United States Army Balloon Squadrons and companies organized under the

Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps The Aviation Section, Signal Corps, was the aerial warfare service of the United States from 1914 to 1918, and a direct statutory ancestor of the United States Air Force. It absorbed and replaced the Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps, and con ...

and served overseas with the

United States Army Air Service The United States Army Air Service (USAAS)Craven and Cate Vol. 1, p. 9 (also known as the ''"Air Service"'', ''"U.S. Air Service"'' and before its legislative establishment in 1920, the ''"Air Service, United States Army"'') was the aerial war ...

before and during

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

. There were also French, British, and German Balloon Corps. The History of military ballooning includes the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

era

Union Army Balloon Corps The Union Army Balloon Corps was a branch of the Union Army during the American Civil War, established by presidential appointee Thaddeus S. C. Lowe. It was organized as a civilian operation, which employed a group of prominent American aeronauts ...

and the even earlier

French Aerostatic Corps The French Aerostatic Corps or Company of Aeronauts (french: compagnie d'aérostiers) was the world's first balloon unit,Jeremy Beadle and Ian Harrison, ''First, Lasts & Onlys: Military'', p. 42 founded in 1794 to use balloons, primarily for reco ...

. At the start of World War I, the

organization of the Air Service of the American Expeditionary Force The Organization of the Air Service of the American Expeditionary Force on November 11, 1918, represents its maximum strength in World War I. Units of the Air Service are listed as assigned to the order of battle for that date, which was that of t ...

included

observation balloon An observation balloon is a type of balloon that is employed as an aerial platform for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Use of observation balloons began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War ...

units organized into companies, squadrons, and wings and each company was equipped with one balloon. Five companies comprised a squadron, and three squadrons made up a wing. By the end of the war 110 companies had been created. In the field Balloon companies were allotted to the ground units they supported as needed. In 1918 June, with squadron organization discontinued, company designations were numbered and organized into groups. Only 35 companies made it to France with the

American Expeditionary Force The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...

(AEF). 17 companies served at the front, making 1,642 combat ascensions, while six other groups were en route to the front at the armistice. After the war, the National Association of American Balloon Corps Veterans was organized and published a history of the service: ''Eyes of the Army : a story about the Observation Balloon Service of World War I'' by Craig S. Herbert. The group published a quarterly newsletter titled ''Haul Down and Ease Off''.

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* 1st Balloon Squadron ** A, 14-Aug-1917, Split into 25th, and 26th 16-Feb-1918 ** B, ** C, ** D, ** HHC * 2d Balloon Squadron ** A, - 1st Balloon company 1-Oct-1917 (AEF) ** B, - 2nd Balloon company ?-?-1917 (AEF) ** C, - 3rd Balloon company 13-Sept-1917 (AEF) ** D, - 4th Balloon company 25-Sept-1917 (AEF) **HHC * 3d Balloon Squadron ** A, - 5th Balloon company 4-Nov-1917 (AEF) ** B, - 6th Balloon company 4-Nov-1917 (AEF) ** C, - 7th Balloon company 3-Nov-1917 (AEF) ** D, - 8th Balloon company 4-Nov-1917 (AEF) ** HHC * 4th Balloon Squadron ** A, -

9th Balloon company The 41st Electronic Combat Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. Its current assignment is with the 55th Electronic Combat Group at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona as a geographically separated unit from its parent wing, the 55th ...

14-Nov-1917 (AEF) ** B, - 10th Balloon company 14-Nov-1917 (AEF) ** C, - 13th Balloon company 22-Jan-1918 (AEF) ** D, - 14th Balloon company 13-Nov-1917 (AEF) ** HHC * 5th Balloon Squadron ** A, - 11th Balloon company ?-?-? (AEF) ** B, - 12th Balloon company ?-?-? (AEF) ** C, - 15th Balloon company ?-?-? (AEF) ** D, - 16th Balloon company 14-Dec-1917 (AEF) ** HHC * 17th Balloon company 21-Jan-1918 (AEF) * 18th Balloon company 21-Jan-1918 (AEF) * 19th Balloon company 24-Jan-1918 (AEF) * 20th Balloon company 24-Jan-1918 (AEF) * 21st Balloon company * 22d Balloon company * 23d Balloon company 16-Feb-1918 (AEF) * 24th Balloon company 17-Jan-1918

Fort Monroe Fort Monroe, managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Park Service as the Fort Monroe National Monument, and the City of Hampton, is a former military installation in Hampton, Virgi ...

(AEF) * 25th Balloon company 16-Feb-1918

Post Field Henry Post Army Airfield is a military use airport located at Fort Sill in Comanche County, Oklahoma, United States. This military airport is owned by United States Army. Established as Post Field in 1917, it was one of thirty-two Air Service t ...

(AEF) * 26th Balloon company 2-April-1918

(AEF) * 27th Balloon company * 28th Balloon company * 29th Balloon company * 30th Balloon company 6-March-1918

Waco Army Airfield James Connally Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located north of Waco, Texas. After its closure in 1968, the airport reopened as TSTC Waco Airport. History World War II The airport opened May 5, 1942 as Waco Army Air Field and ...

(AEF) * 31st Balloon company

Camp Knox Fort Knox is a United States Army installation in Kentucky, south of Louisville and north of Elizabethtown. It is adjacent to the United States Bullion Depository, which is used to house a large portion of the United States' official gold res ...

(US Signal Corps) * 32d Balloon company * 33d Balloon company * 34th Balloon company 30-Mar-1918 Camp Wise (AEF) * 35th Balloon company 30-Mar-1918 Camp Wise (AEF) * 36th Balloon company 30-Mar-1918 Camp Wise (AEF) * 37th Balloon company * 38th Balloon company * 39th Balloon company * 40th Balloon company * 41st Balloon company * 42d Balloon company 20-Mar-1918 Camp Wise (AEF) * 43d Balloon company 20-Mar-1918 Camp Wise (AEF) * 44th Balloon company (AEF) * 45th Balloon company (AEF) * 46th Balloon company * 47th Balloon company * 48th Balloon company * 49th Balloon company * 50th Balloon company

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* 51st Balloon company * 52d Balloon company * 53d Balloon company * 54th Balloon company * 55th Balloon company * 56th Balloon company * 57th Balloon company * 58th Balloon company (AEF) * 59th Balloon company * 60th Balloon company * 61st Balloon company * 62d Balloon company * 63d Balloon company * 64th Balloon company * 65th Balloon company * 66th Balloon company * 67th Balloon company * 68th Balloon company * 69th Balloon company (AEF) * 70th Balloon company * 71st Balloon company * 72d Balloon company * 73d Balloon company * 74th Balloon company * 75th Balloon company * 76th Balloon company * 77th Balloon company * 78th Balloon company * 79th Balloon company * 80th Balloon company * 81st Balloon company * 82d Balloon company * 83d Balloon company * 84th Balloon company * 85th Balloon company * 86th Balloon company * 87th Balloon company * 88th Balloon company * 89th Balloon company * 90th Balloon company * 91st Balloon company * 92d Balloon company * 93d Balloon company * 94th Balloon company * 95th Balloon company * 96th Balloon company * 97th Balloon company * 98th Balloon company * 99th Balloon company * 100th Balloon company * 101st Balloon company * 102d Balloon company * 103d Balloon company * 104th Balloon company * 105th Balloon company

References

* https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1919/04/13/96293467.pdf * http://www.footnote.com/image/#20339490 * http://www.footnote.com/image/#19227433 redesignation

External links

* http://camp-john-wise-aerostation.com/ * http://www.worldwar1.com/dbc/balloon43.htm * https://www.scribd.com/doc/25241521/1921-Operating-Equipment-for-U-S-Army-Observation-Balloons {{DEFAULTSORT:American Balloon Squadrons Balloon Squadrons Balloon Squadrons Lists of flying squadrons cs:Letecká sekce Spojovacího sboru Spojených států

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See also

References

Further reading

External links