The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a
numbered air force
A Numbered Air Force (NAF) is a type of organization in the United States Air Force that is subordinate to a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, major command (MAJCOM) and has assigned to it operational units such as wings, squ ...
(NAF) of the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air 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 of the United States Army Signal ...
's
Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at
Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Forces Strategic – Global Strike, one of the air components of
United States Strategic Command
United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands in the United States Department of Defense. Headquartered at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, USSTRATCOM is responsible for Strategic_nuclear_weapon, ...
(USSTRATCOM). The Eighth Air Force includes the heart of America's heavy bomber force: the
Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit stealth bomber, the
Rockwell B-1 Lancer
The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It is commonly called the "Bone" (from "B-One"). It is one of three strategic bombers serving in the U.S. Air Force fleet along with ...
supersonic bomber, and the
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
heavy bomber aircraft.
Established on 22 February 1944 by the redesignation of VIII Bomber Command at
RAF Daws Hill
RAF Daws Hill was a Ministry of Defence site, located near High Wycombe and Flackwell Heath, in Buckinghamshire, England, close to the M40 motorway.
The station was established in 1942 on land owned by Wycombe Abbey School, for use by the ...
in
High Wycombe
High Wycombe, often referred to as Wycombe ( ), is a market town in Buckinghamshire, England. Lying in the valley of the River Wye surrounded by the Chiltern Hills, it is west-northwest of Charing Cross in London, south-southeast of Ayl ...
, England, the Eighth Army Air Force (8 AAF) was a
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 ...
combat air force in 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 ...
(1939/41–1945), engaging in operations primarily in the Northern Europe
area of responsibility; carrying out
strategic bombing
Strategic bombing is a military strategy used in total war with the goal of defeating the enemy by destroying its morale, its economic ability to produce and transport materiel to the theatres of military operations, or both. It is a systematica ...
of enemy targets in France, the Low Countries, and Germany; and engaging in air-to-air fighter combat against enemy aircraft until the German capitulation in May 1945. It was the largest of the deployed combat Army Air Forces in numbers of personnel, aircraft, and equipment.
During the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
(1945–1991), 8 AF was one of three
Numbered Air Force
A Numbered Air Force (NAF) is a type of organization in the United States Air Force that is subordinate to a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, major command (MAJCOM) and has assigned to it operational units such as wings, squ ...
s of the United States Air Force's
Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command (SAC) was both a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile ...
(SAC), with a three-star general headquartered at
Westover Air Force Base 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 commanding USAF strategic bombers and missiles on a global scale. Elements of 8 AF engaged in combat operations during 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 ...
(1950–1953);
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
(1961–1975), as well as
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-Man ...
(1990–1991) over Iraq and occupied Kuwait in the
First Persian Gulf War.
Overview
Eighth Air Force is one of two active duty numbered air forces in Air Force Global Strike Command. Eighth Air Force, with headquarters at Barksdale Air Force Base in the
Bossier City
Bossier City ( ) is a city in Bossier Parish in the northwestern region of the U.S. state of Louisiana in the United States. It is the second most populous city in the Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan statistical area. In 2020, it had a ...
–
Shreveport
Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population o ...
, Louisiana metro area, supports U.S. Strategic Command, and is designated as U.S. Strategic Command's Task Force 204, providing on-alert, combat-ready forces to the president. The mission of "The Mighty Eighth" is to safeguard America's interests through strategic deterrence and global combat power. Eighth Air Force controls long-range nuclear-capable bomber assets throughout the United States and overseas locations. Its flexible, conventional and nuclear deterrence mission provides the capability to deploy forces and engage enemy threats from home station or forward positioned, anywhere, any time. The 8th Air Force motto is "Peace Through Strength."
The Eighth Air Force team consists of more than 16,000 Regular Air Force (e.g., active duty),
Air National Guard
The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...
and
Air Force Reserve
The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a MAJCOM, major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of ...
professionals operating and maintaining a variety of aircraft capable of deploying air power to any area of the world. This air power includes the heart of America's heavy bomber force, deploying the
Rockwell B-1 Lancer
The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It is commonly called the "Bone" (from "B-One"). It is one of three strategic bombers serving in the U.S. Air Force fleet along with ...
,
Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit and the
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
. The Mighty Eighth's B-52 force consists of 76 bombers assigned to two active duty wings, the
2d Bomb Wing
The 2nd Bomb Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command and the Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The wing is also the host unit at Barksdale. The wing wa ...
at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana and the
5th Bomb Wing at
Minot Air Force Base
Minot Air Force Base is a U.S. Air Force installation in Ward County, North Dakota, north of the city of Minot via U.S. Route 83. In the 2020 census, the base was counted as a CDP with a total population of 5,017, down from 5,521 in 2 ...
, North Dakota, and one reserve wing, the
307th Bomb Wing at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The B-2 force consists of 20 bombers assigned to the active duty
509th Bomb Wing
The 509th Bomb Wing (509 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command, Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri.
The 509 BW is the host unit at Whiteman, and operates ...
along with the
Missouri Air National Guard
The Missouri Air National Guard (MO ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Missouri, United States of America. It is, along with the Missouri Army National Guard, an element of the Missouri National Guard.
As state militia units, the units i ...
's associate
131st Bomb Wing at
Whiteman AFB
Whiteman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located just south of Knob Noster, Missouri, United States. The base is the current home of the B-2 Spirit bomber. It is named for 2nd Lt George Whiteman, who was killed during the attac ...
, Missouri. The B-1 force consists of 62 bombers assigned to the active duty
7th Bomb Wing
The 7th Bomb Wing (7 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Global Strike Command Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, where it is also the host unit.
The 7 BW is one of only two B-1B Lancer strateg ...
at
Dyess AFB
Dyess Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located about southwest of downtown Abilene, Texas, and west of Fort Worth, Texas.
The host unit at Dyess is the 7th Bomb Wing assigned to the Global Strike Command Eig ...
, Texas and the
28th Bomb Wing at
Ellsworth AFB
Ellsworth Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base located about northeast of Rapid City, South Dakota, just north of the town of Box Elder, South Dakota, Box Elder.
The host unit at Ellsworth is the 28th Bomb Wing (28 BW). Assi ...
, South Dakota. The 131st Bomb Wing is operationally-gained by AFGSC and 8 AF from the
Air National Guard
The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...
, while the 307th Bomb Wing is operationally-gained from
Air Force Reserve Command
The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commiss ...
and
10th Air Force
The Tenth Air Force (10 AF) is a unit of the U.S. Air Force, specifically a numbered air force of the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC). 10 AF is headquartered at Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base/Carswell Field (formerly Carswell ...
.
Major General Mark E. Weatherington assumed command of 8th Air Force on 12 June 2020.
History: World War II
Eighth Air Force was established as VIII Bomber Command on 19 January 1942 and activated at
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 on 1 February. It was reassigned to
Savannah Army Air Base
Hunter Army Airfield , located in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is a military airfield and subordinate installation to Fort Stewart located in Hinesville, Georgia.
Hunter features a runway that is 11,375 feet (3,468 m) long and an Airpor ...
,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
on 10 February 1942. An advanced detachment of VIII Bomber Command was established at
RAF Daws Hill
RAF Daws Hill was a Ministry of Defence site, located near High Wycombe and Flackwell Heath, in Buckinghamshire, England, close to the M40 motorway.
The station was established in 1942 on land owned by Wycombe Abbey School, for use by the ...
, near
RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command controlled the Royal Air Force's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. Along with the United States Army Air Forces, it played the central role in the strategic bombing of Germany in World War II. From 1942 onward, the British bo ...
Headquarters at
RAF High Wycombe
RAF High Wycombe is a Royal Air Force station, situated in the village of Walters Ash, near High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England. It houses Headquarters Air Command, and was originally designed to house RAF Bomber Command in the late 1930s ...
, on 23 February in preparation for its units to arrive in the United Kingdom from the United States. The first combat group of VIII Bomber Command to arrive in the United Kingdom was the ground echelon of the
97th Bombardment Group, which arrived at
RAF Polebrook
Royal Air Force Station Polebrook or more simply RAF Polebrook is a former Royal Air Force station located east-south-east of Oundle, at Polebrook, Northamptonshire, England. The airfield was built on Rothschild estate land starting in Augus ...
and
RAF Grafton Underwood
Royal Air Force Grafton Underwood or more simply RAF Grafton Underwood is a former Royal Air Force station located northeast of Kettering, Northamptonshire, England.
Royal Air Force use
The airfield at Grafton Underwood was opened in 1941 an ...
on 9 June 1942.
Start of offensive operations against Nazi-occupied territory
The VIII Bomber Command launched its first raid in North-western Europe on 4 July 1942, when six RAF
Douglas A-20 Havoc
The Douglas A-20 Havoc (company designation DB-7) is an American medium bomber, attack aircraft, Intruder (air combat), night intruder, night fighter, and reconnaissance aircraft of World War II.
Designed to meet an Army Air Corps requirement f ...
s flown by crews of the
15th Bombardment Squadron (Light) (accompanied by another six Bostons from the more experienced
No. 226 Squadron RAF
No. 226 Squadron RAF was a unit of the British Royal Air Force that existed as a bomber squadron during the First and Second World Wars, and as part of the UK's nuclear ballistic missile force in the early 1960s.
Squadron history
First formed o ...
) commanded by Captain Charles C. Kegelman attacked four airfields in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
.
[ Alerted to the attack, the airfield defences were prepared for the raid when it arrived. The right propeller of Kegelman's Boston was shot away by flak while over the target at ]De Kooy Airfield
De Kooy Airfield ( nl, Vliegveld De Kooy) is an airfield south of Den Helder, Netherlands, named after the nearby hamlet De Kooy. It serves as both a civilian airport under the name Den Helder Airport and a naval airport under the name ''Mari ...
Further ground fire caused damage to his right wing, and the engine caught fire. Kegelman's aircraft lost altitude and even bounced off the ground, but he was able to bring the damaged bomber home and received the Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries.
*Distinguished Service Cross (Australia)
The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...
(DSC) from General Spaatz on 11 July. This was the first DSC earned by a member of the Eighth Air Force in World War II. The other American-flown Boston had been shot down over De Kooy
Regular combat operations by the VIII Bomber Command began on 17 August 1942, when the 97th Bombardment Group flew twelve Boeing B-17E Flying Fortresses on the first VIII Bomber Command heavy bomber mission of the war from RAF Grafton Underwood, attacking the Rouen-Sotteville marshalling yard
A classification yard (American and Canadian English (Canadian National Railway use)), marshalling yard (British, Hong Kong, Indian, Australian, and Canadian English (Canadian Pacific Railway use)) or shunting yard (Central Europe) is a railway ya ...
s in France. Colonel Frank A. Armstrong may have been the commander of the 97th, but at the time of the raid, not yet left seat qualified. On this mission, he sat in the co-pilot's seat of the lead B-17, ''Butcher Shop'' The pilot in command and leader of this historic mission was Paul Tibbets
Paul Warfield Tibbets Jr. (23 February 1915 – 1 November 2007) was a brigadier general in the United States Air Force. He is best known as the aircraft captain who flew the B-29 Superfortress known as the '' Enola Gay'' (named after his mot ...
, who on 6 August 1945, dropped the first Atomic Bomb, ''Little Boy
"Little Boy" was the type of atomic bomb dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on 6 August 1945 during World War II, making it the first nuclear weapon used in warfare. The bomb was dropped by the Boeing B-29 Superfortress ''Enola Gay'' p ...
'', on Hiroshima
is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui h ...
from the 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 ...
, ''Enola Gay
The ''Enola Gay'' () is a Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, named after Enola Gay Tibbets, the mother of the pilot, Colonel Paul Tibbets. On 6 August 1945, piloted by Tibbets and Robert A. Lewis during the final stages of World War II, it be ...
.''
During World War II, the offensive air forces of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) came to be classified as strategic or tactical. A strategic air force was that with a mission to attack an enemy's war effort beyond his front-line forces, predominantly production and supply facilities, whereas a tactical air force supported ground campaigns, usually with objectives selected through co-operation with the armies.
In Europe, Eighth Air Force was the first USAAF strategic air force, with a mission to support an invasion of continental Europe from the British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...
. Eighth Air Force carried out strategic daytime bombing operations in Western Europe from 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 eastern England as part of the Combined Bomber Offensive
The Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO) was an Allies of World War II, Allied offensive of strategic bombing during World War II, strategic bombing during World War II in Europe. The primary portion of the CBO was directed against Luftwaffe targets w ...
World War II (1944–1945)
On 4 January 1944, the Consolidated B-24 Liberators and B-17s based in England flew their last mission as a subordinate part of VIII Bomber Command. On 22 February 1944, a massive reorganization of American airpower took place in Europe. The original Eighth Air Force was redesignated as the United States Strategic Air Forces
The United States Strategic Air Forces (USSTAF) was a formation of the United States Army Air Forces. It became the overall command and control authority of the United States Army Air Forces in Europe during World War II.
USSTAF had started as ...
(USSTAF). VIII Bomber Command, re-designated as Eighth Air Force, and Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is the Air Force Service Component of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), a joint De ...
were assigned to (USSTAF).
VIII Bomber Command, after redesignation as Eighth Air Force, was assigned VIII Fighter and VIII Air Support Commands under its command. This is from where the present-day Eighth Air Force's history, lineage and honors derive.
General Carl Spaatz returned to England to command the USSTAF. Major General Jimmy Doolittle
James Harold Doolittle (December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993) was an American military general and aviation pioneer who received the Medal of Honor for his daring raid on Japan during World War II. He also made early coast-to-coast flights ...
relinquished command of the Fifteenth Air Force to Major General Nathan F. Twining
Nathan Farragut Twining ( ; October 11, 1897 – March 29, 1982) was a United States Air Force general, born in Monroe, Wisconsin. He was the chief of Staff of the United States Air Force from 1953 until 1957, and the third chairman of the Joi ...
and on January 6, 1944, took over command of the Eighth Air Force from Lieutenant General
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
Ira C. Eaker
General (Honorary) Ira Clarence Eaker (April 13, 1896 – August 6, 1987) was a general of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. Eaker, as second-in-command of the prospective Eighth Air Force, was sent to England to form and ...
at RAF Daws Hill. Doolittle was well known to American airmen as the famous "Tokyo Raider" and former air racer. His directive was simple: "Win the air war and isolate the battlefield."
Spaatz and Doolittle's plan was to use the US Strategic Air Forces in a series of co-ordinated raids, code-named Operation 'Argument' (popularly known as 'Big Week
Big Week or Operation Argument was a sequence of raids by the United States Army Air Forces and RAF Bomber Command from 20 to 25 February 1944, as part of the Strategic bombing during World War II#US bombing in Europe, European strategic bombin ...
' ) and supported by RAF night bombing, on the German aircraft industry at the earliest possible date.
Big Week
Cold and clear weather was predicted for the last week of February 1944. On the night of 19–20 February, the RAF bombed Leipzig with 823 aircraft. Eighth Air Force's effort was over 1,000 B-17s and B-24s and over 800 fighters and the RAF provided sixteen squadrons of North American P-51 Mustang
The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter aircraft, fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team ...
s and Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Grif ...
s in addition. In all, twelve aircraft factories were attacked, with the B-17s heading to Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
( – Junkers Ju 88
The Junkers Ju 88 is a German World War II ''Luftwaffe'' twin-engined multirole combat aircraft. Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (JFM) designed the plane in the mid-1930s as a so-called ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that would be too fast ...
production and – Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War an ...
fighters), Bernburg
Bernburg (Saale) is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, capital of the Salzlandkreis district. The former residence of the Anhalt-Bernburg princes is known for its Renaissance architecture, Renaissance castle.
Geography
The town centre is situated ...
-Strenzfeld (Junkers
Junkers Flugzeug- und Motorenwerke AG (JFM, earlier JCO or JKO in World War I, English: Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works) more commonly Junkers , was a major German aircraft and aircraft engine manufacturer. It was founded there in Dessau, Germ ...
Ju 88
The Junkers Ju 88 is a German World War II ''Luftwaffe'' twin-engined multirole combat aircraft. Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (JFM) designed the plane in the mid-1930s as a so-called ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that would be too fast f ...
plant) and Oschersleben
Oschersleben () is a town in the Börde district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The population in 1905 was 13,271, in 2020 about 19,000.
History
On November 23, 994 Oschersleben was first mentioned in a document by the Emperor Otto III. In 1235 ...
( AGO plant making Focke Wulf Fw 190A fighters), while the B-24s hitting the Gothaer Waggonfabrik
''Gothaer Waggonfabrik'' (''Gotha'', GWF) was a German manufacturer of rolling stock established in the late nineteenth century at Gotha. During the two world wars, the company expanded into aircraft building.
World War I
In World War I, Got ...
(production of Messerschmitt Bf 110
The Messerschmitt Bf 110, often known unofficially as the Me 110,Because it was built before ''Bayerische Flugzeugwerke'' became Messerschmitt AG in July 1938, the Bf 110 was never officially given the designation Me 110. is a twin-engine (Des ...
heavy fighters), the Fw 190 Arado Flugzeugwerke
Arado Flugzeugwerke was a German aircraft manufacturer, originally established as the Warnemünde factory of the Flugzeugbau Friedrichshafen firm, that produced land-based military aircraft and seaplanes during the First and Second World Wars.
Hi ...
plant at Tutow
Tutow is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe ...
and Heinkel
Heinkel Flugzeugwerke () was a German aircraft manufacturing company founded by and named after Ernst Heinkel. It is noted for producing bomber aircraft for the Luftwaffe in World War II and for important contributions to high-speed flight, with ...
's ''"Heinkel-Nord"'' headquarters at Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, c ...
(production of He 111
The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a "wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after th ...
bombers). As a contrast, the Luftwaffe was undertaking the sixth major raid of the "Baby Blitz" the following night (20/21 February), with only some 165 German aircraft sortieing against British targets.
The raids on the German aircraft industry comprising much of "Big Week" caused so much damage that the Germans were forced to disperse aircraft manufacturing eastward, to safer parts of the Reich.
The next day, over 900 bombers and 700 fighters of Eighth Air Force hit more aircraft factories in the Braunschweig
Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the Nor ...
area. Over 60 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 ...
fighters were shot down with a loss of 19 US bombers and 5 US fighters. On 24 February, with the weather clearing over central Germany, Eighth Air Force sent over 800 bombers, hitting Schweinfurt
Schweinfurt ( , ; ) is a city in the district of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the surrounding district (''Landkreis'') of Schweinfurt and a major industrial, cultural and educational hub. The urban agg ...
and attacks on the Baltic coast, with a total of 11 B-17s being lost. Some 230 B-24s hit the Messerschmitt Bf 110 assembly plant at Gotha
Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine Wettins from 1640 until the ...
with a loss of 24 aircraft.
On 22 February 1944, due to many mistakes, Nijmegen
Nijmegen (;; Spanish and it, Nimega. Nijmeegs: ''Nimwèège'' ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and tenth largest of the Netherlands as a whole, located on the Waal river close to the German border. It is about 6 ...
was bombarded by twelve aircraft of the 446th Bombardment Group and two aircraft of the 453rd. They did not realize that they were over Dutch territory; 850 civilians, including children on their way to school, were among the casualties.
On 25 February, both Eighth and Fifteenth Air Force
The Fifteenth Air Force (15 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base. It was reactivated on 20 August 2020, merging the previous units of the Ninth Air Force ...
s hit numerous targets at Fürth
Fürth (; East Franconian: ; yi, פיורדא, Fiurda) is a city in northern Bavaria, Germany, in the administrative division (''Regierungsbezirk'') of Middle Franconia. It is now contiguous with the larger city of Nuremberg, the centres of the t ...
airfield, Augsburg
Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the ' ...
and Regensburg
Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...
, attacking Messerschmitt Bf 110 and Bf 109 plants. The 8th lost 31 bombers, the 15th lost 33.
Berlin
Less than a week after "Big Week", Eighth Air Force made its first attack on the Reich's capital, Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
. The RAF
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 ...
had been making night raids on Berlin since 1940, (with heavy raids in 1943) and nuisance de Havilland Mosquito
The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito is a British twin-engined, shoulder-winged, multirole combat aircraft, introduced during the Second World War. Unusual in that its frame was constructed mostly of wood, it was nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder", or ...
raids in daylight, but this was the first major daylight bombing raid on the German capital. On 6 March 1944, over 700 heavy bombers along with 800 escort fighters of the Eighth Air Force hit numerous targets within Berlin, dropping the first American bombs on the capital of the Third Reich
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
. On 8 March, another raid of 600 bombers and 200 fighters hit the Berlin area again, destroying the VKF ball-bearing plant at Erkner
Erkner () is a town in the Oder-Spree District of Brandenburg, Germany, located on the south-eastern edge of the German capital city Berlin.
Geography
The town is located between the lakes Dämeritzsee, a part of the river Spree, and Flakensee, s ...
. The following day, on 9 March, H2X radar
H2X, officially known as the AN/APS-15, was an American ground scanning radar system used for blind bombing during World War II. It was a development of the British H2S radar, the first ground mapping radar to be used in combat. It was also known ...
-equipped B-17s mounted a third attack on the Reich capital through clouds. Altogether, the Eighth Air Force dropped over 4,800 tons of high explosive on Berlin during the first week of March. The photograph shows housing destroyed by the RAF during night raids.
On 22 March, over 800 bombers, led by H2X radar equipped bombers hit Berlin yet again, bombing targets through a thick rainy overcast causing more destruction to various industries. Because of the thick clouds and rain over the area the Luftwaffe did not attack the American bomber fleet, as the Germans believed that because of the weather the American bombers would be incapable of attacking their targets. Even so, the "pathfinder" bombers of the RAF Alconbury
Royal Air Force Alconbury or more simply RAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station near Huntingdon, England. The airfield is in the civil parish of The Stukeleys, close to the villages of Great Stukeley, Little Stukeley, and Alconbury. ...
-based 482d Bomb Group proved very capable of finding the targets and guiding the bombers to them.
Prelude to Operation Overlord
In a prelude to the invasion of France
France has been invaded on numerous occasions, by foreign powers or rival French governments; there have also been unimplemented invasion plans.
* the 1746 War of the Austrian Succession, Austria-Italian forces supported by the British navy attemp ...
, American air attacks began in February 1944 against railroad junctions, airfields, ports and bridges in northern France and along the English Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
coastline. Fighters from both Eighth and Ninth Air Forces made wide sweeps over the area, mounting strafing missions at airfields and rail networks. By 6 June, Allied fighter pilots had succeeded in damaging or destroying hundreds of locomotives, thousands of motorized vehicles, and many bridges. In addition, German airfields in France and Belgium were attacked.
On 1 May, over 1,300 Eighth Air Force heavy bombers made an all-out attack on the enemy's rail network, striking at targets in France and Belgium. On 7 May, another 1,000 bombers hit additional targets along the English Channel coast, hitting fortifications, bridges and marshaling areas.
On D-Day, over 2,300 sorties were flown by Eighth Air Force heavy bombers in the Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
and Cherbourg
Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Feb ...
invasion areas, all aimed at neutralizing enemy coastal defenses and front-line troops.
Defeat of the Luftwaffe
The P-51 Mustang first entered squadron service in Europe with the British in early 1942; the Allison V-1710-engined P-51A (Mustang I) having much success with the RAF, although it found the aircraft's performance inadequate at higher altitudes. Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to:
* Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct
Automobiles
* Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...
engineers rapidly realized that equipping the Mustang with a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine with its two speed, two stage supercharger would substantially improve performance. Also, by using a four-bladed propeller, rather than the three-bladed one used on the P-51A, the performance was greatly improved; the XP-51B achieved a level speed of 441 mph at , over faster than the Allison-engined P-51A at that altitude. At all heights, the rate of climb was approximately doubled.
The USAAF now finally had an aircraft that could compete on equal terms with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 and the later models of the Messerschmitt Bf 109. The USAAF was finally fully sold on the Mustang, and a letter contract for 2200 P-51Bs was issued. The engine was to be the Packard V-1650-3, based on the Rolls-Royce Merlin Mk68.
In late 1943, the P-51B Mustang was introduced to the European Theater
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 ...
by the USAAF. It could fly as far on its internal fuel tanks as the P-47 could with drop tanks. However, the P-51B was introduced as a tactical fighter, so the first deliveries of the P-51B in November 1943 were assigned to three groups in the tactical Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is the Air Force Service Component of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), a joint De ...
at the expense of VIII Bomber Command
8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9.
In mathematics
8 is:
* a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2.
* a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...
, whose need for a long range escort fighter was critical. The first escort mission for the bombers was not flown until 5 December.
As the new commander of the Eighth Air Force from January 1944 onwards, Major General Jimmy Doolittle
James Harold Doolittle (December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993) was an American military general and aviation pioneer who received the Medal of Honor for his daring raid on Japan during World War II. He also made early coast-to-coast flights ...
's major influence on the European air war occurred early that year when he made a critical change to the policy requiring escorting fighters to remain with the bombers at all times. With Doolittle's permission, American fighter pilots on bomber defense missions would primarily be flying far ahead of the bombers' combat box
The combat box was a tactical formation used by heavy (strategic) bombers of the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. The combat box was also referred to as a "staggered formation". Its defensive purpose was in massing the firepower of the bo ...
formations in air supremacy
Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of com ...
mode, literally "clearing the skies" of any 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 ...
fighter opposition heading towards the target. This strategy fatally disabled the twin-engined ''Zerstörergeschwader'' heavy fighter
A heavy fighter is a historic category of fighter aircraft produced in the 1930s and 1940s, designed to carry heavier weapons, and/or operate at longer ranges than light fighter aircraft. To achieve performance, most heavy fighters were twin-eng ...
wings and their replacement, single-engined ''Sturmgruppen'' of heavily armed Fw 190As, clearing each force of bomber destroyer
Bomber destroyers were World War II interceptor aircraft intended to destroy enemy bomber aircraft. Bomber destroyers were typically larger and heavier than general interceptors, designed to mount more powerful armament, and often having twin en ...
s in their turn from Germany's skies throughout most of 1944. As part of this game-changing strategy, especially after the bombers had hit their targets, the USAAF's fighters were then free to strafe German airfields and transport while returning to base, contributing significantly to the achievement of air superiority by Allied air forces over Europe.
The effect of the Mustangs, fully operating as an air supremacy fighter force, on the Luftwaffe defenders was arguably swift and decisive. The result was that the Luftwaffe was notable by its absence over the skies of Europe after D-Day
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...
and the Allies were starting to achieve air superiority over the continent. Although the Luftwaffe could, and did, mount effective attacks on the ever-larger formations of Allied heavy bombers, the sheer numbers of B-17s and B-24s attacking enemy targets was overwhelming the German fighter force, which simply could not sustain the losses the Eighth Air Force bombers and fighters were inflicting on it. In order to quickly assemble these formations, specially outfitted assembly ships were created from older bombers.
By mid-1944, Eighth Air Force had reached a total strength of more than 200,000 people (it is estimated that more than 350,000 Americans served in Eighth Air Force during the war in Europe). At peak strength, Eighth Air Force had forty heavy bomber groups, fifteen fighter groups, and four specialized support groups. It could, and often did, dispatch more than 2,000 four-engine bombers and more than 1,000 fighters on a single mission to multiple targets.
By 1945, all but one of the Eighth Air Force fighter groups were equipped with the P-51D.
Destroying the German oil industry
Eighth Air Force did not strike at oil industry targets until 13 May 1944 when 749 bombers, escorted by almost 740 fighters, pounded oil targets in the Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
area and at Brux in Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
. At the same time, a smaller force hit an Fw 190
The Focke-Wulf Fw 190, nicknamed ''Würger'' ("Shrike") is a German single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt Tank at Focke-Wulf in the late 1930s and widely used during World War II. Along with its well-known counterpart, t ...
repair depot at Zwickau
Zwickau (; is, with around 87,500 inhabitants (2020), the fourth-largest city of Saxony after Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz and it is the seat of the Zwickau District. The West Saxon city is situated in the valley of the Zwickau Mulde (German: ' ...
. Over 300 German fighters attacked the bomber forces, losing almost half its aircraft, with claims of upwards of 47 ''Luftwaffe'' fighters by American fighter pilots. However, the 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 ...
was successful in shooting down 46 bombers in a very unequal fight.
After D-Day
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...
, attacks on the German oil industry assumed top priority which was widely dispersed around the Reich. Vast fleets of B-24s and B-17s escorted by P-51Ds and long-range P-38Ls hit refineries in Germany and Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
in late 1944 and early 1945. Having almost total air superiority throughout the collapsing German Reich, Eighth Air Force hit targets as far east as Hungary, while Fifteenth Air Force
The Fifteenth Air Force (15 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base. It was reactivated on 20 August 2020, merging the previous units of the Ninth Air Force ...
hit oil industry facilities in Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
, Romania, and northeastern Italy. On at least eighteen occasions, the Merseburg refineries in Leuna
Leuna is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, eastern Germany, south of Merseburg and Halle, on the river Saale.
The town is known for the ''Leunawerke'', at 13 km2 one of the biggest chemical industrial complexes in Germany, where a very wide range of ...
, where the majority of Germany's synthetic fuel for jet aircraft was refined, was hit. By the end of 1944, only three out of ninety-one refineries in the Reich were still working normally, twenty-nine were partially functional, and the remainder were completely destroyed.
Casualties and awards
These missions, however, carried a high price. Half of the U.S. Army Air Forces' casualties in World War II were suffered by Eighth Air Force (more than 47,000 casualties, with more than 26,000 dead). Seventeen Medals of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. Th ...
went to Eighth Air Force personnel during the war. By war's end, they had been awarded a number of other medals to include 220 Distinguished Service Crosses, and 442,000 Air Medal
The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight.
Criteria
The Air Medal was establish ...
s. Many more awards were made to Eighth Air Force veterans after the war that remain uncounted. There were 261 fighter aces in the Eighth Air Force during World War II. Thirty-one of these aces had 15 or more aircraft kills apiece. Another 305 enlisted gunners were also recognized as aces.
One notable Eighth Air Force casualty was Brigadier General Arthur W. Vanaman, Chief of Intelligence, who was captured by the Germans in northern France on 27 June 1944, becoming the highest-ranked American POW captured in Europe during the war.
Victory in Europe
In January 1945, the 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 ...
attempted one last major air offensive against the Allied Air Forces. Over 950 fighters had been sent west from the Eastern Front for "Operation Bodenplatte". On 1 January, the entire German fighter force in the West, comprising combat aircraft from some eleven ''Jagdgeschwader Jagdgeschwader were the series of fighter wings of initially, the German Empire's ''Luftstreitkräfte'' air arm of the ''Deutsches Heer'', then the successor fighter wings of the Third Reich's original ''Luftwaffe'' air arm of its combined Wehrmach ...
'' day fighter wings, took off and attacked 27 Allied airfields in northern France, Belgium and the southern part of the Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
in an attempt by the Luftwaffe to cripple 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 ...
air forces in the Low Countries
The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...
of Europe. It was a last-ditch effort to keep up the momentum of the German forces during the stagnant stage of the Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive (military), offensive military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted fr ...
( ''Unternehmen Wacht am Rhein''). The operation was a pyrrhic success for the ''Luftwaffe'' as the losses suffered by the German air arm were irreplaceable and over 300 Luftwaffe aircraft were shot down, mostly by Allied anti-aircraft guns. The losses of the Allied Air Forces were replaced within weeks. The operation failed to achieve air superiority
Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of c ...
, even temporarily, and the German Army continued to be exposed to air attack.
First seen by Allied airmen during the late summer of 1944, it wasn't until March 1945 that German jet aircraft
A jet aircraft (or simply jet) is an aircraft (nearly always a fixed-wing aircraft) propelled by jet engines.
Whereas the engines in propeller-powered aircraft generally achieve their maximum efficiency at much lower speeds and altitudes, je ...
started to attack Allied bomber formations in earnest. On 2 March, when Eighth Air Force bombers were dispatched to attack the synthetic oil refineries at Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
, Messerschmitt Me 262
The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the Germa ...
As attacked the formation near Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
. The next day, the largest formation of German jets ever seen, most likely from the Luftwaffe's specialist 7th Fighter Wing, ''Jagdgeschwader 7
Jagdgeschwader 7 (JG 7) ''Nowotny'' was a Luftwaffe fighter wing during World War II and the first operational jet fighter unit in the world. It was created late in 1944 and served until the end of the war in May 1945.
Background
JG 7 was fo ...
'' ''Nowotny'', made attacks on Eighth Air Force bomber formations over Dresden and the oil targets at Essen
Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and D ...
, shooting down a total of three bombers.
However, the Luftwaffe jets were simply too few and too late to have any serious effect on the Allied air armadas now sweeping over the Reich with near-impunity. A lack of fuel and available pilots for the new jets greatly reduced their effectiveness. The Me 262A was a difficult foe for the P-47s and P-51s, possessing a distinct speed advantage. Allied bomber escort fighters would fly high above the bombers – diving from this height gave them extra speed, thus reducing the speed difference. The Me 262 was also less maneuverable than the P-51 and so trained Allied pilots could turn tighter than an Me 262A. However, the only reliable way of dealing with the jets, as with the even faster Me 163B Komet rocket fighters, was to attack them on the ground and during takeoff and landing. Luftwaffe airfields that were identified as jet and rocket bases, such as Parchim
Parchim (; Mecklenburgisch: ''Parchen'') is a town in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is the capital of the Ludwigslust-Parchim district. It was the birthplace of Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, to whom a monument was erected in 1876.
Found ...
and Bad Zwischenahn
Bad Zwischenahn (Low German: ''Twüschenahn'') is a town and a municipality in the low-lying Ammerland district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is on Zwischenahner Meer, approximately 15 km northwest of Oldenburg and about 70 km south of t ...
, were frequently bombed, and Allied fighters patrolled over the fields to attack jets trying to land. The Luftwaffe countered by installing flak alleys along the approach lines in order to protect the Me 262s from the ground and providing top cover with conventional fighters during takeoff and landing. Nevertheless, in March and April 1945, Allied fighter patrol patterns over Me 262 airfields resulted in numerous losses of jets and serious attrition of the force.
On 7 April 1945, the Luftwaffe flew its most desperate and deadliest mission, with the dedicated aerial ramming unit '' Sonderkommando Elbe''. This operation involved German pilots of the unit ramming their worn-out Bf 109Gs, each barely armed with only one MG 131 machine gun
The MG 131 (shortened from German: ''Maschinengewehr'' 131, or "Machine gun 131") was a German 13 mm caliber machine gun developed in 1938 by Rheinmetall-Borsig and produced from 1940 to 1945. The MG 131 was designed for use at fixed, flexible or ...
and 50 rounds of ammunition, into American bombers in order to get the Allies to suspend bombing raids long enough for the Germans to make a significant amount of Me 262A jet fighters. The 8th Air Force was targeted in this operation. Fifteen Allied bombers were attacked, eight were successfully destroyed.
On 7 April, Eighth Air Force dispatched thirty-two B-17 and B-24 groups and fourteen Mustang groups (the sheer numbers of attacking Allied aircraft were so large in 1945 that they were now counted by the group) to targets in the small area of Germany still controlled by the Nazis, hitting the remaining airfields where the Luftwaffe jets were stationed. In addition, almost 300 German aircraft of all types were destroyed in strafing attacks. On 16 April, this record was broken when over 700 German aircraft were destroyed on the ground.
The end came on 25 April 1945 when Eighth Air Force flew its last full-scale mission of the European War. B-17s hit the Skoda armaments factory at Pilsen in Czechoslovakia, while B-24s bombed rail complexes in Bad Reichenhall
Bad Reichenhall (Central Bavarian: ''Reichahoi'') is a spa town, and administrative center of the Berchtesgadener Land district in Upper Bavaria, Germany. It is located near Salzburg in a basin encircled by the Chiemgau Alps (including Mount Staufe ...
and Freilassing
Freilassing (), until 1923 Salzburghofen is a town of some 16,000 inhabitants in the southeastern corner of Bavaria, Germany. It belongs to the "Regierungsbezirk" Oberbayern and the "Landkreis" (County) of Berchtesgadener Land.
Located very close ...
, surrounding Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then ...
's mountain retreat at Berchtesgaden
Berchtesgaden () is a municipality in the district Berchtesgadener Land, Bavaria, in southeastern Germany, near the border with Austria, south of Salzburg and southeast of Munich. It lies in the Berchtesgaden Alps, south of Berchtesgaden; the ...
.
Pacific Theater
Following the end of the war in Europe in May 1945 plans were made to transfer some of the B-17/B-24 heavy bomber groups of Eighth Air Force to the Pacific Theater of Operations and upgrade them to 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 ...
Very Heavy (VH) bomb groups. As part of this plan, Eighth Air Force headquarters was reassigned to Sakugawa (Kadena Airfield), 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 ...
, on 16 July 1945, being assigned to the United States Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific without personnel or equipment.
On Okinawa, Eighth Air Force derived its headquarters personnel from the inactivated XX Bomber Command
The XX Bomber Command was a United States Army Air Forces bomber formation. Its last assignment was with Twentieth Air Force, based on Okinawa. It was inactivated on 16 July 1945.
History
The idea of basing Boeing B-29 Superfortresses in ...
, and Lieutenant General James H. Doolittle assumed command, being reassigned from England on 19 July. The command controlled three airfields on Okinawa, Bolo, Futema, and Kadena Airfield
(IATA: DNA, ICAO: RODN) is a highly strategic United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is often referred to as the "Keystone of the Pacific" because of its hi ...
. The Eighth received its first B-29 Superfortress on 8 August 1945.
Eighth Air Force's mission in the Pacific was initially to organize and train new bomber groups for combat against Japan. In the planned invasion of Japan
Operation Downfall was the proposed Allied plan for the invasion of the Japanese home islands near the end of World War II. The planned operation was canceled when Japan surrendered following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ...
, the mission of Eighth Air Force would be to conduct B-29 Superfortress raids from Okinawa in coordination with 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 ...
operating from airfields in the Mariana Islands
The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...
.
Units assigned to Eighth Air Force in the Pacific were:
* Headquarters, 301st Fighter Wing
The 301st Fighter Wing (301 FW) is an Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the Tenth Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command, stationed at Carswell Field, Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Tex ...
: Ie Shima Airfield
is a training facility, managed by the United States Marine Corps and a former World War II airfield complex on Ie Shima, an island located off the northwest coast of Okinawa Island in the East China Sea. The airfield as such was inactivated ...
, Okinawa, 31 July – 29 November 1945
: 318th Fighter Group
The 318th Fighter Group was a World War II United States Army Air Forces combat organization. It served primarily in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II.
History
The 318th Fighter Group was activated in October 1942 when the remainders of ...
(P-47N Thunderbolt
The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, P-47 Thunderbolt was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Republic Aviation from 1941 to 1945.
Early designs
XP-47 (AP-10)
In response to a United States Army Air Corps, USAAC requirement for a new fighter ...
)
:: Ie Shima Airfield
is a training facility, managed by the United States Marine Corps and a former World War II airfield complex on Ie Shima, an island located off the northwest coast of Okinawa Island in the East China Sea. The airfield as such was inactivated ...
, Okinawa, 31 July – 29 November 1945
: 413th Fighter Group (P-47N Thunderbolt
The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, P-47 Thunderbolt was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Republic Aviation from 1941 to 1945.
Early designs
XP-47 (AP-10)
In response to a United States Army Air Corps, USAAC requirement for a new fighter ...
)
:: Ie Shima Airfield
is a training facility, managed by the United States Marine Corps and a former World War II airfield complex on Ie Shima, an island located off the northwest coast of Okinawa Island in the East China Sea. The airfield as such was inactivated ...
, Okinawa, 31 July – 29 November 1945
: 507th Fighter Group (P-47N Thunderbolt
The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, P-47 Thunderbolt was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Republic Aviation from 1941 to 1945.
Early designs
XP-47 (AP-10)
In response to a United States Army Air Corps, USAAC requirement for a new fighter ...
)
:: Ie Shima Airfield
is a training facility, managed by the United States Marine Corps and a former World War II airfield complex on Ie Shima, an island located off the northwest coast of Okinawa Island in the East China Sea. The airfield as such was inactivated ...
, Okinawa, 31 July – 29 January 1946
* Headquarters, 316th Bombardment Wing
: Kadena Airfield
(IATA: DNA, ICAO: RODN) is a highly strategic United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is often referred to as the "Keystone of the Pacific" because of its hi ...
Okinawa, 5 September 1945 – 7 June 1946
: 22d Bombardment Group, (B-29 Superfortress)
:: Kadena Airfield
(IATA: DNA, ICAO: RODN) is a highly strategic United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is often referred to as the "Keystone of the Pacific" because of its hi ...
Okinawa, 15 August – 23 November 1945
: 333d Bombardment Group, (B-29 Superfortress)
:: Kadena Airfield
(IATA: DNA, ICAO: RODN) is a highly strategic United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is often referred to as the "Keystone of the Pacific" because of its hi ...
, Okinawa, 5 August 1945 – 28 May 1946
: 346th Bombardment Group
The 346th Bombardment Group is a former United States Army Air Forces unit. It was last assigned to the 316th Bombardment Wing at Kadena Airfield, Okinawa, where it was inactivated on 30 June 1946. The group was originally a heavy bomber train ...
, (B-29 Superfortress)
:: Kadena Airfield
(IATA: DNA, ICAO: RODN) is a highly strategic United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is often referred to as the "Keystone of the Pacific" because of its hi ...
, Okinawa, 7 August 1945 – 30 June 1946
: 382d Bombardment Group
The 382d Bombardment Group is a former United States Army Air Forces unit. It was last stationed at Camp Anza, California, where it was inactivated on 4 January 1946. The group was active from 1942 to 1944 as a heavy bomber training unit. It ...
, (B-29 Superfortress
:: Northwest Field
Northwest Field (historically Northwest Guam Air Force Base) is a military airfield in Guam. Built in 1945 during World War II, the airfield was used as a bomber base during and after the war until it was closed in 1949.
Units deployed to the ...
, 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 ...
, 8 September – 16 December 1945
:: Note: Only 420th Bombardment Squadron of group arrived with B-29 Aircraft, 464th and 872d Bomb Squadrons only ground echelons arrived. Air Echelon of squadrons with assigned aircraft remained in United States until inactivation.
: 383d Bombardment Group, (B-29 Superfortress)
:: West Field, Tinian
Tinian ( or ; old Japanese name: 天仁安島, ''Tenian-shima'') is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of th ...
, 12 September – 19 December 1945
The atomic bombings of Japan
The United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the onl ...
led to the Japanese surrender before Eighth Air Force saw action in the Pacific theater
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
. Eighth Air Force remained in Okinawa until 7 June 1946.
History: Strategic Air Command
World War II proved what the proponents of air power had been championing for the previous two decades—the great value of strategic forces in bombing an enemy's industrial complex and of tactical forces in controlling the skies above a battlefield. As a result, Eighth Air Force was incorporated into the new SAC.
On 7 June 1946, Headquarters Eighth Air Force was reassigned without personnel or equipment from Okinawa to MacDill Field
MacDill Air Force Base (MacDill AFB) is an active United States Air Force installation located 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida.
The "host wing" for MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW), assig ...
, Florida, becoming SAC's second numbered air force. At MacDill, Eighth Air Force headquarters were manned chiefly by personnel from the 58th Bombardment Wing, Very Heavy, stationed at Fort Worth Army Air Fied, Texas. The organization reported administratively to the Fifteenth Air Force
The Fifteenth Air Force (15 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base. It was reactivated on 20 August 2020, merging the previous units of the Ninth Air Force ...
at Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
, Colorado. That base assignment lasted until 1 November 1946, when SAC transferred the Eighth to Fort Worth (later renamed Carswell AFB).
Bomb units
Both Davis-Monthan and Fort Worth Army Airfields were B-29 training bases during World War II, and the Eighth Air Force Bomb Groups were simply activated at the same field and on the same day as the original Army Air Force Continental Air Forces
Continental Air Forces (CAF) was a United States Army Air Forces major command, active 1944–1946. It was tasked with combat training of bomber and fighter personnel, and for Continental United States (CONUS) air defense after the Aircraft Wa ...
training bomb groups were inactivated. The assets of the former training units were simply assigned to Eighth Air Force. This was largely so that the Air Force could perpetuate the names of groups that had distinguished themselves in World War II.
These bomb wings were drastically undermanned and under equipped. At the close of 1946, they shared only a handful of operational bombers, all B-29 Superfortresses. Although there were many available which were returned from 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 ...
in the Pacific Theater
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
they were war-weary from the many long combat missions flown during the war. However, it was believed that a strong strategic air arm equipped with B-29s would deter a possible aggressor from attacking the United States for fear of massive retaliation with nuclear weapons.
By the late 1940s, the B-17 Flying Fortresses and Consolidated B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...
s used in the European Theater
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 ...
of the war were thoroughly obsolete as combat aircraft and were mostly sent to the smelters. A handful remained in service performing non-combat duties through the mid-1950s as air-sea rescue aircraft (SB-17, SB-24); photo-reconnaissance aircraft (RB-17, RB-24), and as unmanned target drones (QB-17) and their controllers (DB-17).
Initially, Eighth Air Force under SAC consisted of the following:
* Fort Worth Army Air Field (Later Carswell Air Force Base), Texas
: 58th Bombardment Wing (later Air Division)
:: Moved from 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 8 May 1946
:: Moved to Andrews AFB
Andrews Air Force Base (Andrews AFB, AAFB) is the airfield portion of Joint Base Andrews, which is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force. In 2009, Andrews Air Force Base merged with Naval Air Facility Washington to form Joint B ...
, Maryland 1 March 1948 (Inactivated 16 October 1948)
: 449th Bombardment Group
:: Moved from McCook Army Air Field
McCook Army Airfield was activated on 1 April 1943. It is located nine miles (14 km) northwest of McCook, a city in Red Willow County, Nebraska, United States and is southwest of North Platte, Nebraska. It was constructed in 1943 . The ...
, Nebraska December 1945 (McCook AAF Closed)
:: Inactivated on 4 August 1946
: 7th Bombardment Group
:: Activated on 1 October 1946
:: 7th Bombardment Wing
The 7th Bomb Wing (7 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Global Strike Command Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, where it is also the host unit.
The 7 BW is one of only two B-1B Lancer strateg ...
established on 17 November 1947. 7th Bomb Group assigned as subordinate unit.
Personnel and equipment from the inactivated 449th Bomb Group were reassigned to the 7th Bomb Group (later 7th Bomb Wing). The command staff and all personnel of the 58th Bomb wing were eliminated on 1 November 1946 and the organization was reduced to a paper unit. For two years, the wing remained in this status until the 58th Bomb Wing was inactivated on 16 October 1948.
* Davis-Monthan AAF (Later Davis-Monthan Air Force Base), Arizona
: 40th Bombardment Group
4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures.
In mathematics
Four is the smallest c ...
:: Moved from March Field, California, 8 May 1946
:: Inactivated on 1 October 1946
: 444th Bombardment Group
:: Moved from Merced AAF, California 6 May 1945
:: Inactivated on 1 October 1946
: 43rd Bombardment Group
The 43rd Air Mobility Operations Group is an active duty air mobility unit at Pope Field (formerly Pope AFB), Fort Bragg, North Carolina and is part of the Air Mobility Command (AMC) under the USAF Expeditionary Center. The unit is composed of f ...
:: Activated on 4 October 1946
:: 43d Bombardment Wing established on 3 November 1947. 43d Bomb Group assigned as subordinate unit.
Personnel and equipment from the inactivated 40th and 444th Bomb Groups were reassigned to the 43d Bomb Group
* Roswell AAF (Later Walker Air Force Base), New Mexico
: 509th Bombardment Group
:: Reassigned from North Field, Tinian
Tinian ( or ; old Japanese name: 天仁安島, ''Tenian-shima'') is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of th ...
on 8 November 1946
:: 509th Bombardment Wing established on 3 November 1947. 509th Bombardment Group assigned as subordinate unit.
The Eighth Air Force was specifically charged with the atomic mission; however, only the 509th Composite Group at Roswell AAF had B-29s that had the capability to drop nuclear weapons – the 7th Bomb Group at Fort Worth AAF was modifying their aircraft to carry the atomic bomb.
* Smoky Hill AAF (Later Smoky Hill Air Force Base), Kansas Transferred from Fifteenth Air Force, 16 May 1948
: 301st Bombardment Wing
The 301st Air Refueling Wing is an inactive unit of the United States Air Force being last assigned to the Strategic Air Command at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana, where it was inactivated on 1 June 1992.
History
: ''See the 301st Operations ...
: Moved to Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, 1 August 1949. Smoky Hill AFB Inactivated.
From 1946 through 1949, what little money became available was used to buy new planes ( Boeing B-50 Superfortress, Convair B-36 Peacemaker
The Convair B-36 "Peacemaker" is a strategic bomber that was built by Convair and operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1949 to 1959. The B-36 is the largest mass-produced Reciprocating engine, piston-engined aircraft ever built. It ...
) for SAC, and as the newer aircraft became available, the older B-29s were sent to storage depots or sent to Air Force Reserve
The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a MAJCOM, major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of ...
units for training missions.
Fighter units
SAC was founded by the men who fought in World War II, who knew the importance of fighter escorts. In its early days, SAC had fighter wings for the escorting its aircraft equipped with the new F-82E Twin Mustang
The North American F-82 Twin Mustang is the last American piston-engined fighter ordered into production by the United States Air Force. Based on the North American P-51 Mustang, the F-82 was originally designed as a long-range escort fighter ...
along with long range F-51H Mustangs and F-47N Thunderbolts, all of which were designed late in World War II for use in the planned invasion of Japan. SAC fighter wings assigned to Eighth Air Force were:
* 27th Fighter Wing (F-82E Twin Mustang)
: Activated at Kearney AFB, Nebraska on 27 July 1947
: Reassigned to Bergstrom AFB
Bergstrom Air Force Base (1942–1993) was located seven miles southeast of Austin, Texas. In its later years it was a major base for the U.S. Air Force's RF-4C reconnaissance fighter fleet.
History
Bergstrom was originally activated on ...
, Texas on 16 March 1949 (Base Closed)
* 31st Fighter Wing (F-47N Thunderbolt)
: Activated at Turner AFB
Naval Air Station Albany (formerly Turner Air Force Base and Turner Field) is a former United States Air Force and United States Navy military airfield located in Albany, Georgia.
History Turner Field (1941-1946)
In mid-1940 the U.S. Army Air Cor ...
, Georgia on 25 June 1947
: Inactivated on 16 June 1952
* 33d Fighter Wing (F-51H Mustang, F-80C Shooting Star)
: Attached to 509th Bombardment Wing, Very Heavy, Walker AFB, New Mexico 17 November 1947
: Reassigned to Otis AFB
Otis Air National Guard Base is an Air National Guard installation located within Joint Base Cape Cod, a military training facility located on the western portion of Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. It was known a ...
, Massachusetts, 15 November 1948
* 82d Fighter Wing (F-51D Mustang)
: Activated at Grenier AFB Grenier is a surname. It is a French word for ''attic, loft,'' or ''granary''. Notable people with the surname include:
* Adrian Grenier
* Angèle Grenier, Canadian maple syrup producer
* Auguste Jean François Grenier (1814–1890), French doctor ...
, New Hampshire on 12 April 1947
: Inactivated 2 October 1949
Fighter escorts were no longer needed once SAC was equipped with Boeing B-47 Stratojet
The Boeing B-47 Stratojet (Boeing company designation Model 450) is a retired American long-range, six-engined, turbojet-powered strategic bomber designed to fly at high subsonic speed and at high altitude to avoid enemy interceptor aircraft ...
and then Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
jet bombers carrying nuclear bombs. As the nuclear weapons carried by the bombers were so powerful that only one plane was assigned to a target that might have previously needed a whole bomb group of aircraft. Although SAC fighter squadrons upgraded to Republic F-84F Thunderstreak
The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak was an American swept-wing turbojet fighter-bomber. While an evolutionary development of the straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet, the F-84F was a new design. The RF-84F Thunderflash was a photo reconnaissance version ...
jet fighters in the early 1950s, the new jet bombers flew so high and so fast there was little danger of them being intercepted by enemy fighters. By 1955, SAC no longer needed its fighters and these fighter units were transferred to Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. It was inactivated on 1 J ...
and utilized in a tactical role.
In 1949, a realignment of responsibilities for SAC's two air forces occurred. Fifteenth Air Force
The Fifteenth Air Force (15 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base. It was reactivated on 20 August 2020, merging the previous units of the Ninth Air Force ...
relocated to March Air Force Base, California. As part of this realignment, most SAC bomber forces west of the Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...
were reassigned to 15th AF. Those east of the Mississippi were assigned to SAC's other strategic air force, Eighth Air Force, which moved to Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts, where it commanded all SAC bases in the eastern United States.
Several events in the late 1940s reversed the drawdown of United States strategic forces. The 1948 blockade of West Berlin by the Eastern bloc and the outbreak of the Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
caused the United States to deploy SAC's B-29 bomber force back to the United Kingdom and West Germany. Communist victories in the Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...
in 1949 and the outbreak of 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 ...
in 1950 meant that the United States would have to expand SAC to address these potential threats both in Europe as well as Asia.
By the time of the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950, Eighth Air Force consisted of the following units:
* Carswell Air Force Base, Texas
: 7th Bombardment Wing (B-36 Peacekeeper)
: 11th Bombardment Wing (inactive)
* Biggs AFB, Texas
: 97th Bombardment Wing (B-29 Superfortress)
* Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona
: 43d Bombardment Wing (B-29, B-50 Superfortress)
* Ellsworth AFB
Ellsworth Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base located about northeast of Rapid City, South Dakota, just north of the town of Box Elder, South Dakota, Box Elder.
The host unit at Ellsworth is the 28th Bomb Wing (28 BW). Assi ...
, South Dakota
: 28th Bombardment Wing (B-36 Peacekeeper)
* Walker AFB
Walker Air Force Base is a closed United States Air Force base located three miles (5 km) south of the central business district of Roswell, New Mexico. It was opened in 1941 as an Army Air Corps flying school and was active during World ...
, New Mexico
: 6th Bombardment Wing (B-36 Peacekeeper)
: 509th Bombardment Wing (B-29, B-50 Superfortress)
* Chatham AFB, Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
: 2d Bombardment Wing (B-29, KB-50 Superfortress)
* Bergstrom AFB
Bergstrom Air Force Base (1942–1993) was located seven miles southeast of Austin, Texas. In its later years it was a major base for the U.S. Air Force's RF-4C reconnaissance fighter fleet.
History
Bergstrom was originally activated on ...
Texas
: 27th Fighter-Escort Wing (F-84 Thunderstreak)
Korean War
On 25 June 1950, the armed forces of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) invaded South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
. On 27 June, the United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, and ...
voted to assist the South Koreans in resisting the invasion. Although Eighth Air Force's strategic bomber force was not committed to combat in Korea, the Eighth deployed the 27th Fighter Escort Wing for combat action in Korea and earned numerous honors and awards for their combat record during the Korean War.
On 21 January 1951, Lt. Col. William Bertram, commander of the 523rd Fighter-Escort Squadron, shot down the first MiG-15
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 (russian: Микоя́н и Гуре́вич МиГ-15; USAF/DoD designation: Type 14; NATO reporting name: Fagot) is a jet fighter aircraft developed by Mikoyan-Gurevich for the Soviet Union. The MiG-15 was one of ...
for the wing and became the first F-84 pilot with a confirmed MiG kill. Two days later, on 23 January, the 27th FEW participated in the raid on Sinuju Airfield in North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
and shot down four more MiG-15s. By the time the group rotated back to the United States, they had flown more than 23,000 combat hours in more than 12,000 sorties.
For its Korean War service, the 27th Fighter-Escort Wing received the 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 ...
, covering the period of 26 January through 21 April 1951, for their actions in Korea.
The 27th was relieved of its duties supporting U.N. forces in Korea and returned to Bergstrom AFB on 31 July 1951, but was redeployed to Misawa AB
is an air base of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF), List of United States Air Force installations, the United States Air Force, and the United States Navy located in Misawa, Aomori, Misawa, Aomori Prefecture, Aomori, in the northern p ...
, Japan during 6 October 1952 – 13 February 1953 to provide air defense.
Cold War
With the end of fighting in Korea, President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
, who had taken office in January 1953, called for a "new look" at national defense. The result: a greater reliance on nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
s and air power to deter war. His administration chose to invest in the Air Force, especially Strategic Air Command. The nuclear arms race
The nuclear arms race was an arms race competition for supremacy in nuclear warfare between the United States, the Soviet Union, and their respective allies during the Cold War. During this same period, in addition to the American and Soviet nuc ...
shifted into high gear. The Air Force retired nearly all of its piston-engined B-29/B-50s and they were replaced by new Boeing B-47 Stratojet
The Boeing B-47 Stratojet (Boeing company designation Model 450) is a retired American long-range, six-engined, turbojet-powered strategic bomber designed to fly at high subsonic speed and at high altitude to avoid enemy interceptor aircraft ...
aircraft. By 1955 the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
would be entering the inventory in substantial numbers, as prop B-36s were phased out of heavy bombardment units rapidly.
Also after the deployment of forces to Far East Air Force to engage in combat over Korea, the history of Eighth Air Force becomes indistinguishable from that of SAC. The Eighth's weapons inventory also changed to include KC-135
The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of transpo ...
air refuelers and intercontinental ballistic missiles (the Atlas
An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth.
Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geographic ...
, Titan I
The Martin Marietta SM-68A/HGM-25A Titan I was the United States' first multistage intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), in use from 1959 until 1962. Though the SM-68A was operational for only three years, it spawned numerous follow-on mod ...
and Titan II
The Titan II was an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) developed by the Glenn L. Martin Company from the earlier Titan I missile. Titan II was originally designed and used as an ICBM, but was later adapted as a medium-lift space l ...
, and all Minuteman
Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Mi ...
models.)
At the same time, aerial refueling techniques were improved to the extent that Eighth Air Force bombers could still reach targets in Europe and Asia even if overseas bases were destroyed by an enemy attack. To reduce the risk to its bomber fleet in the United States, Eighth Air Force aircraft stood nuclear alert, providing a deterrent against an attack on the United States by the Soviet Union. It dispersed its planes to a large number of bases across the United States so as not to have too many concentrated at a single location.
Vietnam War
In 1965, Eighth Air Force entered combat again, this time in Southeast Asia. At first, the Eighth deployed its B-52 bomber and KC-135 tanker units from the U.S. to operating bases in 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 ...
, Okinawa and Thailand. Then in April 1970, SAC moved the Eighth without personnel or equipment to Andersen AFB 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 ...
, absorbing resources of the 3d Air Division. At Andersen AFB, the Eighth took over the direction of all bombing and refueling operations in Southeast Asia. The intensive bombing of Hanoi
Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...
and Haiphong
Haiphong ( vi, Hải Phòng, ), or Hải Phòng, is a major industrial city and the third-largest in Vietnam. Hai Phong is also the center of technology, economy, culture, medicine, education, science and trade in the Red River delta.
Haiphong wa ...
during 11 days in December 1972, known as Operation Linebacker II
Operation Linebacker II was an aerial bombing campaign conducted by U.S. Seventh Air Force, Strategic Air Command and U.S. Navy Task Force 77 against targets in the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) during the final period of ...
, was but one highlight of those war years. Importantly, the Eighth's bombing effectiveness influenced the North Vietnamese to end hostilities. With the end of combat in Southeast Asia, the Eighth Air Force moved without personnel or equipment to Barksdale Air Force Base Louisiana on 1 January 1975, absorbing the resources of Second Air Force.
In the 1980s, the Eighth participated in several key operations such as running the tanker task force for Operation Urgent Fury
The United States invasion of Grenada began at dawn on 25 October 1983. The United States and a coalition of six Caribbean nations invaded the island nation of Grenada, north of Venezuela. Codenamed Operation Urgent Fury by the U.S. military, ...
in 1983 and directing all air refueling operations for Operation El Dorado Canyon
The 1986 United States bombing of Libya, code-named Operation El Dorado Canyon, consisted of air strikes by the United States against Libya on Tuesday 15 April 1986. The attack was carried out by the U.S. Air Force (USAF), U.S. Navy and U.S. M ...
in 1986 and Operation Just Cause
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 ...
in 1989.
Operations over Iraq
The Eighth's units played a key role in the 42-day Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
in 1991. An Eighth Air Force unit, the 2d Bomb Wing, spearheaded the air campaign by dispatching B-52s from Barksdale to launch conventional air-launched cruise missiles against Iraqi targets. Eighth Air Force bomb wings, stationed in the Persian Gulf region, also attacked Iraq's Republican Guard forces and numerous key strategic targets, while other units provided air refueling and tactical reconnaissance throughout the conflict. As a headquarters, the Eighth had another important role in victory over Iraqi forces—operating the logistics supply and air refueling bridge between the U.S. and gulf region.
History from June 1992
Fifteen months after Operation Desert Storm, the Air Force reorganized. Eighth Air Force was relieved from assignment to Strategic Air Command and assigned to the new Air Combat Command
Air Combat Command (ACC) is one of nine Major Commands (MAJCOMs) in the United States Air Force, reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force (HAF) at the Pentagon. It is the primary provider of air combat forces for the Air Force, and i ...
(ACC) on 1 June 1992.
Under ACC, Eighth Air Force provides command and control, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C2ISR); long-range attack; and information operations forces to Air Force components and warfighting commands. Eighth Air Force trains, tests, exercises and demonstrates combat-ready forces for rapid employment worldwide.
Eighth Air Force also provides conventional forces to U.S. Joint Forces Command and provides nuclear capable bombers, specified Global Strike assets, and C2ISR capabilities to U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM). Eighth Air Force also supports STRATCOM's Joint Force Headquarters – Information Operations and serves as the command element for Air Force wide computer network operations.
Under ACC, the Eighth received control over active duty, Air Force Reserve
The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a MAJCOM, major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of ...
, and Air National Guard
The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...
units in the central U.S. and two overseas locations. Then in January 1994, ACC reorganized Eighth Air Force as a general purpose Numbered Air Force (NAF) with a warfighting mission to support the U.S. Joint Forces and U.S. Strategic Commands. Support to the latter command included the operation of Task Force 204 (bombers).
Since 1994, the Eighth has participated in a string of contingency operations, such as the 1996 Operation "Desert Strike" against Iraq] the 1998 Operation "Desert Fox" (similarly named but in no way associated with Field Marshal Erwin Rommel) against Iraq, which featured the B-1 Lancer in its combat debut, and 1999 Operation "Allied Force" against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
, which involved the B-2A Spirit. The "Allied Force" campaign also marked the Eighth's return to Europe and the participation of U.S. bombers in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
) first combat operation. Altogether, the Eighth's bombers flew 325 sorties to drop over 7 million pounds of ordnance on a nation slightly smaller than the state of Colorado.
In 2000, the Air Force decided to integrate information operations into Eighth Air Force. The integration process started on 1 February 2001, when the Air Force realigned the Air Intelligence Agency (AIA) under ACC and assigned the 67th Information Operations Wing and the 70th Intelligence Wing to the Eighth. The reorganization transformed the Eighth into the only information operations and bomber NAF in the Air Force. For the Mighty Eighth, that change heralded an interesting future, one that bring further restructuring, different aircraft system purchases, and a new challenging mission to the NAF.
While posturing itself for that mission change, the Eighth also supported Operation Enduring Freedom
Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...
in which the Air Force operates against targets in Afghanistan, and Operation Noble Eagle
Operation Noble Eagle (ONE) is the United States and Canadian military operation related to homeland security and support to federal, state, and local agencies. The operation began 11 September 2001, in response to the September 11 attacks..
...
for the defense of North American airspace. Throughout the first six months of Enduring Freedom, the Mighty Eighth's bombers were instrumental in the eradication of many targets and opposing combatants in Afghanistan.
Major General James C. Dawkins Jr. assumed command of 8th Air Force on 20 August 2018, after having served as the Deputy Director for Nuclear, Homeland Defense, and Current Operations on the Joint Staff at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C. On 12 June 2020, he was succeeded by Major General Mark E. Weatherington, who had previously served as deputy commander of Air Education and Training Command
Air Education and Training Command (AETC) is one of the nine Major Commands (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force (USAF), reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force. It was established 1 July 1993, with the realignment of Air Training ...
at Joint Base San Antonio
Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA) is a United States military facility located in San Antonio, Texas, USA. The facility is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force 502d Air Base Wing, Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The win ...
in Randolph, Texas.
Air Force Global Strike Command
Under Air Force Global Strike Command since 1 Feb 2010, Eighth Air Force controls strategic bomber (e.g., B-2 Spirit and B-52 Stratofortress, and B-1 Lancer) forces throughout the United States and overseas locations. Eighth Air Force carries out its warfighting missions under U.S. Strategic Command and the air component commands of the other regional Unified combatant commands
A unified combatant command (CCMD), also referred to as a combatant command, is a joint command (military formation), military command of the United States Department of Defense that is composed of units from two or more service branches of the ...
. Eighth Air Force has five Regular Air Force bomb wings, two Air Reserve Total Force Integration bomb wings (one in Air Force Reserve Command
The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commiss ...
and one in the Air National Guard
The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...
), and one detachment in the continental United States.
Bomber wings of the 8th Air Force include:
* Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana
: 2d Bomb Wing
The 2nd Bomb Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command and the Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The wing is also the host unit at Barksdale. The wing wa ...
, B-52H
: 307th Bomb Wing, B-52H (AFRC)
* Dyess Air Force Base
Dyess Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located about southwest of downtown Abilene, Texas, and west of Fort Worth, Texas.
The host unit at Dyess is the 7th Bomb Wing assigned to the Global Strike Command Ei ...
, Texas
: 7th Bomb Wing
The 7th Bomb Wing (7 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Global Strike Command Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, where it is also the host unit.
The 7 BW is one of only two B-1B Lancer strateg ...
, B-1B
* Ellsworth Air Force Base
Ellsworth Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base located about northeast of Rapid City, South Dakota, just north of the town of Box Elder, South Dakota, Box Elder.
The host unit at Ellsworth is the 28th Bomb Wing (28 BW). Assi ...
, South Dakota
: 28th Bomb Wing, B-1B
* Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota
: 5th Bomb Wing, B-52H
* Whiteman Air Force Base
Whiteman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located just south of Knob Noster, Missouri, United States. The base is the current home of the B-2 Spirit bomber. It is named for 2nd Lt George Whiteman, who was killed during the attack ...
, Missouri
: 509th Bomb Wing
The 509th Bomb Wing (509 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command, Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri.
The 509 BW is the host unit at Whiteman, and operates ...
, B-2A
: 131st Bomb Wing (Associate), B-2A (ANG)
* AFGSC Direct Reporting Units (DRU)
: 576th Flight Test Squadron – Vandenberg Air Force Base Vandenberg may refer to:
* Vandenberg (surname), including a list of people with the name
* USS General Harry Taylor (AP-145), USNS ''General Hoyt S. Vandenberg'' (T-AGM-10), transport ship in the United States Navy, sank as an artificial reef in K ...
, California
: 595th Command and Control Group – Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska
Lineage, assignments, components, and stations
Lineage
* Established as VIII Bomber Command on 19 January 1942 and activated 1 February 1942.
* Redesignated the Eighth Air Force on 22 February 1944.
* Redesignated: Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic – Global Strike) on 3 June 2008.
Assignments
* 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 ...
(later United States Strategic Air Forces), 22 February 1944
* United States Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific, 16 July 1945
* Pacific Air Command, United States Army
Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) is a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, Major Command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force and is also the air component command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). PACAF i ...
, 6 December 1945 (redesignation of U.S. Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific)
* Strategic Air Command, 7 June 1946
* Air Combat Command
Air Combat Command (ACC) is one of nine Major Commands (MAJCOMs) in the United States Air Force, reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force (HAF) at the Pentagon. It is the primary provider of air combat forces for the Air Force, and i ...
, 1 June 1992
* Air Force Global Strike Command, 1 August 2010
Major components
Commands
* VIII Air Force Composite Command: 22 Feb 1944 – 1 Feb 1945
* VIII Air Force Service Command: 22 Feb 1944 – 16 Jul 1945
* VIII Fighter Command
The VIII Fighter Command was a United States Army Air Forces unit of command above the wings and below the numbered air force. Its primary mission was command of fighter operations within the Eighth Air Force. In the World War II European Thea ...
: 22 Feb 1944 – 16 Jul 1945
Divisions during World War II
* 1st Bombardment (later, 1st Air) Division
:Operated the B-17F/G Flying Fortress with "Triangle" tail codes between 22 February 1944 and 16 July 1945
:Headquartered at Brampton Grange
The Brampton Grange in Brampton, Cambridgeshire, England, is a historic building that dates back to 1773. The building was once vital to the planning and bombing of Germany as the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) 1st Bombardment Division, pa ...
, Brampton
Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a List of municipalities in Ontario#Lower-tier municipalities, lower-tier municipalit ...
, Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...
: 1st Combat Bombardment Wing, RAF Bassingbourn
Royal Air Force Bassingbourn or more simply RAF Bassingbourn is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force station, station located in Cambridgeshire approximately north of Royston, Hertfordshire, Royston, Hertfordshire and south west of Cambri ...
(Call sign: Goonchild/Swordfish)
:: 91st Bombardment Group (Triangle-A), RAF Bassingbourn
Royal Air Force Bassingbourn or more simply RAF Bassingbourn is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force station, station located in Cambridgeshire approximately north of Royston, Hertfordshire, Royston, Hertfordshire and south west of Cambri ...
:: 381st Bombardment Group (Triangle-L), RAF Ridgewell
Royal Air Force Ridgewell or more simply RAF Ridgewell is a former Royal Air Force station located at Ridgewell, north west of Halstead, Essex, England.
During the Second World War, the airfield was used by the Royal Air Force and the United ...
:: 398th Bombardment Group (Triangle-W), RAF Nuthampstead
Royal Air Force Station Nuthampstead or more simply RAF Nuthampstead is a former Royal Air Force station in England. The airfield is located mostly in Hertfordshire between the villages of Nuthampstead and Anstey and the hamlet of Morri ...
:: 482d Bombardment Group (No Tail Code), (B-17, B-24) RAF Alconbury
Royal Air Force Alconbury or more simply RAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station near Huntingdon, England. The airfield is in the civil parish of The Stukeleys, close to the villages of Great Stukeley, Little Stukeley, and Alconbury. ...
::: RADAR-equipped pathfinder group. Attached to: VIII Composite Command, 14 Feb 1944 – 1 Jan 1945
: 40th Combat Bombardment Wing, RAF Thurleigh
Royal Air Force Thurleigh or more simply RAF Thurleigh is a former Royal Air Force station located north of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. Thurleigh was transferred to the United States Army Air Forces Eighth Air Force on 9 December 1942 ...
(Call sign: Bullpen/Foxhole)
:: 92d Bombardment Group
9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding .
Evolution of the Arabic digit
In the beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshatrapa, Andhra and ...
(Triangle-B), 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 ...
:: 305th Bombardment Group (Triangle-G), RAF Chelveston
Royal Air Force Chelveston, or more simply RAF Chelveston, is a former Royal Air Force station located on the south side of the B645 (former A45 road), east of Wellingborough, near the village of Chelveston in Northamptonshire, England. Duri ...
:: 306th Bombardment Group
3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...
(Triangle-H), RAF Thurleigh
Royal Air Force Thurleigh or more simply RAF Thurleigh is a former Royal Air Force station located north of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. Thurleigh was transferred to the United States Army Air Forces Eighth Air Force on 9 December 1942 ...
: 41st Combat Bombardment Wing, RAF Molesworth
Royal Air Force Molesworth or more simply RAF Molesworth is a Royal Air Force station located near Molesworth, Cambridgeshire, England with a history dating back to 1917.
Its runway and flight line facilities were closed in 1973 and demolished ...
(Call sign: Fatgal/Cowboy)
:: 303d Bombardment Group
3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...
(Triangle-C), RAF Molesworth
Royal Air Force Molesworth or more simply RAF Molesworth is a Royal Air Force station located near Molesworth, Cambridgeshire, England with a history dating back to 1917.
Its runway and flight line facilities were closed in 1973 and demolished ...
:: 379th Bombardment Group (Triangle-K), RAF Kimbolton
RAF Kimbolton is a former Royal Air Force station located west of Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, England.
History
USAAF use
The airfield was originally built in 1941 for RAF Bomber Command, then expanded to Class A airfield standards for use b ...
:: 384th Bombardment Group 384th may refer to:
*384th Air Expeditionary Group, provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command
*384th Air Expeditionary Wing, inactive unit of the United States Air Force
* 384th Air Refueling Squadron (384 ARS) is ...
(Triangle-P), RAF Grafton Underwood
Royal Air Force Grafton Underwood or more simply RAF Grafton Underwood is a former Royal Air Force station located northeast of Kettering, Northamptonshire, England.
Royal Air Force use
The airfield at Grafton Underwood was opened in 1941 an ...
: 94th Combat Bombardment Wing
The 94th Bombardment Wing was a unit of the United States Army Air Forces. Its last assignment was with the Eighth Air Force, 1st Air Division, based at RAF Alconbury, England. It was inactivated on 18 June 1945.
Command and control organization ...
, RAF Polebrook
Royal Air Force Station Polebrook or more simply RAF Polebrook is a former Royal Air Force station located east-south-east of Oundle, at Polebrook, Northamptonshire, England. The airfield was built on Rothschild estate land starting in Augus ...
(Call sign: Ragweed/Woodcraft)
:: 351st Bombardment Group (Triangle-J), RAF Polebrook
Royal Air Force Station Polebrook or more simply RAF Polebrook is a former Royal Air Force station located east-south-east of Oundle, at Polebrook, Northamptonshire, England. The airfield was built on Rothschild estate land starting in Augus ...
:: 401st Bombardment Group
The 401st Air Expeditionary Group is a provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to United States Air Forces in Europe to be activated or inactivated at any time as needed. It is stationed at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.
The group was fi ...
(Triangle-S), RAF Deenethorpe
Royal Air Force Deenethorpe or more simply RAF Deenethorpe is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Corby, Northamptonshire, England. It has one remaining tarmac runway at 1200m (3937ft) long.
United States Army Air Forces use
De ...
:: 457th Bombardment Group 457th may refer to:
*457th Air Expeditionary Group, provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command
*457th Airlift Squadron (457 AS), part of the 375th Airlift Wing at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland
*457th Fighter Squa ...
(Triangle-U), RAF Glatton
Royal Air Force Glatton or more simply RAF Glatton is a former Royal Air Force station located north of Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, England.
History United States Army Air Forces use
When completed in late 1943, the facility was placed under ...
: 67th Fighter Wing
The 67th Fighter Wing was a unit of the United States Air Force for four years, between 1946 and 1950. It was located at Logan Airport, in Boston, Massachusetts. It is unrelated to the modern 67th Network Warfare Wing.
History World War II
The ...
, Walcot Hall, Northamptonshire (Attached from VIII Fighter Command
The VIII Fighter Command was a United States Army Air Forces unit of command above the wings and below the numbered air force. Its primary mission was command of fighter operations within the Eighth Air Force. In the World War II European Thea ...
) ( P-51D/K Mustang) (Call sign: Mohair)
:: 20th Fighter Group, RAF Kings Cliffe
Royal Air Force Kings Cliffe or more simply RAF Kings Cliffe is a former Royal Air Force satellite station located near Kings Cliffe, Northamptonshire, west of Peterborough in Cambridgeshire. The airfield was built with hard-surfaced run ...
:: 352d Fighter Group, RAF Bodney
Royal Air Force Bodney or more simply RAF Bodney is a former Royal Air Force Station located west of Watton, Norfolk, England.
Originally built as an RAF Bomber Command airfield during 1939-1940, Bodney was transferred to the United States ...
:: 356th Fighter Group, RAF Martlesham Heath
Royal Air Force Martlesham Heath or more simply RAF Martlesham Heath is a former Royal Air Force station located southwest of Woodbridge, Suffolk, England. It was active between 1917 and 1963, and played an important role in the development of ...
:: 359th Fighter Group, RAF East Wretham
Royal Air Force East Wretham or more simply RAF East Wretham is a former Royal Air Force station located northeast of Thetford, Norfolk, England.
History
Royal Air Force use
East Wretham airfield was hurriedly brought into service during th ...
:: 364th Fighter Group, RAF Honington
Royal Air Force Honington or more simply RAF Honington is a Royal Air Force station located south of Thetford near Ixworth in Suffolk, England. Although used as a bomber station during the Second World War, RAF Honington is now the RAF Regim ...
:: 1st Scouting Force, (Attached to: 364th FG), RAF Honington
Royal Air Force Honington or more simply RAF Honington is a Royal Air Force station located south of Thetford near Ixworth in Suffolk, England. Although used as a bomber station during the Second World War, RAF Honington is now the RAF Regim ...
* 2d Bombardment (later, 2d Air) Division
:Operated B-24D/H/J/L/M Liberator with "Circle" tail codes until early February, 1944. Later designation was by various color vertical tail fins with contrasting horizontal, vertical, or diagonal stripes designating a specific bomb group between 22 February 1944 and 25 June 1945
:Headquartered at Ketteringham
Ketteringham is a village and civil parish located in the English county of Norfolk.
It covers an area of and had a population of 169 in 70 households at the 2001 census, increasing to 178 at the 2011 Census.
For the purposes of local governmen ...
Hall Norwich
Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...
, Norfolk
: 2d Combat Bombardment Wing, RAF Hethel
Royal Air Force Hethel or more simply RAF Hethel is a former Royal Air Force station which was used by both the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) and the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. The airfield is located south we ...
(Call sign: Winston/Bourbon)
:: 389th Bombardment Group 389th may refer to:
* 389th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit
*389th Fighter Squadron
The 389th Fighter Squadron is part of the 366th Fighter Wing at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. It operates McDonnell Dougl ...
(Circle-C, Black/White Vertical ), RAF Hethel
Royal Air Force Hethel or more simply RAF Hethel is a former Royal Air Force station which was used by both the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) and the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. The airfield is located south we ...
:: 445th Bombardment Group (Circle-F, Black/White Horizontal), RAF Tibenham
Royal Air Force Tibenham or more simply RAF Tibenham is a former Royal Air Force station located southwest of Norwich and north of Diss, Norfolk, England.
History
Tibenham was used as a Royal Flying Corps landing ground during the First Wo ...
:: 453d Bombardment Group (Circle-J, Black/White Diagonal), RAF Old Buckenham
Royal Air Force Old Buckenham (RAF Old Buckenham) is a former Royal Air Force station located south east of Attleborough, Norfolk, England which was used during the Second World War by the United States for the strategic bombing campaign aga ...
: 14th Combat Bombardment Wing, RAF Shipdham
Royal Air Force Shipdham or more simply RAF Shipdham is a former Royal Air Force station located 3 miles south of Dereham, Norfolk, England.
The airfield now operates as Shipdham Airfield.
History
USAAF use
RAF Shipdham was the first US ...
(Call sign: Hambone/Hardtack)
:: 44th Bombardment Group (Circle-A), RAF Shipdham
Royal Air Force Shipdham or more simply RAF Shipdham is a former Royal Air Force station located 3 miles south of Dereham, Norfolk, England.
The airfield now operates as Shipdham Airfield.
History
USAAF use
RAF Shipdham was the first US ...
:: 392d Bombardment Group (Circle-D), RAF Wendling
Royal Air Force Wendling or RAF Wendling is a former Royal Air Force station located north west of East Dereham, Norfolk, England.
Opened in 1942 it was used by both the Royal Air Force (RAF) and United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). Duri ...
:: 491st Bombardment Group (Circle-Z), RAF North Pickenham
Royal Air Force North Pickenham or more simply RAF North Pickenham is a former Royal Air Force station located East of Swaffham, Norfolk, England.
It was originally opened in 1944 and finally closed in 1967.
History
USAAF use
North Picken ...
(Aug 1944 – 16 Jul 1945)
: 20th Combat Bombardment Wing
The 20th Bombardment Wing is a disbanded United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Eighth Air Force at MacDill Field, Florida, where it was inactivated on 10 November 1946. It was later disbanded in October 1948
History
The ...
, RAF Hardwick
Royal Air Force Hardwick or more simply RAF Hardwick is a former Royal Air Force station located between the Norfolk villages of Topcroft and Hardwick in England. It is around west of Bungay, Suffolk.
History
Hardwick Airfield was one of t ...
(Call sign: Pinestreet/Bigbear)
:: 93d Bombardment Group (Circle-B), RAF Hardwick
Royal Air Force Hardwick or more simply RAF Hardwick is a former Royal Air Force station located between the Norfolk villages of Topcroft and Hardwick in England. It is around west of Bungay, Suffolk.
History
Hardwick Airfield was one of t ...
:: 446th Bombardment Group (Circle-H), RAF Bungay
Royal Air Force Bungay or more simply RAF Bungay (known locally as Flixton) is a former Royal Air Force station located south-west of Bungay in the English county of Suffolk.
The airfield is also known after the village of Flixton, near ...
:: 448th Bombardment Group (Circle-I), RAF Seething
Royal Air Force Seething or more simply RAF Seething is a former Royal Air Force station located south east of Norwich, Norfolk, England, paradoxically just inside of the village of Mundham.
History
Seething airfield was built in 1942 ...
:: 489th Bombardment Group
The 489th Bomb Group is a unit of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the 307th Bomb Wing, and is stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas. The group is a reserve associate unit of the 7th Bomb Wing at Dyess.
During World War II, t ...
(Circle-W), RAF Halesworth
Royal Air Force Halesworth or more simply RAF Halesworth is a former Royal Air Force station located north east of the town of Halesworth, Suffolk, England and west of Southwold.
United States Army Air Forces use
Halesworth was built in 19 ...
(Aug 1944 – 16 Jul 1945)
: 95th Combat Bombardment Wing
The 95th Combat Bombardment Wing is a former United States Army Air Forces unit. It was activated in England in 1943 and engaged in strategic bombing campaign against Germany from June through August 1944. It returned to the United States in ...
, RAF Halesworth
Royal Air Force Halesworth or more simply RAF Halesworth is a former Royal Air Force station located north east of the town of Halesworth, Suffolk, England and west of Southwold.
United States Army Air Forces use
Halesworth was built in 19 ...
(May–Aug 1944) (Call sign: Shamrock)
:: 489th Bombardment Group
The 489th Bomb Group is a unit of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the 307th Bomb Wing, and is stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas. The group is a reserve associate unit of the 7th Bomb Wing at Dyess.
During World War II, t ...
(Circle-W), RAF Halesworth
Royal Air Force Halesworth or more simply RAF Halesworth is a former Royal Air Force station located north east of the town of Halesworth, Suffolk, England and west of Southwold.
United States Army Air Forces use
Halesworth was built in 19 ...
:: 491st Bombardment Group (Circle-Z), RAF North Pickenham
Royal Air Force North Pickenham or more simply RAF North Pickenham is a former Royal Air Force station located East of Swaffham, Norfolk, England.
It was originally opened in 1944 and finally closed in 1967.
History
USAAF use
North Picken ...
: 96th Combat Bombardment Wing
The 96th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Tenth Air Force at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. It was inactivated on 27 June 1949.
As the 96th Bombardment Wing, the unit was one of the pri ...
, RAF Horsham St Faith
RAF Horsham St Faith is a former Royal Air Force station near Norwich, Norfolk, England which was operational from 1939 to 1963. It was then developed as Norwich International Airport.
RAF Bomber Command use
The airfield was first developed ...
(Call sign: Redstar/Lincoln)
:: 458th Bombardment Group (Circle-K), RAF Horsham St. Faith
RAF Horsham St Faith is a former Royal Air Force station near Norwich, Norfolk, England which was operational from 1939 to 1963. It was then developed as Norwich International Airport.
RAF Bomber Command use
The airfield was first develope ...
:: 466th Bombardment Group
The 466th Air Expeditionary Group of the United States Air Force provides support for airmen at stations across Afghanistan. This includes "joint expeditionary tasking" airmen, airmen whose units are assigned to a headquarters other than the one ...
(Circle-L), RAF Attlebridge
Royal Air Force Attlebridge or more simply RAF Attlebridge is a former Royal Air Force station located near Attlebridge and northwest of Norwich, Norfolk, England.
History
Attlebridge airfield had runways of 1,220, 1,120 and 1,080 yards len ...
:: 467th Bombardment Group (Circle-P), RAF Rackheath
Royal Air Force Rackheath or more simply RAF Rackheath is a former Royal Air Force station located near the village of Rackheath, approximately north-east of Norwich, England.
History
Airfield construction began in 1943 for the United States ...
: 65th Fighter Wing (Attached from VIII Fighter Command
The VIII Fighter Command was a United States Army Air Forces unit of command above the wings and below the numbered air force. Its primary mission was command of fighter operations within the Eighth Air Force. In the World War II European Thea ...
), Saffron Walden
Saffron Walden is a market town in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England, north of Bishop's Stortford, south of Cambridge and north of London. It retains a rural appearance and some buildings of the medieval period. The population was 15, ...
( P-51D/K Mustang) (Call sign: Colgate)
:: 4th Fighter Group, RAF Debden
Royal Air Force Debden or more simply RAF Debden is a former Royal Air Force station located southeast of Saffron Walden and approximately north of the village of Debden in North Essex, England
History
The airfield was opened in April 1937 ...
:: 56th Fighter Group, RAF Boxted
Royal Air Force Boxted or more simply RAF Boxted is a former Royal Air Force station located north-northeast of Colchester, Essex England.
Opened in 1943, it was used by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). RAF Boxted has the distinction ...
(P-47D Thunderbolt
The P-47 Thunderbolt was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Republic Aviation from 1941 to 1945.
Early designs
XP-47 (AP-10)
In response to a USAAC requirement for a new fighter aircraft, Republic Aviation engineer Alexander Kartveli ...
)
:: 355th Fighter Group 355th may refer to:
Aviation
* 355th Fighter Squadron, an inactive United States Air Force unit
* 355th Fighter Wing, a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command's Twelfth Air Force
* 355th Tactical Airlift Squadron, a U.S. Ai ...
, RAF Steeple Morden
Royal Air Force Steeple Morden or more simply RAF Steeple Morden is a former Royal Air Force station located west of Royston, Hertfordshire, England.
History
RAF Bomber Command use
Between 1940 and September 1942, Steeple Morden was a grass ...
:: 361st Fighter Group, RAF Bottisham
Royal Air Force Bottisham or more simply RAF Bottisham is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England.
History
RAF Fighter Command use
RAF Bottisham opened in March 1940 and was first used by bomb-ar ...
then RAF Little Walden
Royal Air Force Little Walden or more simply RAF Little Walden is a former Royal Air Force station primarily used by the United States Army Air Forces located north of Saffron Walden, Essex, England.
The following units were here at some poin ...
:: 2d Scouting Force, (Attached to: 355th FG), RAF Steeple Morden
Royal Air Force Steeple Morden or more simply RAF Steeple Morden is a former Royal Air Force station located west of Royston, Hertfordshire, England.
History
RAF Bomber Command use
Between 1940 and September 1942, Steeple Morden was a grass ...
.
* 3d Bombardment (later, 3d Air) Division
:Operated B-17F/G Flying Fortress with Square tail codes between 22 February 1944 and 16 July 1945
:Headquartered at RAF Honington
Royal Air Force Honington or more simply RAF Honington is a Royal Air Force station located south of Thetford near Ixworth in Suffolk, England. Although used as a bomber station during the Second World War, RAF Honington is now the RAF Regim ...
, Thetford
Thetford is a market town and civil parish in the Breckland District of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road between Norwich and London, just east of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, covering an area of , in 2015 had a population of 24,340 ...
, Norfolk
: 4th Combat Bombardment Wing, RAF Bury St Edmunds
Rougham Airfield, formerly Royal Air Force Station Bury St Edmunds or more simply RAF Bury St Edmunds is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. It is not to be confused with the RAF grass strip o ...
(Call sign: Franklin/Hotshot)
::: Redesignated from: 92d Combat Bombardment Wing, 22 November 1944
::: Redesignated from: 4th Bombardment Wing (Provisional), 16 February 1945
:: 94th Bombardment Group
The Type 094 (; Chinese designation: 09- IV; NATO reporting name: Jin class) is a class of ballistic missile submarine developed by China for the People's Liberation Army Navy Submarine Force. The Type 094 succeeds the Type 092 submarine and ...
(Square-A), RAF Bury St. Edmunds
Rougham Airfield, formerly Royal Air Force Station Bury St Edmunds or more simply RAF Bury St Edmunds is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force station, station located east of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. It is not to be confused with ...
:: 447th Bombardment Group (Square-K), RAF Rattlesden
Royal Air Force Station Rattlesden or more simply RAF Rattlesden is a former Royal Air Force station located south east of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England.
History
USAAF use
Rattlesden airfield was built in 1942 as a Class A bomber air ...
:: 486th Bombardment Group 486th may refer to:
* 486th Air Expeditionary Wing, provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command
* 486th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit
* 486th Fighter Squadron, inactive United States Air ...
(Square-O/W), RAF Sudbury
Royal Air Force station Sudbury or more simply RAF Sudbury is a former Royal Air Force station located north-east of Sudbury, Suffolk, England.
History
USAAF use
RAF Sudbury was opened in 1944 and was built to the standard Class A heavy bom ...
::: (Converted from B-24s to B-17s, Summer 1944)
:: 487th Bombardment Group (Square-P), RAF Lavenham
::: (Converted from B-24s to B-17s, Summer 1944)
: 13th Combat Bombardment Wing, RAF Horham
Horham (pronounced 'Hohrum') is a village in the county of Suffolk, in the East Anglia region of eastern England, United Kingdom. The village contains a church, St. Mary of Horham. Horham is on the B1117 road, approximately halfway between Eye ...
(Call sign: Zootsuit/Fireball)
:: 95th Bombardment Group 95 or 95th may refer to:
* 95 (number)
* one of the years 95 BC, AD 95, 1995, 2095, etc.
* 95th Division (disambiguation)
* 95th Regiment
** 95th Regiment of Foot (disambiguation)
* 95th Squadron (disambiguation)
* Atomic number 95: americium
* ...
(Square-B), RAF Horham
Horham (pronounced 'Hohrum') is a village in the county of Suffolk, in the East Anglia region of eastern England, United Kingdom. The village contains a church, St. Mary of Horham. Horham is on the B1117 road, approximately halfway between Eye ...
:: 100th Bombardment Group
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...
(Square-D), RAF Thorpe Abbotts
Royal Air Force Thorpe Abbotts or more simply RAF Thorpe Abbotts is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Diss, Norfolk, England.
History
RAF Thorpe Abbotts was built during 1942 and early 1943 for the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a ...
:: 390th Bombardment Group
39 may refer to:
* 39 (number), the natural number following 38 and preceding 40
* one of the years:
** 39 BC
** AD 39
** 1939
** 2039
* ''39'' (album), a 2000 studio album by Mikuni Shimokawa
* "'39", a 1975 song by Queen
* "Thirty Nine", a ...
(Square-J), RAF Framlingham
Royal Air Force Framlingham or more simply RAF Framlingham is a former Royal Air Force station located southeast of Framlingham, Suffolk, England.
History United States Army Air Forces use
Framlingham airfield was built in 1942 and was u ...
: 45th Combat Bombardment Wing, RAF Snetterton Heath
Royal Air Force Snetterton Heath or more simply RAF Snetterton Heath is a former Royal Air Force station located south east of the A11, south west of Attleborough, Norfolk, England.
History
Snetterton Heath airfield was constructed by T ...
(Call sign: Zootsuit/Fireball)
:: 96th Bombardment Group (Square-C), RAF Snetterton Heath
Royal Air Force Snetterton Heath or more simply RAF Snetterton Heath is a former Royal Air Force station located south east of the A11, south west of Attleborough, Norfolk, England.
History
Snetterton Heath airfield was constructed by T ...
:: 388th Bombardment Group (Square-H), RAF Knettishall
RAF Knettishall is a former World War II airfield in Suffolk. It was numbered as Station 136 by the United States Army Air Forces while home to the 388th Bombardment Group of the Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic ...
:: 452d Bombardment Group (Square-L), RAF Deopham Green
Royal Air Force Deopham Green or more simply RAF Deopham Green is a former Royal Air Force station located near Deopham Green north of Attleborough, Norfolk, England.
United States Army Air Forces use
RAF Deopham Green was built in 1942 and ...
: 93d Combat Bombardment Wing
The 93d Bombardment Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Second Air Force, based at Sioux Falls Army Air Field, South Dakota. It was inactivated on 28 August 1945.
The wing was a command and control o ...
, RAF Mendlesham
Royal Air Force Mendlesham, or more simply RAF Mendlesham, is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Stowmarket, Suffolk, England.
History
RAF Fighter Command use
Mendlesham airfield was built during 1943 and opened in late Decem ...
, (Call sign: Zootsuit/Fireball)
:: 34th Bombardment Group (Square-S), RAF Mendlesham
Royal Air Force Mendlesham, or more simply RAF Mendlesham, is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Stowmarket, Suffolk, England.
History
RAF Fighter Command use
Mendlesham airfield was built during 1943 and opened in late Decem ...
::: (Converted from B-24s to B-17s, Summer 1944)
:: 385th Bombardment Group (Square-G), RAF Great Ashfield
Royal Air Force Great Ashfield or more simply RAF Great Ashfield is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Bury St. Edmunds and south of Great Ashfield, Suffolk, England.
Great Ashfield Airfield is still in private use although ...
:: 490th Bombardment Group
The 490th Bombardment Group is a former United States Army Air Forces unit. The group was activated in October 1943 . After training in the United States, it deployed to the European Theater of Operations and participated in the strategic bo ...
(Square-T), RAF Eye
Royal Air Force Eye or more simply RAF Eye is a former Royal Air Force station located northeast of Stowmarket, Suffolk, England on the northwest edge of Eye and south of Diss.
History
Eye was a standard Class A airfield for heavy bombers. T ...
::: (Converted from B-24s to B-17s, Summer 1944)
:: 493d Bombardment Group (Square-S), RAF Debach
Royal Air Force Debach or more simply RAF Debach is a former Royal Air Force station located at Debach, northwest of Woodbridge, Suffolk, England.
United States Army Air Forces use
Debach was one of the last Eighth Air Force heavy bomber s ...
::: (Converted from B-24s to B-17s, Summer 1944)
: 66th Fighter Wing
The 66th Fighter Wing is a disbanded unit of the United States Air Force, last stationed at Chicago Municipal Airport, Illinois. It was withdrawn from the Illinois Air National Guard and inactivated on 31 October 1950.
History World War II
Est ...
, Sawston Hall, (Attached from VIII Fighter Command
The VIII Fighter Command was a United States Army Air Forces unit of command above the wings and below the numbered air force. Its primary mission was command of fighter operations within the Eighth Air Force. In the World War II European Thea ...
) ( P-51D/K Mustang) (Call sign: Oilskin)
:: 55th Fighter Group, RAF Wormingford
:: 78th Fighter Group
The 78th Fighter Group (78 FG) is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 78th Fighter Wing, at Hamilton Air Force Base, California. It was inactivated on 1 February 1961.
During World War II the group was an Eigh ...
, RAF Duxford
Duxford Aerodrome is located south of Cambridge, within the civil parish of Duxford, Cambridgeshire, England and nearly west of the village. The airfield is owned by the Imperial War Museum (IWM) and is the site of the Imperial War Muse ...
:: 339th Fighter Group, RAF Fowlmere
Fowlmere Airfield is a small airfield located northeast of Royston, Hertfordshire and southwest of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England. It was previously a Royal Air Force satellite station, RAF Fowlmere.
History First World War
Flying at ...
:: 353d Fighter Group, RAF Raydon
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 ...
:: 357th Fighter Group
The 357th Fighter Group was an air combat unit of the United States Army Air Forces during the Second World War. The 357th operated P-51 Mustang aircraft as part of the U.S. Eighth Air Force and its members were known unofficially as the Yoxfor ...
, RAF Leiston
Royal Air Force Leiston or more simply RAF Leiston is a former Royal Air Force station located northwest of Leiston and south of Theberton, Suffolk, England.
History
USAAF use
Originally intended as a fighter station for RAF Fighter Comman ...
:: 3d Scouting Force, (Attached to: 55th FG), RAF Wormingford
* Special Groups: as of 1 Jan 1945
: 36th Bombardment Squadron, (B-24H/J)
: Radar/Electronic-countermeasure operations: August 1944 – April 1945
:: RAF Cheddington
Royal Air Force Cheddington or more simply RAF Cheddington (also known as RAF Marsworth) is a former Royal Air Force station located south-west of Cheddington, Buckinghamshire, England. The airfield was closed in 1952.
Origins
Cheddington wa ...
Divisions (Strategic Air Command)
* 6th Air Division: 1 Jan 1959 – 2 Jul 1966
* 13th Strategic Missile Division: 1 Jul 1963 – 1 Jul 1965
* 17th Strategic Aerospace Division
The 17th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Pacific Air Forces, stationed at U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield, Thailand, where it was inactivated on 1 January 1976.
History
The air division ...
: 1 Jul 1963 – 31 Mar 1970
* 19th Air Division: 16 Feb 1951 – 1 Jul 1955; 1 Jan 1975 – 30 Sep 1988
* 21st Air Division: 1 Jul 1955 – 1 Jan 1959
* 38th Air Division: 1 Jan 1959 – 1 Nov 1959
* 42d Air Division: 10 Mar 1951 – 1 Apr 1955; 15 Jul 1959 – 9 Jul 1991
* 45th Air Division: 8 Oct 1954 – 18 Jan 1958; 20 Nov 1958 – 31 Mar 1970; 1 Jan 1975 – 15 Jun 1989
* 47th Air Division: 10 Feb 1951 – 1 Apr 1955
* 57th Air Division
The 57th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Fifteenth Air Force, based at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota. It was inactivated on 24 June 1991.
History
"Established as the 8th Pursuit W ...
: 4 Sep 1956 – 2 Jul 1969
* 801st Air Division: 1 Jul 1955 – 15 Mar 1965
* 802d Air Division
The 802d Air Division is a discontinued United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command, assigned to Fifteenth Air Force at Schilling Air Force Base, where it was inactivated on 20 June 1960.
Through mo ...
: 1 Jul 1955 – 1 Jan 1959
* 810th Air Division 81 may refer to:
* 81 (number)
* one of the years 81 BC, AD 81, 1981, 2081
* Nickname for the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. "H" is the eighth letter of the alphabet, and "A" is the first. See also
*
* List of highways numbered
A ''list'' is a ...
: 16 Jun 1952 – 1 Apr 1955
* 817th Air Division
The 817th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command, assigned to Second Air Force, at Pease Air Force Base, New Hampshire, where it was inactivated on 30 June 1971.
The ...
: 1 Feb 1956 – 31 Mar 1970
* 818th Air Division: 1 Jul 1955 – 1 Jan 1959
* 820th Air (later, 820 Strategic Aerospace) Division: 1 Feb 1956 – 25 Jun 1965.
* 822d Air Division
The 822d Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command (SAC) at Turner Air Force Base, Georgia, where it was inactivated on 2 September 1966.
The division was formed to c ...
: 1 Jan 1959 – 2 Sep 1966
* 823d Air Division
The 823d Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command (SAC)'s Second Air Force at McCoy Air Force Base, Florida, where it was inactivated on 30 June 1971.
The division was ...
: 1 Jan 1959 – 31 Mar 1970
Wings
* 2d Bomb Wing
The 2nd Bomb Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command and the Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The wing is also the host unit at Barksdale. The wing wa ...
, 16 Jun 1988 – present
* 5th Bomb Wing, 1 Jun 1991 – present
* 7th Bomb Wing
The 7th Bomb Wing (7 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Global Strike Command Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, where it is also the host unit.
The 7 BW is one of only two B-1B Lancer strateg ...
, 1 Oct 2015 – present
* 9th Reconnaissance Wing
The 9th Reconnaissance Wing (9 RW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command and Sixteenth Air Force. It is stationed at Beale Air Force Base, California. The wing is also the host unit at Beale.
Its mission is to ...
, 1 Oct 2002 – 1 October 2009
* 28th Bomb Wing, 1 Oct 2015 – present
* 67th Information Operations (later, 67th Network Warfare) Wing, 1 Feb 2001
* 509th Bombardment (later, 509th Bomb) Wing, 29 Mar 1989 – present
* 552d Air Control Wing, 1 Oct 2002 – 1 Oct 2009
Groups
* 92d Bombardment Group
9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding .
Evolution of the Arabic digit
In the beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshatrapa, Andhra and ...
: August 1942 – Spring 1943
* 94th Bombardment Group
The Type 094 (; Chinese designation: 09- IV; NATO reporting name: Jin class) is a class of ballistic missile submarine developed by China for the People's Liberation Army Navy Submarine Force. The Type 094 succeeds the Type 092 submarine and ...
: 19–25 May 1943
* 95th Bombardment Group 95 or 95th may refer to:
* 95 (number)
* one of the years 95 BC, AD 95, 1995, 2095, etc.
* 95th Division (disambiguation)
* 95th Regiment
** 95th Regiment of Foot (disambiguation)
* 95th Squadron (disambiguation)
* Atomic number 95: americium
* ...
: 19–25 May 1943
* 97th Bombardment Group: 20 May – 14 September 1942
* 100th Bombardment Group
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...
: c. 4 June 1943 – 4 June 1943
* 301st Bombardment Group: c. 9 August 1942 – 14 September 1942
* 305th Bombardment Group: 10 September–c. 12 September 1942
* 322d Bombardment Group
3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...
: c. 15 November – c. 1 December 1942
* 385th Bombardment Group: c. 8−13 July 1943
* 386th Bombardment Group: 4–15 June 1943
* 388th Bombardment Group, 10–13 6 July 1943
* 389th Bombardment Group 389th may refer to:
* 389th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit
*389th Fighter Squadron
The 389th Fighter Squadron is part of the 366th Fighter Wing at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. It operates McDonnell Dougl ...
, 29 June 1943
* 445th Bombardment Group: 5–9 November 1943
* 446th Bombardment Group, 5–9 November 1943
* 452d Bombardment Group: January 1944
* 479th Fighter Group: 15–16 May 1944; c. 4−16 July 1945
* 492nd Bombardment Group
The 492nd Special Operations Wing is a United States Air Forces unit stationed at Hurlburt Field, Florida. It was activated in May 2017 to replace the Air Force Special Operations Air Warfare Center.
During World War II the unit entered combat ...
: April 1944
Centers
* 608th Air Operations Center (formerly 608th Air Operations Group and 608th Air and Space Operations Center), 1 Jan 1994 – present
* Air Force Information Operations: 1 May 2007 – present
Stations
* RAF Daws Hill
RAF Daws Hill was a Ministry of Defence site, located near High Wycombe and Flackwell Heath, in Buckinghamshire, England, close to the M40 motorway.
The station was established in 1942 on land owned by Wycombe Abbey School, for use by the ...
, England, 22 Feb 1944
* Sakugawa (Kadena Airfield), 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 ...
, 16 Jul 1945
* MacDill Field, Florida, 7 Jun 1946
* Fort Worth Army Air Field
Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth (abbreviated NAS JRB Fort Worth) includes Carswell Field, a military airbase located west of the central business district of Fort Worth, in Tarrant County, Texas, United States. This military ai ...
(later, Griffiss Air Force Base; Carswell Air Force Base), Texas, 1 Nov 1946
* Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts, 13 Jun 1955
** Post-Attack Command and Control System Facility, Hadley
Post-Attack Command and Control System Facility, Hadley is a defunct Post-Attack Command and Control System facility that operated from June 2, 1958 until 1970. It is located on and under Bare Mountain in Hadley, Massachusetts. The facility wa ...
, 1958–1970
* Andersen Air Force Base
Andersen Air Force Base (Andersen AFB, AAFB) is a United States Air Force base located primarily within the village of Yigo in the United States territory of Guam. The host unit at Andersen AFB is the 36th Wing (36 WG), assigned to the Pacific ...
, 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 ...
, 1 Apr 1970
* Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, 1 Jan 1975 – present
List of commanders
See also
*'' Target for Today'' – ninety-four-minute depiction of an Operation Pointblank
Point-blank range is any distance over which a certain firearm can hit a target without the need to compensate for bullet drop, and can be adjusted over a wide range of distances by sighting in the firearm. If the bullet leaves the barrel paral ...
mission from 1944.
*Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum
The National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force is a non-profit organization with a museum facility located in Pooler, Georgia, in the western suburbs of Savannah. It educates visitors through the use of exhibits, artifacts, archival materials ...
* Eighth Air Force Museum
* David Wade, past commander
Notes
References
Bibliography
* Anderson, Christopher J. ''The Men of the Mighty Eighth: The U.S. 8th Air Force, 1942–1945 (G.I. Series N°24)''. London : Greenhill, 2001.
* Astor, Gerald. ''The Mighty Eighth: The Air War in Europe as told by the Men who Fought it''. New York: D.I. Fine Books, 1997.
* Bowman, Martin. ''8th Air Force at War: Memories and Missions, England, 1942–1945''. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1994.
* Bowman, Martin. ''Castles in the Air: The Story of the Men from the US 8th Air Force''. Walton-on-Thames, UK: Red Kite, 2000.
* Maurer, Maurer. ''Air Force Combat Units of World War II''. Office of Air Force History, 1961, republished 1983..
* Freeman, Roger A. and Winston G. Ramsey. ''Airfields of the Eighth: Then and Now''. London: After the Battle, 1978. Republished 1992.
* Freeman, Roger A. ''The Mighty Eighth: Units, Men and Machines – A History of the US 8th Air Force''. 1970. .
** Revised as ''The Mighty Eighth: a History of the Units, Men and Machines of the Us 8th Air Force''. Cassell & Co., 2000. .
* Freeman, Roger A. et al. ''The Mighty Eighth War Diary''. London: Jane's Publishing Company, 1981.
* Freeman, Roger A. (Ed.) ''The Mighty Eighth in Art''. London: Arms & Armour, 1995.
* Freeman, Roger A. ''The Mighty Eighth in Colour''. London: Arms & Armour, 1991.
** New Edition as ''The Mighty Eighth: The Colour Record''. London: Cassell & Co., 2001.
* Freeman, Roger A. ''The Mighty Eighth War Diary''. 1990. .
* Freeman, Roger A. ''Mighty Eighth War Manual''. London: Jane's Publishing Company, 1984.
* Freeman, Roger A. ''The Mighty Eighth: Warpaint and Heraldry''. London: Arms & Armour, 1997.
* Lambert, John W. ''The 8th Air Force: Victory and Sacrifice: A World War II Photo History''. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Publishing, 2006. .
* McLachlan, Ian and Russell J. Zorn. ''Eighth Air Force Bomber Stories: Eye-Witness Accounts from American Airmen and British Civilians of the Perils of War''. Yeovil, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1991.
* McLaughlin, (Brigadier General) J. Kemp. ''The Mighty Eighth in World War II: A Memoir''. Kentucky University Press, 2000.
* Miller, Kent D. ''Fighter Units & Pilots of the 8th Air Force September 1942 – May 1945. Volume 1 Day-to-Day Operations – Fighter Group Histories''. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Publishing, 2000. .
* Miller, Kent D. and Nancy Thomas. ''Fighter Units & Pilots of the 8th Air Force September 1942 – May 1945. Volume 2 Aerial Victories – Ace Data''. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Publishing, 2001. .
* Ramsey, Winston G. ditor ''Airfields of the Eighth''. London: 1978.
* Scutts, Jerry. ''Lion in the Sky: US 8th Air Force Fighter Operations, 1942–1945''. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1987.
* Smith, Graham. ''The Mighty Eighth in the Second World War''. Newbury: Countryside Books, 2001.
* Steijger, Cees. ''A History of USAFE''. Voyageur, 1991. .
* Strong, Russell A. ''A Biographical Directory of the 8th Air Force, 1942–1945''. Manhattan, Kansas: Military Affairs – Aerospace Historian, 1985.
* Werrell, Kenneth P. & Robin Higham. ''Eighth Air Force Bibliography : An Extended Essay & Listing of Published & Unpublished Materials''. Manhattan, Kansas: Military Affairs – Aerospace Historian, 1981 (Second Edition 1997, Strasburg, Pennsylvania: 8th Air Force Memorial Museum Foundation, 1997).
* Woolnough, John H. (Ed.) ''The 8th Air Force Album: The Story of the Mighty Eighth Air Force in WW II''. Hollywood, Florida: 8th AF News, 1978.
* Woolnough, John H. (Ed.) ''The 8th Air Force Yearbook: The current Status of 8th AF Unit Associations, 1980''. Hollywood, Florida: 8th AF News, 1981.
* Woolnough, John H. (Ed.) ''Stories of the Eighth: An Anthology of the 8th Air Force in World War Two''. Hollywood, Fla.: 8th AF News, 1983.
*
*
* Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). ''Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947–1977''. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. .
External links
USAF Fact Sheets: Eighth Air Force History
Eighth Air Force official website
Eighth Air Force Archive at Penn State
Eight Air Force tactical mission report of Operation Shuttle
The Ruhr – one of the main target of the 8th USAAF in Europe, 1943–1945
Map of 8th Air Force airfields in England 1942–1945
Eighth Air Force Historical Society
A 1956 LIFE photo of every plane in the Eighth Air Force's arsenal
*
4th Fighter Group Association, 65 Fighter Wing, 8th Air Force World War II
Replica WWII 8th AF Briefing Room
at U.S. Veterans Memorial Museum
National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force
Savannah, Georgia
Stories of the 448th – Stories of those whose paths crossed the threshold of Seething Airfield
{{USAAF 8th Air Force UK
1942 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)
08 Air Force
Military units and formations in Louisiana
Military units and formations of the United States in the Cold War
08
World War II strategic bombing units