8th air force wwii roster

' + Roster, J. T. 3rd Photo Reconnaissance Squadron 914 . The Japanese, however, surrendered before the Eighth's first combat sortie in the Pacific. } Although there were many available which were returned from Twentieth Air Force in the Pacific Theater they were war-weary from the many long combat missions flown during the war. 2d Bombardment Wing: 1942-1943. Notably, the Eighth's units played a key role in the 42-day Gulf War in 1991. The 8th Air Force Historical Society was created in 1975 to preserve the legacy of the Mighty Eighth and the part it played in World War II. Although SAC fighter squadrons upgraded to Republic F-84F Thunderstreak 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. U.S. Military Personnel that Served in WWII. 1st Bomb Division Markings 2nd Bomb Division Markings 3rd Bomb Division Markings Sources: At the close of 1946, they shared only a handful of operational bombers, all B-29 Superfortresses. Having almost total air superiority throughout the collapsing German Reich, Eighth Air Force hit targets as far east as Hungary, while Fifteenth Air Force hit oil industry facilities in Yugoslavia, Romania, and northeastern Italy. On 25 February, both Eighth and Fifteenth Air Forces hit numerous targets at Frth airfield, Augsburg and Regensburg, attacking Messerschmitt Bf 110 and Bf 109 plants. 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. Read here to learn more about who the 8th Air Force is. }); } var dstLeft = Math.floor((winWth - newImgWth)) / 2; The intensive bombing of Hanoi and Haiphong during 11days in December 1972, known as LINEBACKER II, was but one highlight of those war years. 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. The Eighth's combat record also shows 566 aces (261 fighter pilots with 31 having 15 or more victories and 305 enlisted gunners), over 440,000 bomber sorties to drop 697,000 tons of bombs, and over 5,100 aircraft losses and 11,200 aerial victories. Nick was a life member of the Commemorative Air Force, a World War II aircraft heritage society, a charter member of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum and a charter member of . In the year 2000, the Air Force decided to integrate information operations into Eighth Air Force. showFBShare(); The 91st Bomb Group Memorial Association's (BGMA) purpose is to keep alive the spirit of the 91st BG (H) and to maintain the fellowship of all those who fought together in WWII . $(".af3-caption-body").stop(true, false).animate({ height: "0vh" }, 800, function () { On 16 April, this record was broken when over 700 German aircraft were destroyed on the ground. in World War II. At all heights, the rate of climb was approximately doubled. Fifteenth Air Force relocated to March Air Force Base, California. During World War II, under the leadership of such Generals as Eaker and Jimmy Doolittle, the 8th AF became the greatest air armada in history. 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. Many more awards were made to Eighth Air Force veterans after the war that remain uncounted. 2023 Dues are due in January. }); var origImgHgt = $(".fancybox-image").prop("naturalHeight"); 445BG. Please note that dues have increased to $25.00 per year . displayhgt = "90vh"; At Andersen AFB, the Eighth took over the direction of all bombing and refueling operations in Southeast Asia. The 305th Bombardment Group was a B-17 Flying Fortress group of the Eighth Air Force and took part in the daylight strategic bombing campaign over Europe. let isDesktopInit = false; Eighth Air Force trains, tests, exercises and demonstrates combat-ready forces for rapid employment worldwide. $(".fancybox-button").css("display", "none"); if ($(".af3-caption-body").length > 0 && $(".af3-caption-body").css("height") != undefined) { $(window).on("resize", function (event) { return isMobile; On 22 February 1944, a massive reorganization of American airpower took place in Europe. $(".fancy-photo-detail-link").addClass("photo-detail-gradient"); Fighters from both Eighth and Ninth Air Forces made wide sweeps over the area, mounting strafing missions at airfields and rail networks. 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. Eighth Air Force has five Regular Air Force bomb wings, two Air Reserve Total Force Integration bomb wings (one in Air Force Reserve Command and one in the Air National Guard), and one detachment in the continental United States. The effect of the Mustangs, fully operating as an air supremacy fighter force, on the Luftwaffe defenders was arguably swift and decisive. || /1207|6310|6590|3gso|4thp|50[1-6]i|770s|802s|a wa|abac|ac(er|oo|s\-)|ai(ko|rn)|al(av|ca|co)|amoi|an(ex|ny|yw)|aptu|ar(ch|go)|as(te|us)|attw|au(di|\-m|r |s )|avan|be(ck|ll|nq)|bi(lb|rd)|bl(ac|az)|br(e|v)w|bumb|bw\-(n|u)|c55\/|capi|ccwa|cdm\-|cell|chtm|cldc|cmd\-|co(mp|nd)|craw|da(it|ll|ng)|dbte|dc\-s|devi|dica|dmob|do(c|p)o|ds(12|\-d)|el(49|ai)|em(l2|ul)|er(ic|k0)|esl8|ez([4-7]0|os|wa|ze)|fetc|fly(\-|_)|g1 u|g560|gene|gf\-5|g\-mo|go(\.w|od)|gr(ad|un)|haie|hcit|hd\-(m|p|t)|hei\-|hi(pt|ta)|hp( i|ip)|hs\-c|ht(c(\-| |_|a|g|p|s|t)|tp)|hu(aw|tc)|i\-(20|go|ma)|i230|iac( |\-|\/)|ibro|idea|ig01|ikom|im1k|inno|ipaq|iris|ja(t|v)a|jbro|jemu|jigs|kddi|keji|kgt( |\/)|klon|kpt |kwc\-|kyo(c|k)|le(no|xi)|lg( g|\/(k|l|u)|50|54|\-[a-w])|libw|lynx|m1\-w|m3ga|m50\/|ma(te|ui|xo)|mc(01|21|ca)|m\-cr|me(rc|ri)|mi(o8|oa|ts)|mmef|mo(01|02|bi|de|do|t(\-| |o|v)|zz)|mt(50|p1|v )|mwbp|mywa|n10[0-2]|n20[2-3]|n30(0|2)|n50(0|2|5)|n7(0(0|1)|10)|ne((c|m)\-|on|tf|wf|wg|wt)|nok(6|i)|nzph|o2im|op(ti|wv)|oran|owg1|p800|pan(a|d|t)|pdxg|pg(13|\-([1-8]|c))|phil|pire|pl(ay|uc)|pn\-2|po(ck|rt|se)|prox|psio|pt\-g|qa\-a|qc(07|12|21|32|60|\-[2-7]|i\-)|qtek|r380|r600|raks|rim9|ro(ve|zo)|s55\/|sa(ge|ma|mm|ms|ny|va)|sc(01|h\-|oo|p\-)|sdk\/|se(c(\-|0|1)|47|mc|nd|ri)|sgh\-|shar|sie(\-|m)|sk\-0|sl(45|id)|sm(al|ar|b3|it|t5)|so(ft|ny)|sp(01|h\-|v\-|v )|sy(01|mb)|t2(18|50)|t6(00|10|18)|ta(gt|lk)|tcl\-|tdg\-|tel(i|m)|tim\-|t\-mo|to(pl|sh)|ts(70|m\-|m3|m5)|tx\-9|up(\.b|g1|si)|utst|v400|v750|veri|vi(rg|te)|vk(40|5[0-3]|\-v)|vm40|voda|vulc|vx(52|53|60|61|70|80|81|83|85|98)|w3c(\-| )|webc|whit|wi(g |nc|nw)|wmlb|wonu|x700|yas\-|your|zeto|zte\-/i.test(navigator.userAgent.substr(0, 4))) { This air force lost most of its men and equipment in the defense of the Philippines after 7 Dec 1941. 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. Importantly, the Eighth's bombing effectiveness influenced the North Vietnamese to end hostilities. This is from where the present-day Eighth Air Force's history, lineage and honors derive. 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. As part of this plan, Eighth Air Force headquarters was reassigned to Sakugawa (Kadena Airfield), Okinawa, on 16 July 1945, being assigned to the United States Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific without personnel or equipment. Personnel and group records to digital. Dates shown are when the Group was operational. The following day, on 9 March, H2X radar-equipped B-17s mounted a third attack on the Reich capital through clouds. In January 1945, the Luftwaffe attempted one last major air offensive against the Allied Air Forces. In its early days, SAC had fighter wings for the escorting its aircraft equipped with the new F-82E Twin Mustang 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. })); 8th Air Force (ETO) Operational Units. Then in April 1970, SAC moved the Eighth without personnel or equipment to Andersen AFB Guam, absorbing resources of the 3d Air Division. 'Tooey' Spaatz (right). On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The Eighth's brave men earned 17 Medals of Honor, 220 Distinguished Service Crosses, and 442,000 Air Medals. At its peak, the 8th AF had the ability to launch more than 2,000 four-engine bombers and 1,000 fighters on a single mission. 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. Eighth Air Force, with headquarters at Barksdale Air Force Base in the Bossier City Shreveport, 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. On at least eighteen occasions, the Merseburg refineries in Leuna, where the majority of Germany's synthetic fuel for jet aircraft was refined, was hit. Visit our 8th Air Force Honor Project with rosters of servicemen who served in the groups of the 8th. While posturing itself for that mission change, the Eighth also supported Operation ENDURING FREEDOM against terrorists in Afghanistan, and NOBLE EAGLE for the homeland defense of America. } 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). At peak strength, Eighth Air Force had forty heavy bomber groups, fifteen fighter groups, and four specialized support groups. var origImgWth = $(".fancybox-image").prop("naturalWidth"); 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. The B-1 force consists of 62 bombers assigned to the active duty 7th Bomb Wing at Dyess AFB, Texas and the 28th Bomb Wing at Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota. '">DETAILS'; Join Our Newsletter. Men and women continue the fight for liberty and peace serving in the 8th Air Force now headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base near Shreveport, Louisiana. By war's end, they had been awarded a number of other medals to include 220 Distinguished Service Crosses, and 442,000 Air Medals. Initially, Eighth Air Force under SAC consisted of the following: Personnel and equipment from the inactivated 449th Bomb Group were reassigned to the 7th Bomb Group (later 7th Bomb Wing). His directive was simple: "Win the air war and isolate the battlefield. Our Society is one of many organizations across the country that honor and preserve the legacy of the Mighty Eighth. 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. However, the Luftwaffe was successful in shooting down 46 bombers in a very unequal fight.[10]. Major General Jimmy Doolittle relinquished command of the Fifteenth Air Force to Major General Nathan F. Twining and on January 6, 1944, took over command of the Eighth Air Force from Lieutenant General Ira C. Eaker at RAF Daws Hill. return '

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