The 16th Electronic Warfare Squadron is an active

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

unit. It is assigned to the 350th Spectrum Warfare Group at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. It was formed in 1985 by the consolidation of three units. The 16th Aero Squadron, a

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 ...

squadron that provided maintenance support for aeronautical units on the Western Front. The 16th Reconnaissance Squadron, which served during the years between the World Wars as an observation squadron, with its

flight Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere (i.e. air flight or aviation) or through the vacuum of outer space (i.e. spaceflight). This can be a ...

s located with various Army schools. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the squadron served in the Mediterranean, where it was awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation for its performance from October 1943 to January 1944. The 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron, which served as a long range photographic unit during the early years of the Cold War.

Mission

The 16th Electronic Warfare Squadron (EWS) provides

electronic warfare Electronic warfare (EW) is any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum (EM spectrum) or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy assaults. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponen ...

test facilities for mission data and electronic warfare systems test and evaluation. Its personnel assess the maintainability, reliability, suitability, and readiness of electronic warfare systems and support equipment, and perform test and evaluation of new concepts for electronic warfare systems. They also monitor developmental testing conducted by acquisition agencies. The 16th EWS develops, fabricates and maintains test instrumentation and performs acceptance tests of all new electronic warfare related hardware and software and supports training for maintenance and operational units worldwide. The

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

also provides technicians and equipment to execute the COMBAT SHIELD Electronic Warfare Assessment Program. The 16th EWS has more than $450 million in assets, including eight system integration laboratories and five mobile test facilities.Eglin AFB Factsheet, 53d Wing
5/9/2013 (retrieved 20 May 2013) Detachment 1 of the 16 EWS is located at

Tyndall AFB Tyndall Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located east of Panama City, Florida. The base was named in honor of World War I pilot 1st Lt. Frank Benjamin Tyndall. The base operating unit and host wing is the 325th Fighter Wing (325 ...

, Florida and provides maintenance support for adversary electronic attack training pods used for air-to-air electronic warfare training. These pods are repaired and modified at Tyndall AFB and shipped to fighter units worldwide. Det 1, 16 EWS also maintains electronic attack payloads for full-scale and subscale drones in support of live-fire missile testing under the COMBAT ARCHER Weapon System Evaluation Program.

History

The squadron was originally established as an Air Service flying training unit in May 1917, conducting flying training for air cadets in the Midwest throughout the summer. It deployed to France in January 1918, becoming an aircraft maintenance organization in rear areas of the Western Front. It remained in France until May 1919 when squadron returned to the United States and demobilized. The 16th Squadron was established in 1921 as an observation squadron, attached to Army ground units throughout the 1920s and 1930s. It was consolidated with its predecessor in 1924. The 16th carried mail and performed fire observation duties, included carrying mail to President Calvin Coolidge vacationing in South Dakota and Wisconsin in August and September 1927, and June to September 1928. After the

Attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...

the squadron was reassigned to

antisubmarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...

duties along the southeast coast in late 1941, early 1942. It deployed to the European Theater of Operations, where it was attached to the

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 ...

reconnaissance school at

RAF Wattisham Royal Air Force Station Wattisham or more simply RAF Wattisham is a former Royal Air Force station located in East Anglia just outside the village of Wattisham, south of Stowmarket in Suffolk, England. During the Cold War it was a major front ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in late 1942. While in England, the air echelon received modern Lockheed P-38 long-range photo-reconnaissance aircraft and joined the ground personnel in French Morocco shortly after the Operation Torch invasion in November 1942. The squadron was assigned to

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 ...

and engaged in long range intelligence gathering and aerial mapping of Algeria and Tunisia, supporting the

United States 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.

during the North African and Tunisian Campaigns. After the retreat of Axis forces from Tunisia in mid-1942, performed antisubmarine patrols over the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

and also functioned as in in-theater training unit for aerial reconnaissance pilots. Beginning in September 1943, the squadron received specially-equipped B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers equipped with

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...

detection and electronic countermeasures (ECM) equipment. It performed ECM overflights of enemy territory in advance of Fifteenth Air Force heavy bomber formations, jamming enemy Radar and generating false returns to confuse defensive forces. It also continued to fly long range reconnaissance with B-25 Mitchell medium bombers fitted with aerial cameras.. The Squadron returned to the United States in November 1944 as the need for the unit dissipated as enemy forces were driven out of the Mediterranean Theater of Operations. It was inactivated in April 1945. The 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron served with Strategic Air Command as a long-range reconnaissance unit early in the Cold War. Its mission was absorbed by the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing in 1949. In 1985, it was consolidated with its predecessors,Department of the Air Force/MPM Letter 662q, 19 Sep 85, Subject: Reconstitution, Redesignation, and Consolidation of Selected Air Force Tactical Squadrons but remained inactive until 1993, when it assumed its present mission.

Lineage

16th Aero Squadron * Organized as 3d Aviation School Squadron on 9 May 1917 : Redesignated 16th Aero Squadron (Construction) on 31 Aug 1917 : Redesignated 16th Aero Squadron (Repair) 1918 : Demobilized on 22 May 1919 * Reconstituted and consolidated with 16th Observation Squadron as 16th Observation Squadron on 8 April 1924 16th Reconnaissance Squadron * Authorized as 16th Squadron (Observation) on 30 August 1921 : Organized on 7 December 1921 : Redesignated 16th Observation Squadron (Corps and Army) on 25 January 1923 * Consolidated with 16th Aero Squadron on 8 April 1924 : Inactivated on 15 March 1931 * Flights remained active and were assigned to the

14th Observation Group 14 (fourteen) is a natural number following 13 and preceding 15. In relation to the word "four" ( 4), 14 is spelled "fourteen". In mathematics * 14 is a composite number. * 14 is a square pyramidal number. * 14 is a stella octangula number ...

:Clay, p. 1383 :: A Flight 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 perfo ...

, Virginia (attached to

Air Corps Tactical School The Air Corps Tactical School, also known as ACTS and "the Tactical School", was a military professional development school for officers of the United States Army Air Service and United States Army Air Corps, the first such school in the world. C ...

) :: B Flight at

Lawson Field Lawson may refer to: Places Australia * Lawson, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Lawson, New South Wales, a town in the Blue Mountains Canada * Lawson, Saskatchewan * Lawson Island, Nunavut United States * Lawson, Arkansa ...

, Georgia (attached to

Infantry School A School of Infantry provides training in weapons and infantry tactics to infantrymen of a nation's military forces. Schools of infantry include: Australia *Australian Army – School of Infantry, Lone Pine Barracks at Singleton, NSW. France ...

) :: C Flight at

Pope Field Pope Field is a U.S. military facility located 12 miles (19 km) northwest of the central business district of Fayetteville, in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States.. Federal Aviation Administration. effective 15 November 2012 ...

, North Carolina (attached to 13th Field Artillery Brigade) :: D Flight at

Marshall Field Marshall Field (August 18, 1834January 16, 1906) was an American entrepreneur and the founder of Marshall Field and Company, the Chicago-based department stores. His business was renowned for its then-exceptional level of quality and customer ...

, Kansas (attached to

Command and General Staff School The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

) :: E Flight at

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 ...

, Oklahoma (attached to

Field Artillery School The United States Army Field Artillery School (USAFAS) trains Field Artillery Soldiers and Marines in tactics, techniques, and procedures for the employment of fire support systems in support of the maneuver commander. The school further develop ...

)Constituted 1 October 1931, activated 1 November 1931. Clay, p. 1383. * Activated on 1 Jun 1937 : Redesignated 16th Observation Squadron (Medium) on 13 Jan 1942 : Redesignated 16th Observation Squadron on 4 Jul 1942 : Redesignated 16th Reconnaissance Squadron (Bomber) on 31 May 1943 : Redesignated 16th Reconnaissance Squadron, Heavy (Special) on 12 May 1944 : Disbanded on 12 Apr 1945Lineage through May 1963 in Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', pp. 90-92, except as noted. * Reconstituted on 19 September 1985 and consolidated with 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron as 16th Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron * Constituted as 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron (Special) 1947 : Activated on 16 December 1947 : Inactivated on 1 June 1949 * Consolidated on 19 September 1985 with 16th Reconnaissance Squadron as 16th Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 16th Electronic Warfare Squadron * Formed on 19 September 1985 by consolidation of 16th Reconnaissance Squadron and 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron * Redesignated 16th Test Squadron : Activated on 15 April 1993. : Redesignated 16th Electronic Warfare Squadron 13 September 1999

Assignments

* Unknown, 9 May 1917 – Jan 1918 * Second Aviation Instruction Center, Jan 1918 – Feb 1919; Feb-22 May 1919 * Seventh Corps Area (attached to Cavalry School), 7 December 1921 * 7th Division, 24 March 1923 (remained attached to Cavalry School) * 2nd Cavalry Division, 15 August 1927 (remained attached to Cavalry School) *

12th Observation Group The 12th Reconnaissance Group is a disbanded United States Army unit. It was last active as the 12th Observation Group, United States Army Air Corps, assigned to the Eighth Corps Area at Brooks Field, Texas. It was inactivated on 30 June 1937. T ...

(remained attached to Cavalry School), 1 October 1930 – 15 March 1931 * Fourth Corps Area, 1 June 1937 (B Flight attached, later assigned, to Infantry School until 20 November 1940) * 44th Observation Group, 17 June 1937 * 32d Observation Group, 1 January 1938 * Armored Force, 3 October 1940 (attached to 2nd Armored Division after 15 November 1940) *

73d Observation Group The 10th Tactical Reconnaissance Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was to the 10th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, stationed at Spangdahlem Air Base, West Germany. It was inactivated on 8 December 1957. Hist ...

, 1 September 1941 (attached to 68th Observation Group from Feb 1942) * HQ Army Air Forces, 12 March 1942 * 68th Observation Group (later Reconnaissance Group, Tactical Reconnaissance Group), 29 March 1942 (attached to

XII Air Force Service Command XII may refer to: * 12 (number) or XII in Roman numerals * 12th century or XII in Roman numerals * ''XII'' (album), a 2012 album by American country music singer Neal McCoy * ''XII'' (single), a 2019 single album by K-pop singer Chungha, featuri ...

, 25 September 1943;

, 1 Jan 1944; Fifteenth Air Force, 18 Feb 1944; Army Air Forces, Mediterranean Theater of Operations, 27 March 1944; Northwest African Air Forces, 20 September 1943;

Mediterranean Allied Air Forces The Mediterranean Allied Air Forces (MAAF) was the major Allied air force command organization in the Mediterranean theater from mid-December 1943 until the end of the Second World War. Formation The Mediterranean Allied Air Forces (MAAF) be ...

, 10 December 1943; Mediterranean Theater of Operations, 1 January 1944 – 26 May 1944 * Army Air Forces, Mediterranean Theater of Operations, 26 May 1944 * Hq, Army Air Forces, 3 November 1944 – 12 April 1945 (attached to 311th Photographic Wing after 21 November 1944) * 311th Reconnaissance Wing (later 311th Air Division), 16 December 1947 – 1 June 1949 (attached to 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, 10 November 1948 – 1 June 1949) * 68th Electronic Warfare Group, 15 April 1993 * 53d Electronic Warfare Group, 10 November 1998 * 350th Spectrum Warfare Group, 25 June 2021 – present

Stations

* Memphis Airdrome, Tennessee, 9 May 1917 * Chicago Air Park, Illinois, 20 May 1917 *

Chanute Field Chanute may refer to: * Chanute, Kansas, United States ** Chanute High School *Octave Chanute (1832–1910), American civil engineer and aviation pioneer *Chanute Air Force Base Chanute Air Force Base is a decommissioned United States Air Force ...

, Illinois, c. 12 Jul 1917 * Garden City, New York, New York, 4 Nov-4 Dec 1917 * St Maixent, France, a Jan 1918 * Tours, France, 24 Jan 1918 * St Gervais, Gironde, France, c. 12 Feb 1919 * Bordeaux, France, 17–23 Apr 1919 *

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

, New York, c. 7–22 May 1919 *

Fort Riley Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Ge ...

, Kansas, 7 Dec 1921 – 15 Mar 1931 : Detachment operated between:

North Platte Airport North Platte Regional Airport (Lee Bird Field) is a public airport three miles east of North Platte, in Lincoln County, Nebraska. It is owned by the North Platte Airport Authority and sees one airline, subsidized by the Essential Air Service pr ...

, Nebraska, and Rapid City Airfield, South Dakota, 1 Aug–Sep 1927 : Detachment operated between:

Chicago Municipal Airport Chicago Midway International Airport , typically referred to as Midway Airport, Chicago Midway, or simply Midway, is a major commercial airport on the Southwest side of Chicago, Illinois, located approximately 12 miles (19 km) from the Lo ...

, Illinois, and

Superior Airport Richard I. Bong Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) south of the central business district of Superior, a city in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. It is included in the Federal Aviati ...

, Wisconsin, Jun-14 Sep 1928 *

, North Carolina (flight at

, Georgia), 1 Jun 1937 * Lawson Field, Georgia, 24 Oct 1940 *

Daniel Field Daniel Field is a public use airport located one nautical mile (2 km) west of the central business district of Augusta, a city in Richmond County, Georgia, United States. It is owned by the City of Augusta and operated by the General ...

, Georgia, 9 Feb 1942 * Greensboro Airport, North Carolina, 7 Jul 1942 *

Morris Field Charlotte Douglas International Airport (IATA: CLT, ICAO: KCLT, FAA LID: CLT), typically referred to as Charlotte Douglas, Douglas Airport, or simply CLT, is an international airport in Charlotte, North Carolina, located roughly six miles west ...

, North Carolina, 15 Aug 1942 *

, Virginia, 3–23 Oct 1942 : Detachment at

(AAF-377),Station Number in Anderson, p. 26. England, c. 5–21 Oct 1942 * Fedala, French Morocco, 9 Nov 1942 (Ground echelon) * Casablanca-Anfa Airport, French Morocco, 12 Nov 1942 *

Angads Airport Oujda Angads Airport () is an airport serving Oujda, a city in the Oriental region in Morocco. it is located about north of Oujda and about northeast of Casablanca, near the Algerian border. History During World War II, the airport was use ...

, Oujda, French Morocco, 30 Dec 1942 * Berrechid Airfield, French Morocco, 24 Mar 1943 * Berteaux Airfield, Algeria, 6 Sep 1943 * Foch Field, Tunisia, 26 Sep 1943 : Detachments operated intermittently from several points in Italy and adjacent islands during period Oct 1943 – Mar 1944 : Operated primarily from

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, after 28 Mar 1944 * Foggia Airfield, Italy, 3 May-30 Oct 1944 : Detachment operated from Poretta Airfield, Corsica, until Sep 1944 * Bradley Field, Connecticut, 20 Nov 1944 *

Buckley Field Buckley Space Force Base is a United States Space Force base in Aurora, Colorado named after United States Army Air Service First Lieutenant John Harold Buckley. The base is run by Space Base Delta 2, with major units including the U.S. Space Fo ...

, Colorado, 1 Dec 1944 – 12 Apr 1945 *

MacDill Air Force Base 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, 16 December 1947 * McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey, 16 August 1948 – 1 June 1949 * Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, 15 April 1993 – present

Aircraft

* JN-4, 1917 * DH-4, c. 1922–1926, * O–2, 1926-1930 * JNS-1, O-1, and apparently JN-4 and JN-6, 1921–1930 * O-25, 1930–1931 * O-46, 1937-C. 1939, O-47, 1938–1942, and O-49, 1941–1942 * YG-1, and O-43, 1937–1940 * O-51 and O-9, 1940–1941 * DB-7, L-4, P-40, and P-43, 1942 * A-20 and P-39, 1942–1943 * P-38, P-39, P-40, and Spitfire, 1943 * B-17, 1943–1944 * B-25, 1945

References

Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * * {{cite book, editor=Maurer, Maurer, title=Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II, origyear=1969, url= http://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/02/2001329899/-1/-1/0/AFD-101202-002.pdf , edition= reprint, year=1982, publisher=Office of Air Force History, location=Washington, DC, isbn=0-405-12194-6, oclc=72556, lccn=70605402

016 HV-016 is a former military unit of Norway, that was a part of the Home Guard. It was established after 1985 to "stop terror- or sabotage actions that could weaken or paralyze Norway's ability to mobilize its military and its ability to resist". ...