The Army Air Forces Antisubmarine Command was formed in the fall of 1942 to establish a single command to control

antisubmarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are ty ...

(ASW) activities of the

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 ...

(AAF). It was formed from the resources of

I Bomber Command The I Bomber Command (later XX Bomber Command) was an intermediate command of the Army Air Forces during World War II. It trained bombardment units and aircrews for deployment to combat theaters. From shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor ...

, which had been carrying out the antisubmarine mission in the Atlantic and Caribbean since 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 ...

due to the lack of long range

Naval A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

aviation in that area. The command's units conducted ASW along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States, in the Caribbean Sea and in Europe, where it used bases in England and French Morocco. Its operations were marked by disagreements between the AAF and the Navy concerning the conduct of air ASW. In the fall of 1943, the ASW mission was transferred to the Navy and the command became a

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped ...

training unit until it was inactivated in 1946.

History

Initial Army Air Forces involvement in antisubmarine warfare

Within a day after the declaration of war by the United States the

(AAF) began patrols of both the East and West coasts. Defense plans drawn up before the war began assigned the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

responsibility for operations beyond the coastline, with

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

aircraft serving in a supporting role. Because naval aviation that could perform long range patrols was nearly non-existent along the Atlantic coast in early 1942, the burden for aerial antisubmarine patrols fell on the AAF, which had available aircraft, but whose crews had not been trained for the mission.

German Navy The German Navy (, ) is the navy of Germany and part of the unified ''Bundeswehr'' (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Mari ...

submarines began operating in American coastal waters. By March 1942 fifty-three ships had been sunk in the

North Atlantic Naval Coastal Frontier The Eastern Sea Frontier (EASTSEAFRON) was a United States Navy operational command during World War II, that was responsible for the coastal waters from Canada to Jacksonville, Florida, extending out for a nominal distance of two hundred miles. ...

. As a result, the Commander of the North Atlantic Naval Coastal Frontier requested the Army's

Eastern Defense Command The Eastern Defense Command was first established as the Northeast Defense Command on 17 March 1941 as one of four U.S. Army continental defense commands to plan and prepare for and execute defense against enemy attack in the months before Ameri ...

to undertake offshore patrols with all available aircraft. The first patrols were performed by elements of

,Despite the identical name of this command in 1942, it was a different unit. Once AAF Antisubmarine Command assumed its ASW mission, I Bomber Command was inactivated. The I Bomber Command was reactivated in late 1943 and trained radar crews for the combat. It is unrelated to training bomber units under

Second Air Force The Second Air Force (2 AF; ''2d Air Force'' in 1942) is a USAF numbered air force responsible for conducting basic military and technical training for Air Force enlisted members and non-flying officers. In World War II the CONUS unit defende ...

as XX Bomber Command. Maurer, ''Combat Units'', p. 452 which would be the primary AAF command involved in

(ASW) in early 1942, with assistance from

I Air Support Command I, or i, is the ninth letter and the third vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''i'' (pronounced ), plural ...

. However, although I Bomber Command was primarily involved in conducting ASW, it was doing so on an emergency basis, and was subject to withdrawal from these duties to perform its primary

bombardment A bombardment is an attack by artillery fire or by dropping bombs from aircraft on fortifications, combatants, or towns and buildings. Prior to World War I, the term was only applied to the bombardment of defenseless or undefended objects, ...

function. It soon became apparent that if the AAF were to continue with the ASW mission, its units would have to be organized under a specially trained and equipped command.

AAF Antisubmarine Command organizes

In May 1942, General Arnold, Commanding General of the AAF, proposed to

Admiral King Ernest Joseph King (23 November 1878 – 25 June 1956) was an American naval officer who served as Commander in Chief, United States Fleet (COMINCH) and Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) during World War II. As COMINCH-CNO, he directed the Un ...

, the

Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the professional head of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the secretary of the Navy. In a separate capacity as a memb ...

, that the AAF establish a "coastal command", similar to

RAF Coastal Command RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was founded in 1936, when the RAF was restructured into Fighter, Bomber and Coastal Commands and played an important role during the Second World War. Maritime Aviation ...

, operating "when necessary, under the proper Naval authority." That same month saw both a new high in sinkings by

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...

s and a shift in their attacks from the Atlantic coast to the Caribbean Sea. In response, the AAF established the Gulf Task Force, with elements of

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 ...

augmenting I Bomber Command, at

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

, FloridaThe task force was briefly located at

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

. Ferguson, p. 18. to augment the

Gulf Sea Frontier Sea Frontiers were several, now disestablished, commands of the United States Navy as areas of defense against enemy vessels, especially submarines, along the U.S. coasts. They existed from 1 July 1941 until in some cases the 1970s. Sea Frontiers ...

. The command situation had only worsened, with two air forces, two navy sea frontiers, and two army defense commands, with differing areas of responsibility, all involved in aerial ASW with ad hoc command relations and separate administrative and operational command arrangements. Later in the month, the

War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War (1789–1947) See also * War Office, a former department of the British Government * Ministry of defence * Ministry of War * Ministry of Defence * D ...

requested General Arnold to reorganize I Bomber Command to fulfill the requirements of ASW air operations, either in support of, or in lieu of, naval forces to protect

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 ...

shipping. Disagreements between the Army and the Navy over command relationships delayed activation of the command until October 1942. The activation of the single Army Air Forces Antisubmarine Command at

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to control all

units conducting

reflected the Army's desire for a single mobile force. The command drew its personnel and equipment from I Bomber Command, which was simultaneously inactivated. In November 1942, the command's units were organized into two wings, reflecting the Navy desire that forces in a sea frontier be unified under a single command. The 25th Antisubmarine Wing, Located in New York City, was responsible for patrols off the Atlantic Coast, while the 26th Antisubmarine Wing in

, Florida conducted operations in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 388–389Maurer, ''Combat Units'', p. 389

Overseas operations

By late 1942, German strategy had shifted to one of defending against planned Allied offensives in Europe and North Africa by striking at their lines of communication, rather than striking merchant shipping wherever it was most vulnerable. As a result, the Kriegsmarine concentrated its U-boats in the northern and eastern Atlantic. To meet this challenge, the command moved two squadrons to England in November, where they operated with RAF Coastal Command. The two units were attached to the 1st Antisubmarine Group (Provisional), which became the 2037th Antisubmarine Wing (Provisional).Ferguson, pp. 99–100 The decision to deploy the squadrons was made quickly and preparations for their reception and the maintenance of their aircraft were almost nonexistent. Lack of hangar space at

RAF St Eval Royal Air Force St. Eval or RAF St. Eval was a Royal Air Force station for the RAF Coastal Command, southwest of Padstow in Cornwall, England, UK. St Eval's primary role was to provide anti-submarine and anti-shipping patrols off the south wes ...

forced them to perform major maintenance outside during the winter. A deployed squadron was responsible for the first confirmed sinking of an enemy sub by one of the command's aircraft. Although they did not initially sink a large number of U-boats, their harassing tactics required German subs to adopt evasive tactics and reduced the number and effectiveness of attacks on convoys crossing the Atlantic. In February 1943, The squadrons participated in Operation Gondola, whose goal was to attack every U-boat traversing the Bay of Biscay at least once. The Navy believed that more antisubmarine forces were required to protect convoys in the North Atlantic, where attacks were becoming more concentrated. In March, the 19th Antisubmarine Squadron relocated to Gander Airport in Newfoundland, soon joined by two other squadrons. Eventually the command formed two

groups A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

in England and Morocco. In June 1943, the

480th Antisubmarine Group 48 may refer to: * 48 (number) * one of the years 48 BC, AD 48, 1948, 2048 * ''48'' (novel) * 48'' (magazine) * "48", a song by Tyler, the Creator from the album ''Wolf'' * 48, a phone network brand of Three Ireland * "Forty Eight", a song by ...

was formed at Craw Field, French Morocco to conduct patrols north and west of Morocco along the Atlantic approaches to the Strait of Gibraltar. The group was formed with the 1st and

2d Antisubmarine Squadron The 2d Antisubmarine Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 480th Antisubmarine Group, based at Clovis Army Airfield, New Mexico, and under the command of Col. Jack Roberts. On 13 November 1943, th ...

s, which had moved to Morocco from England. In July 1943, German submarines concentrated off the coast of Portugal to intercept convoys bound for the Mediterranean Sea. The group damaged and sank several subs, protecting supply lines for

Operation Husky 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 ...

, the invasion of Sicily. Portions of the 480th deployed to

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

to provide coverage for

Operation Avalanche Operation Avalanche was the codename for the Allied landings near the port of Salerno, executed on 9 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy during World War II. The Italians withdrew from the war the day before the invasion, but ...

, the landings on mainland Italy. In November 1943, the 480th Group returned to the United States. In January 1944, it moved to

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 ...

, and was reassigned to form cadres for heavy bombardment units being activated by Second Air Force. Following the activation of the 480th Group, the 479th Antisubmarine Group was formed at

.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 350–351 Squadrons from Newfoundland had moved to England to replace those moved to Morocco. The group conducted patrols over the

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay (), known in Spain as the Gulf of Biscay ( es, Golfo de Vizcaya, eu, Bizkaiko Golkoa), and in France and some border regions as the Gulf of Gascony (french: Golfe de Gascogne, oc, Golf de Gasconha, br, Pleg-mor Gwaskogn), ...

, achieving its greatest success in the first two months it was active. Following this period, German

U-boats U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare rol ...

adopted tactics that kept them submerged in the group's area of operations during daylight hours. The group continued its patrols, occasionally engaging

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

aircraft until October. It was disbanded in England in November. Despite the deployment of command units to Newfoundland, England and Morocco, the majority of the command remained in the United States conducting patrols and covering convoys in an area where the threat of submarine attack had substantially diminished. The Navy insisted that forces be retained in this area because of the ability of the German submarine force to rapidly shift its forces. The command's wings were assisted by Navy units and the Civil Air Patrol, but flew the only long range aircraft. Activity in this region was at such a low level that for three months, from December 1942 to February 1943, not a single enemy U-boat was sighted. An exception was in the waters near

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

, where German subs were attacking merchant shipping. From December 1942, air echelons from various squadrons deployed to Trinidad, where they joined elements of the 25th Bombardment Group, a

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 ...

unit, that was also engaged in antisubmarine patrols. Finally, the 23d Antisubmarine Squadron deployed to

Edinburgh Field Carlsen Air Force Base is a former United States Army Air Forces World War II airbase on Trinidad, consisting of two landing strips, "Edinburgh" and "Xeres". The airbase also included an emergency landing strip, "Tobago". History The America ...

, Trinidad to defend against this threat and to experiment with its 75mm cannon armed

North American B-25 Mitchell The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in ...

Transfer of mission to the Navy

Disagreements between the AAF and the Navy over command of long range aviation units engaged in antisubmarine warfare and of whether those forces would best be employed (offensively or defensively) continued into 1943, and in June, the AAF agreed that "The Army is prepared to withdraw Army Air Forces from anti-submarine operations at such time as the Navy is ready to take over those duties completely." In July, plans were made for 77 of the command's Consolidated B-24 Liberators equipped for antisubmarine warfare to be exchanged for an equal number of B-24s assigned to the Navy. Navy squadrons relieved the 479th Group in October, and its personnel and planes were transferred to

Eighth Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Force ...

to form a pathfinder unit. By mid November, the 480th Group had been relieved and was on its way back to the US. Its two squadrons were inactivated in October and their personnel assigned elsewhere. The majority of the command's squadrons were redesignated as bombardment squadrons and transferred to Second Air Force, while the 25th and 26th Wings were disbanded.Ferguson, pp. 82–83

Bomber training

In August 1943, the command was redesignated I Bomber Command and reassigned to First Air Force. It continued to oversee antisubmarine units in the United States through October 1943 and overseas through December. It began to train bomber crews in early 1944, when Replacement Training UnitsReplacement Training Units were oversized units to train individual

pilots An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

aircrew Aircrew, also called flight crew, are personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of a flight's crew depends on the type of aircraft, plus the flight's duration and purpose. Commercial aviation Flight deck positions ...

s. Craven & Cate, Introduction, p. xxxvi were reassigned to the command from Second Air Force (

heavy bomber Heavy bombers are bomber aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually bombs) and longest range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy bombers have therefore usually been among the larges ...

s) and

(medium and

light bomber A light bomber is a relatively small and fast type of military bomber aircraft that was primarily employed before the 1950s. Such aircraft would typically not carry more than one ton of ordnance. The earliest light bombers were intended to dro ...

s). However, the AAF was finding that standard military units, based on relatively inflexible tables of organization, were not well adapted to the training mission. Accordingly, in April 1944, a more functional system was adopted in which each base was organized into a separate numbered Army Air Force Base Unit, that could be adjusted to the proper size for that base's mission. Using this organization, it continued to train bomber organizations and personnel (at a reduced level after the end of the war) until inactivated in March 1946. The command remained inactive until it was disbanded on 8 October 1948.

Lineage

* Constituted as the Army Air Forces Antisubmarine Command on 13 October 1942 : Activated on 15 October 1942 * Redesignated I Bomber Command on 26 August 1943 : Inactivated on 21 March 1946 * Disbanded on 8 October 1948

Assignments

* Army Air Forces, 15 October 1942 * First Air Force, August 1943 – 21 March 1946

Components

; Wings * 1st Antisubmarine Wing (Provisional) (later 2037th Antisubmarine Wing (Provisional)): c. December 1942 – c. 21 June 1943Components stationed with command headquarters, except as noted. :: RAF St Eval, England then Craw Field, French Morocco * 25th Antisubmarine Wing: 20 November 1942 – 15 October 1943 * 26th Antisubmarine Wing: 20 November 1942 – 15 October 1943 :: Miami, Florida ; Groups * 1st Antisubmarine Group (Provisional): c. 1 January 1943 – c. 1 March 1943 * 1st Sea-Search Attack Group: (later 1st Sea-Search Attack Unit): attached for operations 15 October 1942 – 10 November 1943 ::

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 perform ...

, Virginia *

13th Bombardment Group In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The interval can be also described as a compound sixth, spanning an octave ...

: 15 October 1942 – 20 November 1942 ::

Westover Field Westover may refer to: People * Al Westover (born 1954), American professional basketball player in Australia * Arthur Westover (1864–1935), Canadian sport shooter and 1908 Olympian * Charles Westover (1934–1990), better known as Del Shannon, ...

, Massachusetts * 45th Bombardment Group: 15 October 1942 – 20 November 1942 :: Miami Army Air Field, Florida * 47th Bombardment Group, 11 July 1945 – 7 February 1946 ::

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, 14 July 1945 – c. 9 September 1945,

Lake Charles Army Air Field A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...

, Louisiana * 302d Bombardment Group: 17 December 1943 – 10 April 1944 :: Chatham Army Air Field, Georgia * 304th Bombardment Group: 29 October 1942 – 20 November 1942 :: Langley Field, Virginia * 377th Bombardment Group: 18 October 1942 – 20 November 1942 ::

Fort Dix Army Air Field McGuire AFB/McGuire, the common name of the McGuire unit of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Air Force base in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States, approximately south-southeast of Trenton. McGuire is under the ju ...

, New Jersey *

378th Bombardment Group 378th may refer to: * 378th Bombardment Group, inactive United States Army Air Forces unit * 378th Fighter Squadron, active United States Air Force unit * 378th Troop Carrier Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit See also *378 (number) * ...

, 18 October 1942 – 20 November 1942 :: Langley Field, Virginia * 400th Bombardment Group, 15 December 1943 – 10 April 1944 :: Charleston Army Air Base, South Carolina * 455th Bombardment Group, 4 October 1943 – c. 14 January 1944 :: Langley Field, Virginia until 13 December 1943 * 460th Bombardment Group, c. 29 October 1943 – c. 5 February 1944 :: Chatham Army Air Field until 4 January 1944 * 471st Bombardment Group, 21 January 1944 – 10 April 1944 :: Westover Field, Massachusetts *

477th Bombardment Group 477th may refer to: * 477th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit *477th Fighter Group, the Air Force Reserve Command's first F-22A Raptor unit * 477th Tactical Fighter Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit See also ...

, 15 January 1944 – 10 April 1944 ::

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 ...

, Michigan * 479th Antisubmarine Group, 8 July 1943 – 11 November 1943 (attached to No. 19 Group, RAF Coastal Command for operations, VIII Bomber Command for administration) :: RAF St Eval, England −6 August 1943,

RAF Dunkeswell The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

, England −1 November 1943,

RAF Podington Royal Air Force (RAF) Podington is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force station, station in northern Bedfordshire, England, south-east of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire. History Podington airfield was originally built between 1940 and ...

, England * 480th Antisubmarine Group, 21 June 1943 – c. 1 January 1944 (attached to

Northwest African Coastal Air Force The Northwest African Coastal Air Force (NACAF) was a specialized functional command of the combined Northwest African Air Forces. The Mediterranean Air Command (MAC) oversaw the combined air forces until superseded by the MAAF. The NACAF had res ...

, 21 June – 25 July 1943, Northwest African Air Service Command, 26 July – 22 August 1943,

XII Fighter Command Twelve or 12 may refer to: * 12 (number) * December, the twelfth and final month of the year Years * 12 BC * AD 12 * 1912 * 2012 Film * ''Twelve'' (2010 film), based on the 2002 novel * ''12'' (2007 film), by Russian director and actor Nikit ...

, 23 August – November 1943). Under the operational control of US Navy

Fleet Air Wing 15 A Patrol Wing (PatWing) was a United States Navy aviation unit with the commander of a Patrol Wing known as the Commodore, the ComPatWing or COMPATWING. From 1 November 1942 to 30 June 1973 Patrol Wings were designated "Fleet Air Wings". On 26 Mar ...

, 21 June 1943 – unknown) :: Craw Field, French Morocco – November 1943, Langley Field, Virginia ; Squadrons * 4th Antisubmarine Squadron, 8 June – 8 July 1943 :: Gander Airport, Newfoundland – 23 June 1943; RAF St Eval 30 June 1943 * 6th Antisubmarine Squadron, 8 June – 14 August 1943 :: Gander Airport, Newfoundland * 19th Antisubmarine Squadron, 8 June – 8 July 1943 :: Gander Airport, Newfoundland – c. 23 June 1943; RAF St Eval c. 30 June 1943 * 20th Antisubmarine Squadron, 8 February – 13 October 1943 :: St. John's Aerodrome, Newfoundland * 21st Antisubmarine Squadron, attached 15 October 1942; assigned 8 March 1943 – 28 September 1943 :: New Orleans Army Air Base, Louisiana – 2 May 1943; Gulfport Army Air Field, Mississippi *

22d Antisubmarine Squadron D, or d, is the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''dee'' (pronounced ), plural ''dees''. History The ...

, 3–8 March 1943 :: Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station, North Carolina * 23d Antisubmarine Squadron, air echelon attached 13 October – 20 November 1942; assigned 15 October 1943 – 6 February 1944 :: Air Echelon at Drew Field, Florida, 13 October – 20 November 1942;

Zandery Field Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport , also known as Paramaribo-Zanderij International Airport, and locally referred to simply as JAP, is an airport located in the town of Zanderij and hub for airline carrier Surinam Airways, south of Param ...

, Surinam, 15 October 1943, Drew Field, Florida, 24 December 1943,

, 6 February 1944. Ground echelon at Drew Field, Florida, 15 October 1943,

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, 6 November 1943 (disbanded) *

124th Observation Squadron The 124th Attack Squadron is a unit of the Iowa Air National Guard 132d Wing. It is assigned to Des Moines International Airport (Des Moines ANGB), Iowa and was formerly equipped with F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft. The unit is reequipping with ...

, 15 October – 20 November 1942 :: New Orleans Army Air Base, Louisiana * 522d Bombardment Squadron, 18 October – 20 November 1942 ::

Lantana, Florida Lantana is a town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is 37 miles north from Fort Lauderdale. This town is part of the Miami metropolitan area. The population was 10,423 at the 2010 United States Census. History The first settlers c ...

* 821st Bombardment Squadron, 1 February 1944 – 10 April 1944Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 769 :: Selfridge Field, Michigan ; Base Units * 101st AAF Base Unit, c. 10 April 1944 – c. 21 March 1946 * 103d AAF Base Unit, 1 February 1945 – c. 31 October 1945 * 112th AAF Base Unit, 10 April 1944 – c. 10 September 1945, 1 February 1946 – 21 March 1946 :: Westover Field, Massachusetts * 113th AAF Base Unit, 10 April 1944 – 31 May 1945 :: Charleston Army Air Base, South Carolina * 114th AAF Base Unit, 10 April 1944 – c. 21 March 1946 :: Chatham Army Air Field, Georgia * 115th AAF Base Unit, 10 April 1944 – 10 April 1945 :: Selfridge Field, Michigan – May 1944,

Godman Field Godman or God-man may refer to: * Godman (name) * Godman (India), a colloquial term used in India for a charismatic spiritual leader * ''The Godman'', a 1999 Indian Malayalam film * ''God-Man'', a recurring character in the comic '' Tom the Dancin ...

, Kentucky – April 1945,

Freeman Field : ''For the civil use of this facility after 1946, see Freeman Municipal Airport '' Freeman Army Airfield is an inactive United States Army Air Forces base. It is located south-southwest of Seymour, Indiana. The base was established in 1942 a ...

, Indiana * 117th AAF Base Unit, 13 June 1944 – c. 15 August 1944 :: Sturgis Army Air Field, Kentucky * 118th AAF Base Unit, 21 August 1944 – c. 15 March 1945 :: Godman Field, Kentucky – August 1944, Freeman Field, Indiana

Stations

* New York, New York, 15 October 1942 *

Mitchel Field Mitchell may refer to: People *Mitchell (surname) *Mitchell (given name) Places Australia * Mitchell, Australian Capital Territory, a light-industrial estate * Mitchell, New South Wales, a suburb of Bathurst * Mitchell, Northern Territor ...

, New York, c. 1 October 1943 – 21 March 1946

Campaigns

References

; Notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

* * (Honors Thesis, title sheet missing) * * * {{USAAF Antisubmarine Command United States Army Air Force Commands Maritime patrol aircraft units and formations Military units and formations disestablished in 1948 American Theater of World War II