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473d Fighter Group
62d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron F-101B Voodoo 57-0386 at K.I. Sawyer AFB
Active	1942–1944; 1956–1959
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Fighter
Role	Air Defense
Part of	Air Defense Command

The 473d Fighter Group is an inactive United States Air Force (USAF) unit. Its last assignment was with the 30th Air Division at K. I. Sawyer Air Force Base, Michigan, where it was inactivated on 30 September 1959.

During World War II, the unit was programmed as a replacement training unit for P-38 Lightning pilots but never became operational. It was disbanded in a general reorganization of the Army Air Forces into base units to make more efficient use of manpower.

The group was reactivated as the 473d Fighter Group (Air Defense) in the spring of 1956 during the Cold War under Air Defense Command. The group opened K.I. Sawyer for use by the USAF, and after 1959 was responsible for air defense in the upper midwestern United States. Its mission, personnel and equipment were transferred to the 56th Fighter Group (Air Defense) in 1959 and the group was inactivated.

History

World War II

The 473d Fighter Group was activated at Grand Central Air Terminal, California in late 1943. It was originally assigned the 482d, 483d and 484th Fighter Squadrons. A month later the 451st Fighter Squadron was activated and assigned to the group. The group was a Replacement Training Unit equipped primarily with Lockheed P-38 Lightnings, but its squadrons flew a variety of aircraft. Replacement training units were oversized units which trained aircrews prior to their deployment to combat theaters.

However, at the time the 473d was being organized, the Army Air Forces found that standard military units, based on relatively inflexible tables of organization, were proving less well adapted to the training mission. Accordingly, it adopted a more functional system in which each base was organized into a separate numbered unit. In the final days of March 1944, the group and three of its squadrons moved to Ephrata Army Air Base, Washington, while the 482d squadron moved to Moses Lake Army Air Field, Washington. The group and squadrons acting as RTUs were then disbanded. The units at Ephrata were combined into the 430th AAF Base Unit (Fighter Replacement Training Unit-Single Engine). The 482d formed the basis for the 431st AAF Base Unit.

Air Defense in the 1950s

The group was reactivated in April 1956 during the Cold War by Air Defense Command to open K. I. Sawyer Air Force Base, Michigan. The 473d was initially assigned to the 4710th Air Defense Wing. The group was the host for all USAF organizations at K.I. Sawyer and was assigned several support organizations to fulfill this responsibility. In July, the 4710th wing was discontinued and the group was assigned directly to the 37th Air Division. The operational squadron assigned to the group was the 484th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, which was authorized Northrop F-89 Scorpion aircraft. However, these aircraft were not delivered before the squadron was inactivated in February 1959 and the squadron did not become operational. In fact, it was 1959 before the K.I. Sawyer runway was completed and ready to accept modern aircraft.

In August 1958, the group became host to a Strategic Air Command wing, the 4042d Strategic Wing. Although the 4042d was initially activated as a headquarters only, it would be the framework for a forward based Boeing B-52 Stratofortress equipped bombardment wing. The following August, the 62d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron moved to K.I. Sawyer, was attached to the wing, and equipped with McDonnell F-101 Voodoos. The squadron had moved from O'Hare International Airport, where there was local resistance to maintaining a regular USAF presence at one of the world's busiest civilian airports. Security for the Voodoo's nuclear armed MB-1 Genie at a civilian location was also a concern. Two months after the arrival of the 62d, its parent group, the 56th Fighter Group and its support units moved on paper from O'Hare to K.I. Sawyer and assumed the mission, personnel and equipment of the 473d, which was inactivated.

Lineage

• Constituted as the 473d Fighter Group on 12 October 1943

Activated on 1 November 1943

Disbanded on 31 March 1944

• Reconstituted and redesignated 473d Fighter Group (Air Defense) on 8 July 1955

Activated on 8 April 1956

Inactivated on 30 September 1959

• Redesignated 473d Tactical Fighter Group on 31 July 1985

Assignments

• IV Fighter Command (attached to Los Angeles Fighter Wing), 1 November 1943 – 31 March 1944
• 4710th Air Defense Wing, 8 April 1956
• 37th Air Division, 8 July 1956
• 30th Air Division, 1 April 1959 – 1 October 1959

Components

Stations

• Grand Central Air Terminal, California, 1 November 1943
• Ephrata Army Air Base, Washington, 28 March 1944 – 31 March 1944
• K. I. Sawyer Air Force Base, Michigan, 8 April 1956 – 1 October 1959

Aircraft

See also

• Aerospace Defense Command Fighter Squadrons

References

Notes

1. ^ Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 345–356
2. ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 580
3. ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 581
4. ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 582
5. ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 557
6. Craven & Cate, Vol. VI, Men & Planes, p. xxxvi
7. Craven & Cate, The Organization and its Responsibilities, Chapter 2 The AAF p. 75
8. Maurer, Combat Units, p. 7
9. "Abstract, History Ephrata Army Air Base Apr–Jul 1944". Air Force History Index. 22 September 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
10. "Abstract, History Moses Lake Army Air Base Sep 1944". Air Force History Index. 22 September 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
11. ^ Cornett & Johnson, p. 80
12. ^ See Mueller, p. 296
13. ^ Cornett & Johnson, p. 140
14. ^ Cornett & Johnson, p. 146
15. ^ "Abstract, History 473 USAF Infirmary Apr–Jun 1956". Air Force History Index. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
16. ^ "Abstract, History 473 USAF Dispensary Jul–Dec 1957". Air Force History Index. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
17. Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 239–240
18. Robertson, Patsy (18 May 2009). "Factsheet 56 Operations Group (AETC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Archived from the original on 27 September 2015. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
19. Department of the Air Force/MPM Letter 648q, 31 July 1985, Subject: Reconstitution, Redesignation, and Consolidation of Selected Air Force Organizations
20. Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 426–427

Bibliography

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

• Cornett, Lloyd H; Johnson, Mildred W (1980). A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization, 1946–1980 (PDF). Peterson AFB, CO: Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 February 2016. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
• Craven, Wesley F; Cate, James L, eds. (1955). The Army Air Forces in World War II. Vol. VI, Men & Planes. Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press. LCCN 48-3657.
• Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1983) . Air Force Combat Units of World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-02-1. LCCN 61060979.
• Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) . Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-405-12194-6. LCCN 70605402. OCLC 72556.
• Mueller, Robert (1989). Air Force Bases, Vol. I, Active Air Force Bases Within the United States of America on 17 September 1982 (PDF). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-53-6.

v t e Aerospace Defense Command (ADC)
Bases	CONUS Amarillo Beale Charleston Davis-Monthan Dobbins Dover Dow Duluth Eglin Edwards Ellington Ellsworth England Ent Ethan Allen Fairfax Fallon Fort Gregg-Adams Fort Heath Geiger George Glasgow Grand Forks Grenier Griffiss Gunter Hamilton Hancock Homestead Hurlburt Hunter Imeson Key West Kincheloe Kingsley Kirtland Lackland Laredo Larson Luke MacDill March Malmstrom McCoy McChord McClellan McGhee Tyson McGuire Minneapolis-St. Paul Minot Mitchel New Castle Niagara Falls Norton O'Hare Otis Oxnard Paine Perrin Peterson Pittsburgh Portland Presque Isle R.I. Bong Richards-Gebaur Robins K.I. Sawyer Selfridge Seymour Johnson Sioux City Stead Stewart Suffolk County Tinker Travis Truax Tyndall Vandenberg Vincent Walker Webb Westover Wright-Patterson Wurtsmith Youngstown Overseas Ernest Harmon Frobisher Bay Goose Keflavik McAndrew Pepperrell Thule
Stations	CONUS Adair Aiken Almaden Alpena Antigo Arlington Heights Baker Bedford Bellefontaine Belleville Benton Blaine Brookfield Brunswick Bucks Harbor Burns Calumet Cambria Cape Charles Cape Cod Carmi Caswell Chandler Charleston Cheyenne Mountain Claysburg Clear Colville Condon Continental Divide Cottonwood Cross City Crystal Springs Curlew Custer Cut Bank Dallas Center Dauphin Island Dickinson Duncanville Eldorado Empire Finland Finley Flintstone Fordland Fort Fisher Fort Lee Fortuna Gettysburg Grand Marais Grand Rapids Guthrie Hanna City Havre Highlands Houma Hutchinson Joelton Keno Killeen Kingman Kirksville Klamath Lake Charles Lake City Las Cruces Las Vegas Lewistown Lockport Lufkin Lyndonville Madera Makah Mica Peak Miles City Mill Valley Minot Montauk Moriarty Mount Hebo Mount Laguna Mount Lemmon Naselle North Bend North Charleston North Truro Oklahoma City Olathe Omaha Opheim Osceola Othello Owingsville Ozona Palermo Point Arena Port Austin Port Isabel Pyote Red Bluff Rochester Rockport Rockville (Indiana) Roslyn Rye Saint Albans San Clemente Island Santa Rosa Island Saratoga Springs Sault Ste Marie Shemya Snelling Snow Mountain Sweetwater Texarkana Tierra Amarilla Thomasville Tonopah Topsham Two Creeks Wadena Walnut Ridge Watertown Waverly West Mesa Willow Run Winnemucca Winslow Winston-Salem Woomera Yaak Zapata Overseas Armstrong Baldy Hughes Beausejour Cape Makkovik Cartwright Cut Throat Island Elliston Ridge Fox Harbour Hofn Hopedale Kamloops La Scie Langanes Latrar Melville Puntzi Mountain Ramore Red Cliff Rockville Saglek St. Anthony Saskatoon Mountain Sioux Lookout Spotted Island Stephenville
Air Defense units	Forces Central Air Defense Eastern Air Defense Iceland Western Air Defense First Fourth Tenth Fourteenth Air Divisions 8th 9th 20th 21st 23d 24th 25th 26th 27th 28th 29th 30th 31st 32d 33d 34th 35th 36th 37th 58th 64th 73d 85th Sectors Albuquerque Bangor Boston Chicago Detroit Duluth Goose Grand Forks Great Falls Kansas City Los Angeles Minot Montgomery New York Oklahoma City Phoenix Portland Reno Sault Sainte Marie San Francisco Seattle Sioux City Spokane Stewart Syracuse Washington Wings Fighter 1st 4th 23d 32d 33d 50th 52d 56th 78th 81st 325th 328th 507th Detection and Control 71st 73d 551st 552d Air Defense 46th 4620th 4621st 4622d 4624th 4625th 4627th 4628th 4683d 4700th 4702d 4703d 4704th 4705th 4706th 4707th 4708th 4709th 4710th 4711th 4750th 4751st 4752d 4756th 4780th Groups Fighter 1st 4th 14th 15th 23d 32d 33d 50th 52d 53d 54th 56th 57th 78th 79th 81st 82d 84th 325th 326th 327th 328th 329th 337th 343d 355th 408th 412th 414th 473d 475th 476th 478th 507th Air Defense 10th 500th 501st 502d 503d 514th 515th 516th 517th 518th 519th 520th 521st 525th 527th 528th 529th 530th 533d 534th 564th 566th 567th 568th 575th 637th 665th 678th 692d 701st 751st 762d 765th 778th 780th 827th 858th 4606th 4620th 4676th 4700th 4721st 4722d 4727th 4728th 4729th 4730th 4731st 4732d 4733d 4734th 4735th 4750th 4756th Aircraft Control & Warning 503d 505th 540th 541st 542d 543d 544th 545th 546th 563d 564th 565th 566th Squadrons Aerospace Defense Command Fighter Squadrons Aircraft Control and Warning Squadrons
Major weapon systems	Electronic TB-29 EB-57 EC-121 Fighters Propeller: F-47 F-51 P-61 F-82 Subsonic Jet: P-80 F-84 F-86 F-89 F-94 Supersonic Jet: F-101 F-102 F-104 F-106 Missiles AIM-4 AIM-26 AIR-2 CIM-10 Ships Guardian Interceptor Interdictor Interpreter Investigator Locator Lookout Outpost Pickett Protector Scanner Searcher Skywatcher Tracer Watchman Vigil Texas Towers Texas Tower 2 Texas Tower 3 Texas Tower 4
Miscellaneous	Air Defense Command Emblem Gallery (on Wikimedia Commons) General Surveillance Radar Stations

v t e USAAF Fourth Air Force in World War II
Units	Commands IV Bomber Command IV Fighter Command IV Air Support Command Wings 21st Bombardment Los Angeles Fighter San Diego Fighter San Francisco Fighter Seattle Fighter Groups Bombardment 12th Bombardment 30th Bombardment 41st Bombardment 42nd Bombardment 47th Bombardment 380th Bombardment 385th Bombardment 389th Bombardment 392nd Bombardment 399th Bombardment 449th Bombardment 450th Bombardment 451st Bombardment 453rd Bombardment 454th Bombardment 455th Bombardment 456th Bombardment 461st Bombardment 463rd Bombardment 465th Bombardment 466th Bombardment 470th Bombardment 483rd Bombardment 486th Bombardment 491st Bombardment 492nd Bombardment Fighter 1st Fighter 14th Fighter 20th Fighter 35th Fighter 51st Fighter 55th Fighter 78th Fighter 81st Fighter 82nd Fighter 328th Fighter 329th Fighter 339th Fighter 354th Fighter 360th Fighter 363rd Fighter 364th Fighter 369th Fighter 367th Fighter 372nd Fighter 412th Fighter 473rd Fighter 474th Fighter 478th Fighter 479th Fighter Reconnaissance 68th Reconnaissance 69th Reconnaissance Troop Carrier 64th Troop Carrier
United States Army Air Forces First Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth Seventh Eighth Ninth Tenth Eleventh Twelfth Thirteenth Fourteenth Fifteenth Twentieth

• Fighter groups of the United States Army Air Forces
• Fighter groups of the United States Air Force
• Military units and formations established in 1943
• Military units and formations disestablished in 1959
• 1943 establishments in California
• 1959 disestablishments in Michigan