan (''small sea'' in Breton), the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastl ...

, France, 17 July 1918 * Broussey-Raulecourt, France, 14 August 1918 * Xivray-et-Marvoisin, France, 12 September 1918 * St Benoit-en-Woevre, France, 14 September 1918 * Lamarche-en-Woevre, France, 16 September 1918 *

Thierville Thierville () is a commune in the Eure department in Normandy in northern France. It is around 30 km south-west of Rouen city centre, and around 130 km north west of Paris. Thierville is remarkable as the only village in all of Franc ...

, France, 22 September 1918 *

Cumières Cumières () is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. Twin towns Cumières is twinned with: * Felino, Italy * Assesse, Belgium See also * Communes of the Marne department *Montagne de Reims Regional Natural Park Mon ...

, France, 9 October 1918 * Consenvoye, France, 7 November 1918 * Fromeréville-les-Vallons, France, 12 November 1918 *

Damvillers Damvillers is a commune in the Meuse department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. See also * Communes of the Meuse department The following is a list of the 499 communes of the Meuse department of France. The communes cooperate in the f ...

, France, 14 November 1918 * Ville-sur-Cousances, France, 26 November 1918 * Colombey-les-Belles, France, 4 February 1919 *

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefect ...

, France, 18 February 1919 – 20 April 1919 *

Camp Stuart Silicon Valley Monterey Bay Council (#055), the result of a council merger between the Santa Clara County Council and the Monterey Bay Area Council, is a Boy Scouts of America council headquartered in San Jose, California. In 2004, the previous t ...

, Virginia, 4 May 1919 *

Camp Lee Fort Lee, in Prince George County, Virginia, United States, is a United States Army post and headquarters of the United States Army Combined Arms Support Command (CASCOM)/ Sustainment Center of Excellence (SCoE), the U.S. Army Quartermaster Scho ...

, Virginia, 9 May 1919 * Fort Omaha, Nebraska, 18 May 1919 * Scott Field, Illinois, 28 October 1921 *

, Kansas, 15 June 1937 – 27 December 1941 *

Rio Hato Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

, Panama, 14 January 1942 *

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 ...

, Panama Canal Zone, 19 January 1942 * David, Panama, 17 April 1942 * Rio Hato, Panama, 10 May 1942 * Howard Field, Panama Canal Zone, 20 June 1942 – 7 May 1944 * Pounds Field, Texas, 24 May 1944 * Muskogee Army Air Field, Oklahoma, 7 December 1944 – 4 April 1945 * Kualoa Field, Hawaii, 18 April 1945 – 31 May 1945 *

Agana Airfield Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport , also known as Guam International Airport, is an airport located in Tamuning and Barrigada, east of the capital city of Hagåtña (formerly Agana) in the United States territory of Guam. The airport is ...

, Guam, Mariana Islands 13 June 1945 : Detachment at:

North Field (Iwo Jima) Central Field or Iwo Jima Air Base is a former World War II airfield on Iwo Jima in the Bonin Islands, located in the Central Pacific. The Bonin Islands are part of Japan. Today, the base is the only airfield on the island, operated by the ...

, Iwo Jima,

Bonin Islands The Bonin Islands, also known as the , are an archipelago of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands, some directly south of Tokyo, Japan and northwest of Guam. The name "Bonin Islands" comes from the Japanese word ''bunin'' (an archaic read ...

(Japan), 9 August 1945 – c. 15 September 1945 *

East Field (Saipan) East Field (also known as Kagman Airfield) is a former World War II airfield on Saipan in the Mariana Islands, part of Naval Advance Base Saipan. History Saipan had been occupied by the Japanese since World War I, and by mid-1944, the American ...

, Mariana Islands, 4 January 1946 * Agana Airfield, Guam, Mariana Islands, 15 April 1946 – 17 June 1946 * Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, 18 March 1954 – 18 May 1959 * Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, 1 October 1965 *

Takhli RTAFB Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base is a Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) facility in central Thailand, approximately 144 miles (240 km) northwest of Bangkok in Takhli District, Nakhon Sawan Province. Units Takhli is the home of the Royal Tha ...

, Thailand, 20 October 1965 – 31 October 1969 *

, Arizona, 1 July 1980 – present : Deployed at Bateen Air Base, United Arab Emirates, 27 August 1990 – 17 April 1991.

Aircraft

* Type R observation balloon, 1918–1919, * 1919–1921; probably included RN-1 (Zodiac), type SST (Mullion), type AA (pony blimp), A-4, D-4, OA-1, AC-1, TA-1, TA-5, TC-1, TC-3, TC-5, TC-6, TC-10, TC-11, TC-14, TE-1, type TE-3, and TF-1 nonrigid airships, RS-9 semirigid airship, type R (later, C-3) and C-6 observation balloons, and A-6, A-7, and A-8 spherical balloons during period 1922–1937. *

Thomas-Morse O-19 The Thomas-Morse O-19 was an American observation biplane built by the Thomas-Morse Aircraft Company for the United States Army Air Corps. Development The O-19 was based on the earlier Thomas-Morse O-6 biplane. It was a conventional two-seat ...

, Douglas O-25, and apparently O-46, during period 1937–1939. * O-47, 1938–1944,

L-4 L4 or L-4 may refer to : Transportation * SP&S Class L-4, an 1884 steam locomotives class * USS L-4 (SS-43), USS ''L-4'' (SS-43), a 1915 United States Navy L-class submarine * HMS L4, HMS ''L4'', a 1918 British L class submarine * Lawson L-4, a 19 ...

and B-18, 1942–1944, *

P-39 The Bell P-39 Airacobra is a fighter produced by Bell Aircraft for the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. It was one of the principal American fighters in service when the United States entered combat. The P-39 was used by the ...

, 1943–1944, included Kellett YG-1B, c. 1938–1940,

YO-51 Dragonfly The Ryan YO-51 Dragonfly was an observation aircraft designed and built by Ryan Aeronautical for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). A single-engined parasol wing monoplane, it was designed for optimum STOL capability, but although three pro ...

, 1940–1941, Bellanca YO-50, and apparently O-59 Grasshopper, 1941, O-49, 1941–1943, and CG-4, 1943; A-20, 1944, primarily

F-5 Lightning The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive tw ...

, 1944–1946. * Douglas RB-26 Invader, 1954–1956; * Douglas RB-66 Destroyer, 1956–1959. * Douglas RB-66 Destroyer, 1965; EB-66, 1965–1969. *

EC-130H Compass Call The EC-130H Compass Call is an electronic attack aircraft flown by the United States Air Force. Based on the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, the aircraft is heavily modified to disrupt enemy command and control communications, perform offensive counter ...

, 1982–

References

Notes

Explanatory notes Footnotes

Bibliography

* *

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20100526062159/http://www.wolfsshipyard.mystarship.com/Misc/Airships/Airships.htm {{USAAF 7th Air Force World War II Electronic combat squadrons of the United States Air Force 041 Military units and formations established in 1980 Military units and formations in Arizona