12th Operations Group
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The 12th Operations Group is the flying component of the
12th Flying Training Wing The 12th Flying Training Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to Air Education and Training Command's Nineteenth Air Force. It is headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio, Texas. The wing is the parent organization for the 479th Flyin ...
of
United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...
's
Air Education and Training Command Air Education and Training Command (AETC) is one of the nine List of major commands of the United States Air Force, Major Commands (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force (USAF), reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force. It was establis ...
. The
group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...
headquarters is located at
Randolph Air Force Base Randolph Air Force Base was an United States Air Force base located at Universal City, Texas ( east-northeast of Downtown San Antonio). Opened in 1931, Randolph has been a flying training facility for the United States Army Air Corps, the Un ...
, Texas. . The unit's main missions include aircraft instructor pilot training in
Beechcraft T-6 Texan II The Beechcraft T-6 Texan II is a single-engine turboprop aircraft built by the Raytheon Aircraft Company ( Textron Aviation since 2014). A trainer aircraft based on the Pilatus PC-9, the T-6 has replaced the United States Air Force's Cessna ...
, Northrop T-38C Talon and
Raytheon T-1 Jayhawk The Raytheon T-1 Jayhawk is a twin-engined jet aircraft used by the United States Air Force for advanced pilot training. T-1A students go on to fly airlift and tanker aircraft. The T-400 is a similar version for the Japan Air Self-Defense For ...
aircraft, Air Force and Navy undergraduate combat systems officer training and fighter fundamentals student pilot instructor training in the Northrop AT-38C. The group was first activated in January 1941 as the 12th Bombardment Group. After training and flying antisubmarine patrols off the Pacific Coast, moved to Egypt in July 1942. In the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, it took part in the Western Desert campaign and Italian campaign, earning a Distinguished Unit Citation. In 1944, it moved to the China Burma India Theater and participated in the Burma campaign before the war's end. The unit returned to the United States in January 1946 and was inactivated on arriving at the port of embarkation. The group was briefly active in 1947 to 1948, but was not manned or equipped due to budgetary restrictions. It was activated on 1 November 1950 as the 12th Fighter-Escort Group, but transferred its resources to the 12th Fighter-Escort Wing in February 1951 and was inactivated in June 1952 as Strategic Air Command adopted the dual deputy organization. With the implementation of the Objective Wing Organization, the unit was activated on 15 December 1991, as the 12th Operations Group and assigned to the 12th Flying Training Wing.


Components

The group contains seven squadrons(Tail Code: RA): * 12th Operations Support Squadron *
99th Flying Training Squadron The 99th Flying Training Squadron (99 FTS) flies Raytheon T-1 Jayhawks and they have painted the tails of their aircraft red in honor of the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II fame, known as the "Red Tails," whose lineage the 99 FTS inherited. The ...
T-1A Jayhawk The Raytheon T-1 Jayhawk is a twin-engined jet aircraft used by the United States Air Force for advanced pilot training. T-1A students go on to fly airlift and tanker aircraft. The T-400 is a similar version for the Japan Air Self-Defense For ...
Instructor pilot training *
435th Fighter Training Squadron The 435th Fighter Training Squadron is part of the 12th Flying Training Wing based at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. It operates Northrop AT-38 Talon aircraft conducting flight training. Mission The 435 FTS conducts initial instructor and stude ...
AT-38C Talon Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals * 558th Flying Training Squadron Undergraduate RPA training *
559th Flying Training Squadron The 559th Flying Training Squadron is part of the 12th Flying Training Wing based at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. It operates the Beechcraft T-6 Texan II conducting flying training. History World War II The 559th was initially constituted ...
T-6A Texan II The Beechcraft T-6 Texan II is a single-engine turboprop aircraft built by the Raytheon Aircraft Company (Textron Aviation since 2014). A trainer aircraft based on the Pilatus PC-9, the T-6 has replaced the United States Air Force's Cessna T ...
Instructor pilot training *
560th Flying Training Squadron The 560th Flying Training Squadron is part of the 12th Flying Training Wing of the United States Air Force based at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. It operates the Northrop T-38 Talon. The squadron was first activated during World War II as th ...
T-38C Talon Instructor pilot training


History


Organization and initial operations

The
group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...
was first activated as the 12th Bombardment Group at
McChord Field McChord Field is a United States Air Force base in the northwest United States, in Pierce County, Washington. South of Tacoma, McChord Field is the home of the 62d Airlift Wing, Air Mobility Command, the field's primary mission being worldwi ...
, Washington on 15 January 1941 as the United States began building up its armed forces after the beginning of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
in Europe, drawing its initial cadre from the
17th Bombardment Group The 17th Bombardment Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. The group was last stationed at Hurlburt Field, Florida. The Group is a direct successor to the 17th Pursuit Group, one of the 15 original combat air groups formed by the ...
. The 81st, 82d, and 83d Bombardment Squadrons were the group's first components, while the 19th Reconnaissance Squadron was attached to the 12th. Although designated a light bomber group, the unit was initially equipped with a mix of
Douglas B-18 Bolo The Douglas B-18 Bolo is an American heavy bomber which served with the United States Army Air Corps and the Royal Canadian Air Force (as the Digby) during the late 1930s and early 1940s. The Bolo was developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company ...
and
Douglas B-23 Dragon The Douglas B-23 Dragon is an American twin-engined bomber developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company as a successor to (and a refinement of) the B-18 Bolo. Design and development Douglas proposed a number of modifications designed to improve th ...
medium bomber A medium bomber is a military bomber aircraft designed to operate with medium-sized bombloads over medium range distances; the name serves to distinguish this type from larger heavy bombers and smaller light bombers. Mediums generally carrie ...
s and a few
Stearman PT-17 The Stearman (Boeing) Model 75 is a biplane formerly used as a military trainer aircraft, of which at least 10,626 were built in the United States during the 1930s and 1940s. Stearman Aircraft became a subsidiary of Boeing in 1934. Widely known ...
trainers. In August 1941, the Air Corps converted its reconnaissance squadrons attached to light bomber groups and the 19th Reconnaissance Squadron became the 94th Bombardment Squadron and was assigned to the group.Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 536 At the time of the Japanese
Attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...
, The 12th was the only Air Corps bombardment group on the Pacific Coast north of the San Francisco Bay area and the group began flying antisubmarine patrols and watching for signs of an invasion. At the end of December 1941, the group was designated a medium bomber unit, consistent with its equipment. This resulted in the 94th Squadron again becoming a reconnaissance unit, as the 94th Reconnaissance Squadron. In February, the group moved to
Esler Field Esler Field, also known as Esler Regional Airport , is a military and public use airfield in Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States, near the City of Pineville. It is located 10 nautical miles (12 statute miles, 19 kilometres) northeas ...
, Louisiana, where it began converting to the
North American B-25 Mitchell The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in ...
. With the Mitchells, the 94th resumed the bombardment mission, this time as the 434th Bombardment Squadron in April. In early May, the group deployed to Stockton Army Air Field, California, where half its crews stood alert during daylight hours. After the defeat of the Japanese Navy in the
Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under ...
, the group returned to Esler Field.Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 280 In June 1942, while in the United States for a conference with President
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
, British Prime Minister
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...
received word that the
British Eighth Army The Eighth Army was an Allied field army formation of the British Army during the Second World War, fighting in the North African and Italian campaigns. Units came from Australia, British India, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Free French Forces ...
had been defeated in a tank battle with Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's
Afrika Korps The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (, }; DAK) was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African colonies, the ...
near
Tobruk Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near ...
, Libya, and was retreating back toward
Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
, Egypt. Churchill immediately made an urgent plea for military aid to help stop Rommel from over-running Egypt, the Suez Canal and the Arabian oil fields. The United States dispatched the 12th and two other groups to the Middle East to reinforce the British forces there. The 12th was the second of the three groups to leave the United States. Between 14 July and 2 August, aircrews departed Morrison Field, Florida for Egypt via the South Atlantic ferry route to Egypt by way of Brazil, Ascension Island, across Africa to the Sudan, and then north to Egypt. by mid-August, all crews had arrived in Egypt without a single loss. Ground personnel of all three groups and supporting units sailed from
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
on 16 July 1942 on the , a fast French ocean liner that had been impressed by the British, for a month-long trip around South Africa and up the Red Sea to
Suez Suez ( ar, السويس '; ) is a seaport city (population of about 750,000 ) in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez (a branch of the Red Sea), near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same bou ...
, Egypt, arriving on 16 August 1942.


World War II


Western Desert Campaign

As soon as they arrived in Egypt, group headquarters and the 81st and 82d Squadrons moved to RAF Deversoir, while the 83d and 434th Squadrons were at RAF Ismailia, about 15 miles apart on the Suez Canal. It began training with
Royal Air Force 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) an ...
(RAF) and
South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...
BostonThe Boston was the RAF version of the A-20 Havoc. units in desert warfare tactics and navigation. A month of training included five combat missions in combined formations with the Bostons. The group flew its first mission on its own on 31 August against enemy
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 pub ...
s at Daba (LG 105) and
Fuka Fuka, Fūka or Fuuka may refer to: * Fūka (given name), a feminine Japanese given name * ''Fuuka'' (manga), a Japanese manga series * Fukah, a village in northern Egypt, referred to as Fuka in a World War II context **Sidi Haneish Airfield Si ...
(LG 17) and port facilities at Matruh, Egypt.Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 281 The group's first missions were night attacks. However, the lack of flame dampeners on its Mitchells made them easy targets for
flak Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based ...
defenses and
night fighter A night fighter (also known as all-weather fighter or all-weather interceptor for a period of time after the Second World War) is a fighter aircraft adapted for use at night or in other times of bad visibility. Night fighters began to be used i ...
s. Losses, which included the group commander, Colonel Goodrich, caused the withdrawal of the unit from night operations until its planes could be modified with "finger exhausts". The unit's first missions were flown to support forces opposing Rommel's final effort to break through to the Suez Canal at the
Battle of Alam Halfa The Battle of Alam el Halfa took place between 30 August and 5 September 1942 south of El Alamein during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. '' Panzerarmee Afrika'' (''Generalfeldmarschall'' Erwin Rommel), attempted an envelopme ...
between 31 August and 4 September 1942. These missions helped the
British Eighth Army The Eighth Army was an Allied field army formation of the British Army during the Second World War, fighting in the North African and Italian campaigns. Units came from Australia, British India, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Free French Forces ...
repel the Afrika Corps attacks. Rommel attributed this defeat to air attacks enabled by the air superiority established by the RAF and Allied forces Both Allied and enemy forces had learned that the open nature of the western desert made it easy to disperse
armored forces Armoured warfare or armored warfare (mechanized forces, armoured forces or armored forces) (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences), is the use of armoured fighting vehicle, armo ...
, making pinpoint bombing ineffective. As a result, the group adopted the RAF tactic of pattern bombing. Group Mitchells would fly at medium altitude, flying spaced apart to saturate a target area with bombs spaced to damage any vehicles or other objectives in a defined target area.Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 282 During the battles in north Africa, the RAF had established numerous Landing Grounds, identified by LG plus a number. These stretched across northern Egypt and Libya and were used by both sides as the front moved. These landing grounds had no defined runways, and as many as eighteen bombers could take off at the same time, headed directly into the wind.Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 283 In early October, intelligence reports reported that Regia Aeronautica and
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 ...
airplanes at two of these landing grounds, near Daba (LG 105) and Qattafa (LG 104), had been trapped by heavy rains. The 12th Group and RAF forces attacked the airfields on 9 October, destroying ten enemy aircraft and damaging an additional 22. A few days later, the operational elements of the group, consisting of the combat crews and a few essential ground personnel needed to keep the B-25s flying, began flying missions from LG 88, about 20 miles from the front lines. This move made them immediately available for strikes requested by the Eighth Army. The bulk of each squadron and headquarters remained behind at their bases near the Suez Canal. Operations from LG 88 began on the night of 19/20 October, just before the
Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa had prevented th ...
began on 23 October with a tremendous artillery bombardment. The 12th Group began a week-long shuttle missions, attacking targets phoned in to Eighth Army Air Liaison Officers attached to the group. Eighteen ship formations took off or landed every half-hour during daylight on 24 October. There was little rest as ground crews rushed to refuel, reload bombs and ammunition, and patch flak holes, with operations peaking on 27 October. By 4 November, Rommel began withdraw and main targets became columns of tanks, trucks and troops retreating to the west. Group operational elements advanced to new Landing Grounds to keep up with ground troops, sometimes having to ferry munitions from their old bases to their new stations. Support equipment could not keep up with this rapid advance, and the forward elements depended on commandeered German and Italian materiel until rains bogged down the advance, permitting Rommel to withdraw to Tunisia. By 14 December, the advanced elements of the group were operating from Magrun Landing Ground (LG 142), also called Gambut No. 2, a satellite of
RAF Gambut RAF Gambut (or RAF Kambut) is a complex of six abandoned military airfields in Libya, located about north-northeast of the village of Kambut, and east-south-east of Tobruk. During World War II, the complex was an important facility, used by ...
(LG 139), stretching the group over 1200 miles of north Africa. The new base was within range of German bases on
Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...
, and a raid was planned for 2 January 1943. However to reach this target, dust filters had to be removed from the attack force's engines to increase range. Just as the Mitchells were taking off, a dust storm hit the Landing Ground and only twelve planes were able to fly the mission, which had little effect on enemy forces. American forces under General
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, ...
landed in Algeria and Morocco, and were met by German divisions under Rommel's command. The situation became desperate as they drove the Americans back through the Kasserine Pass. To reinforce
Twelfth Air Force The Twelfth Air Force (12 AF; Air Forces Southern, (AFSOUTH)) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. The command is the air component to ...
, the 81st and 82d Squadrons of the 12th Group were dispatched to reinforce the
310th Bombardment Group 31 may refer to: * 31 (number) Years * 31 BC * AD 31 * 1931 CE ('31) * 2031 CE ('31) Music * ''Thirty One'' (Jana Kramer album), 2015 * ''Thirty One'' (Jarryd James album), 2015 * "Thirty One", a song by Karma to Burn from the album '' ...
at Berteaux Airfield, Algeria on 3 and 4 February 1943.Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 284 These two squadrons continued operating under the Twelfth Air Force until the fall of
Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...
in May 1943, when they were returned to the group. Meanwhile, the 83d and 434th Squadrons helped break up an attack along the
Mareth Line The Mareth Line was a system of fortifications built by France in southern Tunisia in the late 1930s. The line was intended to protect Tunisia against an Italian invasion from its colony in Libya. The line occupied a point where the routes into T ...
. After the fall of Tunis, the 12th was reunited at
Hergla Airfield Hergla Airfield is an abandoned military airfield in Tunisia, which was located approximately 12 km north-northwest of Harqalah in al Janubiyah Wilayat province, about 90 km south-southwest of Tunis. During World War II it was used ...
, Tunisia, and all of the personnel of its squadrons were together again for the first time since their advance parties moved out into the desert eight months earlier. The group's actions during the north African campaign earned it a Distinguished Unit Citation for its operations from primitive landing grounds under difficult weather and terrain conditions and, despite repeated enemy attacks on its advanced positions and limited resources, mad a major contribution to the defeat of enemy forces in the Middle East.


Italian Campaign

From Hergla, the group attacked targets on
Pantellaria Pantelleria (; Sicilian: ''Pantiddirìa'', Maltese: ''Pantellerija'' or ''Qawsra''), the ancient Cossyra or Cossura, is an Italian island and comune in the Strait of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea, southwest of Sicily and east of the Tunisi ...
and Sicily. Little more than a month later,
Operation Husky Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...
, the invasion of Sicily, was executed and the 12th flew missions supporting the advances on that island. The group's advance party boarded LSTs for
Licata Licata (, ; grc, Φιντίας, whence la, Phintias or ''Plintis''), formerly also Alicata (), is a city and ''comune'' located on the south coast of Sicily, at the mouth of the Salso River (the ancient ''Himera''), about midway between Ag ...
Sicily, where they set up their first base in Europe at Ponte Olivo Airfield, flying the group's first mission from Italy on 5 August. An attack on
Randazzo Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta. Randazzo ( scn, Rannazzu) is a town and '' comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Catania, Sicily, southern Italy. It is situated at the northern foot of Mount Etna, c. northwest of Catania. It is the nearest ...
on 13 August was the last significant action of the 12th as part of the Ninth Air Force, which moved to England, while the 12th became part of
Twelfth Air Force The Twelfth Air Force (12 AF; Air Forces Southern, (AFSOUTH)) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. The command is the air component to ...
. Major personnel changes occurred as most of the group's aircrews had served enough time in theater that they were rotated back to the United States and replaced by new aircrews fresh from the States.This included about 25 radio operator/gunners from the
Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
, who had been attached to the group when it began operations in Egypt. Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 284.
Later in August, the group moved to Gerbini Airfield on Sicily, from which it struck bridges, tunnels and other targets to support
Operation Baytown Operation Baytown was an Allied amphibious landing on the mainland of Italy that took place on 3 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy, itself part of the Italian Campaign, during the Second World War. Planning The attack was ...
, the invasion of southern Italy. In September, the group flew missions every day to support the foothold around Salerno established during
Operation Avalanche Operation Avalanche was the codename for the Allied landings near the port of Salerno, executed on 9 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy during World War II. The Italians withdrew from the war the day before the invasion, but ...
.Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 285 The group began operating out of
Foggia Airfield The Foggia Airfield Complex was a series of World War II military airfields located within a radius of Foggia, in the Province of Foggia, Italy. The airfields were used by the United States Army Air Force Fifteenth Air Force as part of the str ...
, Italy in November 1943. The 12th attacked German targets in support of the
American Fifth Army The United States Army North (ARNORTH) is a formation of the United States Army. An Army Service Component Command (ASCC) subordinate to United States Northern Command (NORTHCOM), ARNORTH is the joint force land component of NORTHCOM.
, and in eastern Italy supporting the British Eighth Army. It attacked
aerodrome 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, docks, marshaling yards, bridges, and other targets in Italyand the Balkans. Shortly after the group's combat elements moved to Gaudo Airfield in January 1944, the group was directed to prepare for movement out of the Mediterranean Theater. On 8 February, the group sailed on the and the from
Taranto Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label= Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important com ...
. Although some in the group hoped the move was a withdrawal from combat, the ships sailed east, passing through the Suez Canal on the way to India.


Burma Campaign

The 12th Group moved to India to help the British Fourteenth Army repel a Japanese invasion from Burma toward
Imphal Imphal ( Meitei pronunciation: /im.pʰal/; English pronunciation: ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (also known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the f ...
, threatening the whole subcontinent and the Indian Ocean. The group's advance element arrived at
Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...
on 12 March 1944, and after a four-day train trip to
Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
and a day on a river boat to
Dacca Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...
in eastern Bengal, group headquarters and the 81st and 82d Squadrons were established at Tezgaon Airfield, India, while the 83d and 434th Squadrons were at Kurmitola Airfield. The rear echelon of the unit did not arrive at the new bases in India until 24 April.Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 286 In April, new B-25HAmong the B-25Hs delivered to the group was the 1000th and last one manufactured. Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 286. and B-25J models began to arrive. The group equipped each of its squadrons with a 50/50 mix of the two models.The H model had a 75mm cannon and .50 caliber machine guns in the nose and was flown by one pilot. The J had a glass nose with a navigator/bombardier position and had a pilot and copilot. Tucker & Bledsoe, p. 286. The 12th flew its first mission as part of
Tenth 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 Carswel ...
, bombing Japanese supply dumps at Mogaung, Burma, on 16 April 1944. The lessened threat of
flak Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based ...
in the new theater and added firepower of the updated Mitchells the group now flew resulted in a change of tactics. Rather than the medium altitude pattern bombing the group specialized in the Mediterranean, the group now focused on low altitude bombing and
strafing Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such ...
. In April, Japanese forces that had broken out of the Burma mountains the previous month surrounded two Indian divisions at Imphal. The British still controlled the Imphal Airfield, however, and the 12th flew ammunition to the besieged troops, unloading the ammunition carried in the bomb bays of its Mitchells. The "ammo" runs continued for three weeks, until British forces repelled the Japanese invasion of India. In June, the group and two squadrons moved to
Pandaveswar Airfield Pandaveswar Airfield is a former wartime United States Army Air Forces airfield in India used during the Burma Campaign 1944-1945. It is now abandoned. History Pandaveswar was a major Tenth Air Force combat airfield, hosting numerous groups betwe ...
, India, while the 81st and 434th Squadrons moved to nearby Madhaiganj Airfield. This move added to the distance the group had to fly when attacking targets in Burma, sometimes requiring returning bombers to land at Comilla Airfield to refuel on their return flight. The logistics problems created by this move was lessened when the group moved to
Fenny Airfield Fenny(Feni Bangladesh) Airfield is a former wartime United States Army Air Forces airfield in Bangladesh used during the Burma Campaign 1944-1945. It is now abandoned. History Feni was the primary home of the Tenth Air Force 12th Bombardment Gro ...
, while the 434th began to operate from Comilla. This reduced the distance to most targets in Burma, but the group also flew missions to targets in northern Burma that tested the range of their B-25s. The first of these missions flown from Fenny was to
Myitkyina Myitkyina (, ; (Eng; ''mitchinar'') Jinghpaw: ''Myitkyina'', ) is the capital city of Kachin State in Myanmar (Burma), located from Yangon, and from Mandalay. In Burmese it means "near the big river", and Myitkyina is on the west bank of t ...
to support
Merrill's Marauders Merrill’s Marauders (named after Frank Merrill) or Unit ''Galahad'', officially named the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), was a United States Army long range penetration special operations jungle warfare unit, which fought in the South ...
on 26 July. After some vicious fighting, the British captured
Meiktila Meiktila (; ) is a city in central Burma on the banks of Meiktila Lake in the Mandalay Region at the junctions of the Bagan-Taunggyi, Yangon-Mandalay and Meiktila-Myingyan highways. Because of its strategic position, Meiktila is home to Myanmar Ai ...
on 3 March and swept down the road to Mandalay, which was defended by 400-year-old Fort Dufferin complete with high thick walls and a wide moat. The 12th was called upon to bomb the fort on 9 March 1945, which they did successfully with 2000-pound bombs dropped from 200 feet by four Mitchells, followed by attacks from 6000 feet by another squadron, and a 35-ship blasting of the entire area of the fort to complete the job. The last major mission of the 12th was an overnight where the crews spent the night under the wings of their B-25s at Rameree, near Rangoon, and took off the next morning to bomb Ban-Takli airfield north of
Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...
, Thailand. The group began to equip with
Douglas A-26 Invader The Douglas A-26 Invader (designated B-26 between 1948 and 1965) is an American twin-engined light bomber and ground attack aircraft. Built by Douglas Aircraft Company during World War II, the Invader also saw service during several major Col ...
s and were still training when the war ended. The group's aircrews flew the A-26s to
Frankfurt, Germany Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its ...
, and the rest of the group waited at
Fenny Airfield Fenny(Feni Bangladesh) Airfield is a former wartime United States Army Air Forces airfield in Bangladesh used during the Burma Campaign 1944-1945. It is now abandoned. History Feni was the primary home of the Tenth Air Force 12th Bombardment Gro ...
until they went to Karachi Airport in December to return to the United States. On return to United States in January 1946, the 12th Bombardment Group was inactivated at the port of embarkation.


Assignment to Tactical Air Command

The unit was again designated the 12th Bombardment Group, Light and was activated on 19 May 1947 under Tactical Air Command as part of the Air Force's expansion to its peacetime goal of 70 combat groups. Although nominally stationed at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, the unit was neither manned or equipped and only existed on paper. President Truman's reduced 1949 defense budget required reductions in the number of Air Force groups to 48, and the 12th was inactivated on 10 September 1948.


Fighter escort operations

The 12th Fighter-Escort Group was activated at Turner Air Force Base, Georgia on 1 November 1950 as the flying element of the 12th Fighter-Escort Wing under the wing base organization system. The 559th, 560th and 561st Fighter-Escort Squadrons were assigned to the group.These were the group's three original squadrons. Because the 81st through 83d Fighter Squadrons already existed, the squadrons were given new numbers when they became fighter units. The group's mission was to fly fighter escort for Strategic Air Command strategic bombers.Ravenstein, pp. 27–29 As the group was organizing, the
27th Fighter-Escort Wing 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion, mythology, ...
at
Bergstrom Air Force Base 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 deployed to Japan. The 12th Group moved to Bergstrom in December, and was filled out by personnel from the 27th that had not deployed and personnel that had been transferred from the 31st Fighter-Escort Group at Turner. On 12 December the group received its first
Republic F-84E Thunderjet The Republic F-84 Thunderjet was an American turbojet fighter-bomber aircraft. Originating as a 1944 United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 first flew in 1946. Although it entered service in 1947, the Thun ...
s. These aircraft, however, were rejected as
Republic Aviation The Republic Aviation Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer based in Farmingdale, New York, on Long Island. Originally known as the Seversky Aircraft Company, the company was responsible for the design and production of many important ...
had equipped them with an engine that was incapable of supporting the extended bomber escort missions projected by SAC. Strategic Air Command (SAC)'s mobilization for the Korean War highlighted that SAC wing commanders focused too much on running the base organization and were not spending enough time on overseeing combat preparations. To allow wing commanders the ability to focus on combat operations, the air base group commander became responsible for managing the base housekeeping functions. Under the plan finalized in June 1952, the wing commander focused primarily on the combat units and the maintenance necessary to support combat aircraft by having the combat and maintenance squadrons report directly to the wing and eliminating the intermediate group structures. In February 1951, the group's three squadrons were attached to the wing and the group was reduced to paper status. When the reorganization was finalized, the group was inactivated and the squadrons reassigned.


Flying training

The group was reactivated at
Randolph Air Force Base Randolph Air Force Base was an United States Air Force base located at Universal City, Texas ( east-northeast of Downtown San Antonio). Opened in 1931, Randolph has been a flying training facility for the United States Army Air Corps, the Un ...
, Texas on 9 December 1991 as the 12th Operations Group and assigned to the 12th Flying Training Wing as part of the Objective Wing reorganization by the Air Force. The new group performed flight screening and undergraduate pilot training. Due to impending closure of
Mather Air Force Base Mather Air Force Base (Mather AFB) was a United States Air Force Base, which was closed in 1993 pursuant to a post-Cold War BRAC decision. It was located east of Sacramento, on the south side of U.S. Route 50 in Sacramento County, Californ ...
, California, in 1992 group assumed undergraduate navigator training which was moved from Mather. Also, conducted specialized undergraduate pilot training. In 1995, began transition to joint navigator training.


Lineage

* Established as the 12th Bombardment Group (Light) on 20 November 1940 : Activated on 15 January 1941 : Redesignated 12th Bombardment Group (Medium) on 30 December 1941 : Redesignated 12th Bombardment Group, Medium on 20 August 1944 : Inactivated on 22 January 1946 * Redesignated 12th Bombardment Group, Light on 29 April 1947 : Activated on 19 May 1947 : Inactivated on 10 September 1948 * Redesignated 12th Fighter-Escort Group on 27 October 1950 : Activated on 1 November 1950 : Inactivated on 16 June 1952 : Redesignated 12th Tactical Fighter Group on 31 July 1985 (Remained inactive) * Redesignated 12th Operations Group on 9 December 1991 : Activated on 15 December 1991


Assignments

*
Northwest Air District The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
(later, Second Air Force), 15 January 1941 * 4th Air Support Command, 3 September 1941 *
5th Air Support Command Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash th ...
, 21 January 1942 *
III Bomber Command The III Bomber Command is a disbanded United States Air Force headquarters. It was established in September 1941, shortly before the attack on Pearl Harbor to command bomber units assigned to 3rd Air Force. Following the entry of the United Sta ...
, 18 April 1942 * Ninth Air Force, 16 August 1942 * Twelfth Air Force, 22 August 1943 * XII Air Support Command, 1 September 1943 *
XII Bomber Command XII Bomber Command is an inactive United States Army Air Forces formation. Its last assignment was with the Twelfth Air Force, based in Corsica, France. It was constituted on 26 February 1942, activated on 13 March 1942, and inactivated on 10 J ...
, 2 January 1944 * Tenth Air Force, c. 21 March 1944 * Unknown, c. 24 December 1945 – 22 January 1946 * Tactical Air Command, 19 May 1947 – 10 September 1948 * 12th Fighter-Escort Wing, 1 November 1950 – 16 June 1952 * 12th Flying Training Wing, 15 December 1991 – present


Components

; Squadrons * 1st Flight Screening Squadron (later 1st Flying Training Squadron): 15 December 1991 – 1 April 1994 * 3d Flying Training Squadron: 1 April 1994 – 7 April 2000 * 19th Reconnaissance Squadron (later 94th Bombardment Squadron, 94th Reconnaissance Squadron,
434th Bombardment Squadron The 434th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 12th Bombardment Group, stationed at Fort Lawton, Washington. It was inactivated on 22 January 1946. History The 434th was established as ...
): attached 15 January-13 August 1941, assigned 14 August 1941 – 22 January 1946 * 21st Test and Evaluation Squadron: 15 September 1992 – 31 March 1994 * 81st Bombardment Squadron (later 559th Fighter-Escort Squadron, 559th Flying Training Squadron): 15 January 1941 – 22 January 1946; 19 May 1947 – 10 September 1948; 1 November 1950 – 16 June 1952 (attached to 12th Fighter-Escort Wing after 10 February 1951); 15 December 1991–present * 82d Bombardment Squadron (later 560th Fighter-Escort Squadron, 560th Flying Training Squadron): 15 January 1941 – 22 January 1946; 19 May 1947 – 10 September 1948; 1 November 1950 – 16 June 1952 (attached to 12th Fighter-Escort Wing after 10 February 1951); 15 December 1991 – present * 83d Bombardment Squadron (later 561st Fighter-Escort Squadron): 15 January 1941 – 22 January 1946; 19 May 1947 – 10 September 1948; 1 November 1950 – 16 June 1952 (attached to 12th Fighter-Escort Wing after 10 February 1951) * 99th Flying Training Squadron: 14 May 1993 – present * 434th Bombardment Squadron: see 19th Reconnaissance Squadron) * 435th Flying Training Squadron (later 435th Fighter Training Squadron): 14 May 1998 – 1 October 2001, 2 March 2007 – present *
557th Flying Training Squadron The 557th Flying Training Squadron is part of the 306th Flying Training Group based at United States Air Force Academy, Colorado, where it has conducted flight training for Academy cadets since 1974. The first predecessor of the squadron was ...
: 1 July 1993 – 1 October 2000 * 558th Flying Training Squadron: 15 December 1992 – 1 October 1996; 16 January 2002 – present * 562d Flying Training Squadron: 14 May 1993 – 19 November 2010 * 563d Flying Training Squadron: 14 May 1993 – 3 June 1996; 30 April 1999–19 November 2010 * 3307th Test and Evaluation Squadron: 15 December 1991 – 15 September 1992The 21st Test and Evaluation Squadron and the 3307th Test and Evaluation Squadron were consolidated after being reassigned from the group. Haulman, Daniel L., Lineage and Honors History of the Air Education and Training Command Studies and Analysis Squadron (AETC), Air Force Historical Research Agency. 6 January 1998. ; Flight * 332d Airlift Flight: 15 April 1993 – 1 April 1997


Stations

* McChord Field, Washington, 15 January 1941 * Esler Field, Louisiana, c. 21 February-3 July 1942 * RAF Deversoir, Egypt, c. 31 July 1942 (group headquarters and support elements after October 1942) * Egypt and Libya, c October 1942-c April 1943Beginning in October 1942, the group assumed a split operation, with supporting and operational elements at different locations. See the narrative above for locations of group elements during this time. :: LG 88, Egypt , 18 October 1942 :: Gambut Airfield, Libya, 6 December 1942 :: Magrun Landing Ground (LG 142), Libya , by 9 December 1942 :: El Chel Airfield, Libya :: Misurata Airfield, Libya * Medenine Airfield, Tunisia, 3 April 1943 * Sfax Airfield, Tunisia, c. 15 April 1943 * Hergla Airfield, Tunisia, 2 June 1943 * Ponte Olivo Airfield, Sicily, Italy, c. 2 August 1943 * Gerbini Airfield, Sicily, Italy, c. 22 August 1943 * Foggia Airfield, Italy, c. 2 November 1943 * Gaudo Airfield, Italy, 19 January-6 February 1944 * Tezgaon Airfield, India, c. 21 March 1944 * Pandaveswar Airfield, India, 13 June 1944 * Fenny Airfield, India, 16 July 1944 * Pandaveswar Airfield, India, 8 June 1945 * Karachi Airport, India, 15 November-24 December 1945 *
Fort Lawton Fort Lawton was a United States Army post located in the Magnolia neighborhood of Seattle, Washington overlooking Puget Sound. In 1973 a large majority of the property, 534 acres of Fort Lawton, was given to the city of Seattle and dedicated as ...
, Washington, 21–22 January 1946 * Langley Field (later Langley Air Force Base), Virginia, 19 May 1947 – 10 September 1948 * Turner Air Force Base, Georgia, 1 November 1950 * Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas, 5 December 1950 – 16 June 1952 * Randolph Air Force Base (later Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph Air Force Base), Texas, 15 December 1991 – presentStations in Robertson, Factsheet, 12 Operations Group, except as noted.


Aircraft

* Douglas B-18 Bolo, 1941–1942 * Douglas B-23 Dragon, 1941–1942 * Stearman PT-17, 1941–1942 * North American B-25 Mitchell, 1942–1945 * Douglas A-26 Invader, 1945 * Republic F-84 Thunderjet, 1950–1951 *
Cessna T-37 Tweet The Cessna T-37 Tweet (designated Model 318 by Cessna) is a small, economical twin-engined jet trainer type which flew for decades as a primary trainer for the United States Air Force (USAF) and in the air forces of several other nations. The T ...
, 1991–present * Northrop T-38 Talon, 1991–present *
North American T-39 Sabreliner The North American Sabreliner, later sold as the Rockwell Sabreliner, is an American mid-sized business jet developed by North American Aviation. It was offered to the United States Air Force (USAF) in response to its Utility Trainer Experimen ...
, 1991 * Cessna T-41 Mescalero, 1992–1994 * Boeing T-43 Bobcat, 1992–present *
C-21 Learjet The Learjet Model 35 and Model 36 are a series of American multi-role business jets and military transport aircraft manufactured by Learjet. When used by the United States Air Force they carry the designation C-21A. The aircraft are powered b ...
, 1993–1997 * Northrop AT-38 Talon, 1993–2002 * Raytheon T-1 Jayhawk, 1993–present * T-3 Firefly, 1994–1998 * Beechcraft T-6 Texan II, 2000–present


Awards and campaigns


References


Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * {{USAAF 2d Air Force World War II Military units and formations established in 1941 012