408th Bombardment Squadron

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408th Bombardment Squadron
22d Bombardment Wing Boeing B-47E-55-BW Stratojet 51-2394.jpg
22d Bombardment Wing Boeing B-47E-55-BW Stratojet 51-2394
Active 1917-1919; 1921-1922; 1922-1928; 1936-1946; 1958-1962
Country  United States
Branch  United States Air Force
Role bombardment
Decorations Distinguished Unit Citation Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation
Insignia
408th Bombardment Squadron emblem (approved 9 February 1937)[1] 408th Bombardment Squadron - Emblem.png

The 408th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 22d Bombardment Wing of Strategic Air Command stationed at March AFB, California. It was inactivated on January 1, 1962.

The squadron is one of the oldest in the United States Air Force, its origins dating to 16 June 1917, when it was organized as the 18th Aero Squadron' at Rockwell Field, San Diego, California, as a pilot training squadron during World War I.

The squadron saw combat during World War II

It was part of the Strategic Air Command (SAC) during the Cold War.

History

World War I

The first predecessor of the squadron was established in the summer of 1917 as the Air Service 18th Aero Squadron,[2] providing flying training to aviation cadets during World War I at Rockwell Field in southern California. in July 1918, it was redesignated as Squadron B, Rockwell Field. It was demobilized in late 1918[1] when training organizations at Rockwell were combined into a single flying school detachment.

Interwar period

The second predecessor of the squadron was established at Bolling Field, District of Columbia in 1921 as the 18th Observation Squadron. It flew aerial photographic missions with Army units in northern Virginia and acted as an airborne observation post during maneuvers. It was inactivated nine months later.

The third predecessor of the squadron was organized in 1922 as the Headquarters Detachment, Bolling Field. It was the United States Army Air Service host unit at Bolling responsible for station administration. In 1925 the detachment was redesignated 18th Headquarters Squadron. It was inactivated in 1928[1] with its personnel being transferred to Headquarters, Bolling Field.

The fourth predecessor of the squadron was established in 1935 as the 18th Observation Squadron and activated in 1936 at Mitchel Field on Long Island, New York assigned to the 2d Wing of General Headquarters Air Force and attached to the 9th Bombardment Group. It was equipped with Martin B-10 bombers and flew reconnaissance and coastal patrol flights over Long Island Sound and southern New England. Received B-18 Bolos in 1937 along with a mixture of obsolete attack and light observation aircraft. In the build-up before World War II and received early model Martin B-26 Marauders while retaining its B-18s.

World War II

After the Pearl Harbor Attack, the squadron was transferred to the West Coast, flying antisubmarinepatrols from Muroc Army Air Field, California from December 1941 to the end of January 1942. It was then assigned to the new Fifth Air Force, originally based on the Philippines. It left its B-18s at Muroc and was redesignated as the 408th Bombardment Squadron. By the time the squadron arrived in the Southwest Pacific Theater the situation on the Philippines was desperate, and the squadron was based in Australia. From there it attacked Japanese targets on Papua New Guinea and New Britain. In October 1943 the B-26 Marauders were joined by B-25 Mitchells, and for the rest of the year the group continued to operate in support of Allied troops on New Guinea.

In February 1944 the unit was redesignated as a heavy bombardment squadron, and was assigned very long range Consolidated B-24 Liberators, built by Ford and optimized for long range bombing missions in the Pacific. With its new heavy bombers the group attacked targets on Borneo, Ceram and Halmahera, amongst them the crucial oil fields of the Dutch East Indies. In September 1944 the squadron moved its attention to the Philippines, attacking targets on Leyte. It moved to Leyte on 15 November 1944. From then until August 1945 it flew against targets on Luzon, as well as supporting the campaign on Borneo and even ranging out as far as China. Finally, on 15 August 1945 the unit moved to Okinawa, from where it flew a number of armed reconnaissance missions over southern Japan to make sure the surrender terms were being obeyed. The squadron was demobilized on Okinawa after the war, being inactivated as a paper unit in the Philippines in early 1946.

Cold War

The squadron was activated in 1958 when Strategic Air Command expanded its wings flying Boeing B-47 Stratojets from three to four squadrons. In March 1961, President John F. Kennedy directed that the phaseout of the B-47 be accelerated. and the squadron was inactivated on 1 January 1962 as part of the drawdown of the USAF B-47 force.

Lineage

18th Aero Squadron

  • Organized as the 18th Aero Squadron on 20 August 1917
Redesignated Squadron B, Rockwell Field, on 23 July 23, 1918
Demobilized on 23 November 1918
  • Reconstituted on 17 March 1925 and consolidated with the 18th Observation Squadron and Headquarters Squadron, Bolling Field as the 18th Headquarters Squadron

18th Observation Squadron

  • Authoriized as the 18th Squadron (Observation) on 30 August 1918
Organized on 1 October 1921
Inactivated on 23 July 1922
  • Redesignated 18th Observation Squadron on 25 January 1923 (remained inactive)
Disbanded on 18 February 1925
  • Reconstituted on 17 March 1925 and consolidated with Squadron B, Rockwell Field and Headquarters Squadron, Bolling Field as the 18th Headquarters Squadron

18th Headquarters Squadron

  • Organized as Headquarters Detachment, Bolling Field on 11 July 1922
Redesignated: Headquarters Squadron, Bolling Field, DC, on 6 October 1924
  • Consolidated on 17 March 1925 with Squadron B, Rockwell Field and 18th Observation Squadron and redesignated 18th Headquarters Squadron
Inactivated on 31 March 1928
Disbanded on 1 October 1933
  • Reconstituted and consolidated in 1964 with 408th Bombardment Squadron

408th Bombardment Squadron

  • Constituted as the 18th Observation Squadron (Long Range, Light Bombardment) on 1 March 1935
Redesignated 18th Reconnaissance Squadron and activated on 1 September 1936
Redesignated 18th Reconnaissance Squadron (Medium Range) on 6 December 1939
Redesignated 18th Reconnaissance Squadron (Medium) on 20 November 1940
Redesignated 408th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 22 April 1942
Redesignated 408th Bombardment Squadron, Heavy on 3 February 1944
Inactivated on 29 April 1946
  • Redesignated 408th Bombardment Squadron, Medium on 6 October 1958
Activated on 1 January 1959
Discontinued and inactivated, on 1 January 1962.
  • Consolidated in 1964 with 18th Headquarters Squadron
  • Consolidated 19 September 1985 with the 908th Air Refueling Squadron

Assignments

Attached: February 1, 1940 – April 24, 1942
Assigned: April 24, 1942 – April 29, 1946

Stations

Aircraft

  • Apparently included JN-4, JN-6, and S-4, during period I.917-1918
  • Unknown, 1921–1922
  • In addition to DH-4, M-1,O-2, PW-9, and P-1, evidently included 0-1 during period 1922–1928
  • In addition to B-10, 1936–1937, and B-18, 1937–1941
  • Included A-17, C-8, OA-4, and OA-8, during period 1936–1940
  • B-25 Mitchell, 1941
  • B-26 Marauder, 1941–1943
  • B-24 Liberator, 1943–1944;1944–1945
  • B-47 Stratojet, 1959–1961.

See also

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Another 18th Aero Squadron was activated at Kelly Field, Texas in June 1917. It was re-designated as the 23d Aero Squadron (Repair) in September 1917. Today the squadron's lineage and history is held by the USAF 23d Bomb Squadron
  • Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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