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96th Test Wing
96th Test Wing emblem
Active	1942–45, 1947–49, 1953–93, 1994–present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Role	Weapons testing and base support
Part of	Air Force Materiel Command
Garrison/HQ	Eglin Air Force Base, Florida
Motto(s)	E Sempre L'ora Italian It Is Always The Hour
Engagements	European Theater of Operations
Decorations	Distinguished Unit Citation Air Force Outstanding Unit Award
Commanders
Current commander	Brig. Gen. Jeffrey T. Geraghty
Notable commanders	Archie J. Old, Jr. George Lee Butler Merlyn Hans Dethlefsen

The 96th Test Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Test Center of Air Force Materiel Command at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. The wing was activated at Eglin in 1994 as the 96th Air Base Wing, the headquarters for all support units on Eglin, the largest installation in the Air Force. In 2012, it absorbed the mission and resources of the 46th Test Wing and added the mission of testing and evaluating weapons, navigation and guidance systems and command and control systems.

The U.S. Air Force Historical Research Agency has determined that the wing's first predecessor was the 96th Bombardment Group, activated in 1942. After training in the United States, the group began bombing missions flying Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses. It led the first shuttle mission from Great Britain to Regensburg on 17 August 1943. The group earned two Distinguished Unit Citations for its combat performance. After VE Day, the group returned to the United States and was inactivated. The group was briefly active in the Air Force Reserve from 1947 until 1949.

The 96th Bombardment Wing was activated in 1953 at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma and received Boeing B-47 Stratojet bombers the following year as a component of Strategic Air Command's deterrent force. In 1957 the wing moved to Dyess Air Force Base, Texas where it converted to the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress in 1963 and the Rockwell B-1 Lancer in 1985. The wing also operated air refueling aircraft, and during the early 1960s was assigned a squadron of intercontinental ballistic missiles. In 1984, the World War II group was consolidated with the wing. The wing was inactivated in 1993 and its mission, personnel and equipment were transferred to the 7th Bomb Wing, which moved on paper to Dyess when Carswell Air Force Base became a reserve installation.

Mission

The 96th Test Wing performs developmental test and evaluation for Air Force weapons while also providing support for all other units on Eglin Air Force Base as the installation host wing. Eglin is the Department of Defense's largest Air Force installation. Supported units include nine wings and wing equivalents, 11 operating locations and detachments and 35+ associate units.

One of three Air Force combat-coded control and reporting centers is located at the base.

Units

• 96th Operations Group

The group conducts developmental testing and evaluation of conventional munitions, command and control systems, McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle and Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II avionics, and navigation systems and guidance systems.

• 96th Cyberspace Test Group

The group plans and executes Developmental Test and Evaluation (DT&E) of Command and Control, Communications, Computer, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) and Cyber Systems.

• Air Force SEEK EAGLE Office
• 96th Mission Support Group

The group provides fuels, supply, transportation, ground combat training, security, communication, personnel, education, family services, lodging, food service, recreation and logistics planning and deployment support to approximately 20,000 military and civilian personnel and 43,000 retirees. It also deploys combat ready forces in support of worldwide contingency operations.

• 96th Maintenance Group

The group manages and maintains 41 modified test aircraft.

• 96th Medical Group

The group manages and provides health care for 83,000 eligible beneficiaries. It operates a community-based teaching hospital with graduate level programs in family practice, general dentistry and other medical disciplines.

• 96th Civil Engineer Group

The group provides engineering forces to operate and maintain the physical plant, infrastructure, facilities and systems, housing, and the environment, and maintains 11.6 million square feet of physical plant and 3,256 facilities.

• 96th Range Group

The group operates the Eglin Gulf Test Range, which consists of approximately 120,000 square miles of overwater airspace, covering the eastern third of the Gulf of Mexico from the Florida Panhandle to the Florida Keys. The land range covers 724 square miles and contains 70 specific test and training areas, including an approved depleted uranium test range and the only qualified air-to-ground supersonic range east of the Mississippi River.

History

World War II

The group was first activated in July 1942 at Salt Lake City Army Air Base, Utah as the 96th Bombardment Group, with the 337th, 338th, 339th and 413th Bombardment Squadrons assigned as its original components. After moving to Gowen Field, Idaho the group received its initial cadre. The group trained at various bases in the northwestern United States.

In November 1942 the group moved to Pocatello Army Air Base, Idaho, where it acted as an Operational Training Unit (OTU). OTUs were oversized parent units that provided cadres to form "satellite groups." In early 1943, the 96th relocated to Pyote Army Air Base, Texas, where it resumed its combat training. In April 1943 the group began its overseas movement. The air echelon ferried its bombers via the North Atlantic Ferry Route, while the ground echelon proceeded to the New York Port of Embarkation and sailed on the RMS Queen Elizabeth for Greenock, Scotland.

The group arrived at RAF Grafton Underwood England in May 1943, for duty with Eighth Air Force. The group was assigned to the 45th Combat Bombardment Wing of the 3d Bombardment Division. The group commenced combat operations on 14 May with an attack on Kortrijk (Courtrai), after an aborted mission the previous day. The 96th moved east at the end of May to RAF Andrews Field. The 96th appears to have only carried out one mission while based at Andrews. On 29 May 1943 they took part in a raid on Rennes naval storage depot from which one B-17 failed to return. However, Eighth Air Force was not pleased with the initial performance of the Martin B-26 Marauder units assigned to it and decided to move them from their bases in north Suffolk to stations nearer the continent. As the first step in this move, the 386th Bombardment Group left its base at RAF Snetterton Heath for RAF Boxted. The 96th took the 386th's place at Snetterton Heath the following day, leaving its previous base available for the 322d Bombardment Group.

As the most conveniently reached station from 3d Air Division Headquarters at Elveden Hall, Snetterton Heath units often led to major operations carrying commanding generals. General Curtis LeMay led the Regensburg shuttle mission to North Africa flying out of this base, and the group received a Distinguished Unit Citation for withstanding severe assaults by enemy fighters. The 96th also led the 3d Division on the Schweinfurt mission of 14 October 1943. In addition, the 96th attacked shipyards, harbors, railway yards, aerodromes, oil refineries, aircraft factories, and other industrial targets in Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia.

The 96th received another Distinguished Unit Citation for leading the 45th Wing a great distance through heavy clouds and intense flak to raid important aircraft component factories in Poland on 9 April 1944. Other significant targets attacked by the group included airfields at Bordeaux and Augsburg; marshalling yards at Kiel, Hamm, Brunswick, and Gdynia; aircraft factories at Chemnitz, Hanover, and Diósgyőr; oil refineries at Merseburg and Brüx, and chemical works in Wiesbaden, Ludwigshafen, and Neunkirchen.

In addition to its strategic operations, the 96th was occasionally diverted to support ground forces. These missions included bombing coastal defenses, railway bridges, gun emplacements, and field batteries in the battle area prior to and during D-Day in June 1944. It attacked enemy positions to support the breakthrough at Saint-Lô in July 1944 and aided the campaign in France in August by striking roads and road junctions and by dropping supplies to the Maquis. In the early months of 1945, the group struck lines of communications supplying German armies on the western front.

After V-E Day, the 96th flew food to the Netherlands and transported redeploying personnel to French Morocco, Northern Ireland, France, and Germany. the group was programmed to move to Germany for occupation duty. However, plans were revised in September 1945. In November 1945 its aircraft were flown back to the United States or transferred to other units. Two of its squadrons were inactivated in late November and the others in mid-December. The group headquarters' remaining personnel left Snetterton Heath, sailing on the USS Lake Champlain on 12 December and arriving at Camp Kilmer New Jersey on 20 December 1945, where it was inactivated the following day.

Air Force Reserve

The 96th Bombardment Group was activated as a reserve unit under Air Defense Command (ADC) on 29 May 1947 at Gunter Field, Alabama. It was initially assigned three of its World War II units, the 337th Bombardment Squadron, located at Gunter, and the 338th and 339th Bombardment Squadrons, stationed at Hawkins Field in Mississippi. In July, it added three additional squadrons, the 413th Bombardment Squadron at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi, the 546th Bombardment Squadron at Lovell Field in Tennessee, and the 547th Bombardment Squadron at Smith Reynolds Airport in North Carolina. In October, however, the two squadrons at Jackson were transferred to the 384th Bombardment Group.

At Gunter, the group conducted routine training activities under the supervision of the 476th AAF Base Unit (later the 2586th Air Force Reserve Training Center). President Truman's reduced 1949 defense budget required reductions in the number of units in the Air Force, and the 96th Group and 2586th Center were inactivated in July 1949 and not replaced as flying operations at Gunter ceased.

Strategic Air Command

The 96th Bombardment Wing was activated in November 1953 at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma. Wing headquarters and most of the wing components were not manned until March 1954; those components were controlled by the 96th Air Base Group, whose commander served additional duty as the 96th's wing commander. The wing soon received Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighters and began air refueling operations in March 1954.

The wing began training with Boeing B-47E Stratojet swept-wing medium bombers, capable of flying at high subsonic speeds, in April 1955 in support of SAC's global commitments. It deployed to Andersen Air Force Base Guam from January through April 1957. The wing joined the 341st Bombardment Wing at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas on 8 September 1957.

The 4th Strategic Support Squadron, a strategic airlift squadron flying Douglas C-124 Globemaster IIs, moved to Dyess from Ellsworth Air Force Base in 1957. It was assigned to the wing from September 1959 until it was inactivated in March 1961. The wing added intercontinental ballistic missiles to its nuclear strike force when the 578th Strategic Missile Squadron, with Convair SM-65 Atlas missiles joined the wing in July 1961. The first Atlas missile went on alert in April 1962. The wing's Atlases were phased out in March 1965.

Soon after detection of Soviet missiles in Cuba, on 22 October 1962, SAC's B-47s were dispersed. Dispersing bombers carried nuclear weapons in ferrying configuration. On 24 October SAC went to DEFCON 2, placing all its combat aircraft on alert. Most dispersal bases were civilian airfields with Air Force Reserve or Air National Guard units. The B-47s were configured for execution of the Emergency War Order as soon as possible after dispersal. On 15 November, 1/6 of the dispersed B-47s were recalled to their home bases. On 21 November SAC relaxed its alert posture to DEFCON 3. its dispersed B-47s and their supporting tankers were recalled on 24 November. On 27 November SAC returned to normal alert posture.

By the early 1960s, the B-47 was being phased out of SAC's strategic arsenal. In June 1961, the 341st Bombardment Wing had been inactivated and the 96th became the single Stratojet wing at Dyess. In March 1963, two of the wing's bomber squadrons were inactivated, and by December 1963, its remaining squadron had converted to the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress. The 96th received B-52Cs from the 99th Bomb Wing from Walker Air Force Base in Roswell, New Mexico. In 1970 and again 1972–1973, most wing personnel and all of its aircraft and crews deployed to the Pacific in support of the War in Vietnam. During most of this time, the 96BW also supported Operation Chrome Dome missions over the North Pole in the Cold War.

From 1980, the wing's 917th Air Refueling Squadron's Boeing KC-135A Stratotanker aircraft regularly deployed to Europe, Alaska, and the Pacific to support SAC tanker task force requirements.

The 337th Bombardment Squadron became the first squadron to operate the Rockwell B-1B Lancer, after the arrival of the first aircraft in June 1985. In October 1986, B-1Bs assumed SAC Cold War alert duties for the first time. In addition, the 338th Combat Crew Training Squadron received B-1Bs in June 1992.

917th Squadron tankers provided refueling support to units involved in Operation Just Cause, the December 1989 incursion that replaced Manuel Noriega as ruler of Panama. The following August, they ferried personnel and equipment to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam for further movement to Southwest Asia. In December 1990 all remaining tanker aircraft and crews, except those on alert duty, were sent to Incirlik Air Base, Turkey in support of Operation Desert Storm.

Post Cold War

On 1 September 1991, the wing was redesignated as the 96th Wing and implemented the objective wing concept. It was relieved from assignment to SAC and assigned to Air Combat Command on 1 June 1992. Also on 1 June 1992, the 917th Squadron acquired KC-135Qs in conjunction with the drawdown of tanker operations at Beale Air Force Base, California.

When tanker squadrons were reassigned to Air Mobility Command, the 917th was reassigned to the 43d Operations Group, headquartered at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana on 30 September 1993.

On 1 October 1993 the 96th Wing inactivated, replaced by the 7th Wing, which moved without personnel or equipment due to the 1993 Base Realignment and Closure Commission transfer of Carswell Air Force Base, Texas to the U.S. Navy . The B-1Bs of the 337th Squadron were reassigned to the 7th Wing, and the 337th absorbed the B-1s of the inactivating 338th Crew Training Squadron as part of the new wing.

The 96th Air Base Wing stood up as a non-flying organization on 15 March 1994. It assumed the mission of supporting the Air Armament Center and associate units at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.

Air Force Materiel Command Restructuring

The wing became the 96th Test Wing, assuming the 46th Test Wing mission, as part of the 2012 Air Force Materiel Command Restructuring. It is the test and evaluation unit for Air Force air-delivered weapons, navigation and guidance systems, command and control systems and Air Force Special Operations Command systems.

The wing performs developmental test and evaluation for a wide variety of customers including: Air Force Systems Program Offices, the Air Force Research Laboratory, Materiel Command's logistics and product centers; major commands; other Department of Defense services and U.S. government agencies (Department of Transportation, NASA, etc.); foreign military sales; and private industry.

As of 18 July 2012, the 46th Test Group at Holloman AFB was 'reflagged' as the 96th Test Group. It operated test facilities for high speed sled track testing, navigation and guidance system testing, radar signature measurements, weapon systems flight testing, and Air Force liaison for all AF programs tested at White Sands Missile Range. The group's Operating Location AA at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico was responsible for directed energy and high energy laser testing and Operating Location AC at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and performed landing gear and aircraft survivability tests. The Air Force Test Center began a reorganization in 2015 to move some units within the AFTC from the 96th Test Wing over to the Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC). The largest change was the transfer of the 96th Test Group to the AEDC and its redesignation as the 704th Test Group, effective 1 December 2016.

Lineage

Group

• Constituted as the 96th Bombardment Group (Heavy), on 28 January 1942

Activated on 15 July 1942

• Redesignated 96th Bombardment Group, Heavy on 20 August 1943

Inactivated on 21 December 1945

• Redesignated 96th Bombardment Group, Very Heavy, on 13 May 1947

Activated in the reserve on 29 May 1947

Inactivated on 27 June 1949

• Consolidated with the 96th Bombardment Wing, Heavy on 31 January 1984 as the 96th Bombardment Wing, Heavy

Wing

• Constituted as the 96th Bombardment Wing, Medium on 6 November 1953

Activated on 18 November 1953

Redesignated 96th Strategic Aerospace Wing on 1 April 1962

Redesignated 96th Bombardment Wing, Heavy on 31 March 1972

• Consolidated with the 96th Bombardment Group, Heavy on 31 January 1984

Redesignated 96th Wing on 1 September 1991

Inactivated 1 October 1993

• Redesignated 96th Air Base Wing and activated on 15 March 1994

Redesignated 96th Test Wing on 18 July 2012

Assignments

• Second Air Force, 15 July 1942 – c. 4 April 1943
• 4th Bombardment Wing (later 4th Combat Bombardment Wing), c. 14 April 1943 (attached to 401st Provisional Combat Wing 6 – 19 June 1943, then 403d Provisional Combat Wing)
• 45 Combat Bombardment Wing, 14 September 1943
• 3d Air Division, 18 June 1945
• 1st Air Division, 12 August 1945
• 3d Air Division, 28 September – 12 December 1945
• New York Port of Embarkation, 20 – 21 December 1945
• 19th Bombardment Wing (later 19th Air Division), 29 May 1947 – 27 June 1949
• Eighth Air Force, 18 November 1953
• Fifteenth Air Force, 1 April 1955 (attached to 3d Air Division, 10 January – 7 April 1957)
• 819th Air Division (later 819th Strategic Aerospace Division) 3 September 1957
• 19th Air Division, 2 July 1966
• 12th Air Division, 1 July 1973
• Fifteenth Air Force, 15 July 1988
• Eighth Air Force, 1 September 1991 – 1 October 1993
• Air Force Development Test Center (later Air Armament Center), 15 March 1994
• Air Force Test Center, 1 October 2012 – present

Components

Groups

• 46th Operations Group: Attached 18 July 2012 – 1 October 2012
• 46th Test Group: Attached 18 July 2012 – 1 October 2012
• 46th Range Group: Attached 18 July 2012 – 1 October 2012
• 96th Operations Group: 1 September 1991 – 1 October 1993, 1 October 2012 – present
• 96th Logistics Group (later 96th Maintenance Group): 1 September 1991 – 1 October 1993. c. 15 March 1994 – present
• 96th Test Group: 1 October 2012 – present
• 96th Air Base Group (later 96th Combat Support Group, 96th Support Group, 96th Mission Support Group): 18 November 1953 – 12 December 1957, 25 June 1961 – 1 October 1993, 15 March 1994 – present
• 96th Civil Engineer Group: 15 March 1994 – present
• 96th Range Group: 1 October 2012 – present

Squadrons

• 4th Strategic Support Squadron: 1 September 1959 – 15 March 1961
• 11th Air Refueling Squadron: attached 16 December 1957 – March 1958
• 96th Air Refueling Squadron: 18 November 1953 – 3 December 1957 (detached 5 October – 20 November 1954, 1 August – 14 September 1955, 18–31 January 1956, 25 June – 9 October 1956, and 10 January – 7 April 1957)
• 321st Air Refueling: attached 3 July – 8 November 1954
• 337th Bombardment Squadron: 15 July 1942 – 29 November 1945; 29 May 1947 – 27 June 1949; 18 November 1953 – 15 March 1963; 15 September 1963 – 1 September 1991
• 338th Bombardment Squadron (later 338th Strategic Bombardment Training Squadron, 338th Combat Crew Training Squadron): 15 July 1942 – 15 December 1945; 29 May – 8 October 1947; 18 November 1953 – 15 March 1963; 1 July 1986 – 1 September 1991
• 339th Bombardment Squadron: 15 July 1942 – 29 November 1945; 29 May – 8 October 1947; 18 November 1953 – 15 March 1963
• 380th Air Refueling Squadron: attached 8 November 1954 – 1 April 1955
• 413th Bombardment Squadron: 15 July 1942 – 19 December 1945; 17 July 1947 – 27 June 1949; 1 November 1958 – 1 January 1962
• 546th Bombardment Squadron: 16 July 1947 – 27 June 1949
• 547th Bombardment Squadron: 16 July 1947 – 27 June 1949
• 578th Strategic Missile Squadron: 1 July 1961 – 25 March 1965
• 917th Air Refueling Squadron: attached 1 – 14 January 1965, assigned 15 January 1965 – 1 September 1991
• 4018th Combat Crew Training Squadron: 15 March 1985 – 1 July 1986

Stations

Major weapons systems

• Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress (1943–1945)
• Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter (1954–1958)
• Boeing B-47 Stratojet (1955–1963)
• Douglas C-124 Globemaster II (1959–1961)
• Convair SM-65 Atlas (1962–1965)
• Boeing B-52 Stratofortress (1963–1985)
• Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker (1965–1993)
• Rockwell B-1 Lancer (1985–1993)
• Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II (2012–present)
• Northrop AT-38 Talon (2012–present)
• Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules (2012–present)
• Boeing F-15 Eagle (2012–present)
• Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon (2012–present)
• Bell UH-1 Huey (2012–present)

See also

• List of B-47 units of the United States Air Force
• List of B-52 Units of the United States Air Force

References

Notes

1. The emblem was approved 18 February 1943.
2. Aircraft is Lockheed/Vega B-17F-50-VE Flying Fortress serial 42-6153. This aircraft survived the war and was sent to the Reconstruction Finance Corporation at Kingman Army Air Field on 30 October 1945.
3. Aircraft in the foreground is Lockheed/Vega B-17G-20-VE Flying Fortress serial 42-97627.
4. Aircraft is Boeing B-17G-70-BO Flying Fortress serial 43-37683.
5. The 413th Squadron was constituted as the 23d Reconnaissance Squadron, but was redesignated before it was made active. Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 505.
6. Christened the "Star of Abilene", serial 83-65. Pictured on the flightline at Dyess AFB after flying its last mission in 2003.

Citations

1. ^ Robertson, Patsy (16 October 2010). "Factsheet, 96 Air Base Wing (AFMC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Archived from the original on 27 September 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
2. Azzano, Christopher, Colonel, USAF, "New commander happy to be back", The Eglin Dispatch, Northwest Florida Daily News, Fort Walton Beach, Florida, Friday 19 June 2015, Volume 9, Number 25, page 9.
3. ^ "Fact Sheet 96th Test Wing". 96th Test Wing Public Affairs. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
4. "96th Cyberspace Test Group".
5. 96th Medical Group Health.mil
6. ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 416–417
7. ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 417–418
8. ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 419–420
9. ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 505
10. ^ Maurer, Combat Units pp. 165–166
11. Craven & Cate, Introduction, p. xxxvi
12. ^ Freeman, p. 246
13. Freeman, p. 47
14. Freeman, p. 50
15. Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 202–203
16. Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 649–650
17. Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 650–651
18. Knaack, p. 25
19. See Mueller, p. 218 (dates 476th Base Unit/2586th Center stationed at Gunter).
20. Mixer
21. Mueller, pp. 121, 155
22. Kipp, et al., pp. 34–35
23. Kipp, et al., pp. 31–32
24. Kipp, et al., p. 35
25. Kipp, et al., p. 53
26. Kipp, et al., p. 61
27. Kane, Robert B. (6 April 2012). "Factsheet 341 Missile Wing (AFGSC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
28. Haulman, Daniel L. (4 December 2007). "Factsheet 43 Operations Group (AMC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
29. Robertson, Patsy (5 November 2007). "Factsheet 7 Bomb Wing (ACC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
30. "AFMC Prepares for 5-Center Transition". Air Force Materiel Command Public Affairs. 19 June 2012. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
31. "Test Customer Guide" (PDF). www.eglin.af.mil. 96 TW/XPO. 2017. p. 3.
32. "Factsheets : Eglin Air Force Base History". Archived from the original on 27 December 2010. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
33. "Fact Sheet 96th Test Group". 49th Fighter Wing Public Affairs. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
34. "704th/96th Test Group History". Retrieved 4 April 2023.
35. ^ "96 Test Wing" (PDF). 96th Test Wing Public Affairs. October 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
36. ^ Station number in Anderson.

Bibliography

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

• Anderson, Capt. Barry (1985). Army Air Forces Stations: A Guide to the Stations Where U.S. Army Air Forces Personnel Served in the United Kingdom During World War II (PDF). Maxwell AFB, AL: Research Division, USAF Historical Research Center. Archived from the original Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
• 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 48003657. OCLC 704158.
• Freeman, Roger A. (1970). The Mighty Eighth: Units, Men and Machines (A History of the US 8th Army Air Force). London, England, UK: Macdonald and Company. ISBN 978-0-87938-638-2.
• Kipp, Robert; Peake, Lynn; Wolk, Herman. "Strategic Air Command Operations in the Cuban Crisis of 1962, SAC Historical Study No. 90 (Top Secret NOFORN, FRD, redacted and declassified)". Strategic Air Command. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
• 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.
• Mixer, Ronald E. (1999). The genealogy of the Strategic Air Command. Apopka, FL: Battermix Publishing Co. ASIN B0006RK1OW.
• Mixer, Ronald E. (2006). Strategic Air Command, an organizational history. Apopka, FL: Battermix Publishing Co.
• 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.

Further reading

• Freeman, Roger A. (1978) Airfields of the Eighth: Then and Now. After the Battle ISBN 0-900913-09-6
• Freeman, Roger A. (1991) The Mighty Eighth: The Colour Record. Cassell & Co. ISBN 0-304-35708-1
• Rogers, Brian. (2005). United States Air Force Unit Designations Since 1978. Hinkley, UK: Midland Publications. ISBN 1-85780-197-0..

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v t e Strategic Air Command (SAC) Bases active (MAJCOM) CONUS Altus (AETC) Andersen (PACAF) Andrews (AMC) Barksdale (ACC) Beale (ACC) Bolling (AFDW) Cannon (AFSOC) Cape Cod (USSF) Columbus (AETC) Davis-Monthan (ACC) Dyess (ACC) Eielson (PACAF) Ellsworth (ACC) Eglin (AFMC) F. E. Warren (AFGSC) Fairchild (AMC) Forbes (ANG) Grand Forks (AMC) Grissom (AFRC) Homestead (AFRC) Lincoln (ANG) Little Rock (AETC) MacDill (AMC) Malmstrom (AFGSC) March (AFRC) McChord (AMC) McConnell (AMC) McGuire (AMC) Minot (ACC) Mountain Home (ACC) Nellis (ACC) Offutt (ACC) Patrick (USSF) Pease (ANG) Rickenbacker (ANG) Robins (AFMC) Seymour Johnson (ACC) Sheppard (AETC) Selfridge (ANG) Travis (AMC) Vandenberg (USSF) Westover (AFRC) Whiteman (ACC) Wright-Patterson (AFMC) overseas RAF Alconbury (USAFE) Diego Garcia (USN) Kadena (PACAF) RAF Fairford (USAFE) RAF Lakenheath (USAFE) RAF Mildenhall (USAFE) Thule (USSF) former / inactive CONUS Amarillo Bergstrom Biggs Calumet Air Force Station Carswell Castle Chennault Clinton-Sherman Dow Eaker Glasgow Grand Island (AAF) Griffiss Hunter K. I. Sawyer Kearney Kincheloe Larson Loring Lowry Mather McCoy Plattsburgh Presque Isle Ramey R.I. Bong (unbuilt) Schilling Stead Turner Walker Wurtsmith overseas Strategic Air Command in the United Kingdom RAF Bassingbourn Ben Guerir Boulhaut RAF Brize Norton RAF Bruntingthorpe RAF Burtonwood RAF Chelveston RAF Greenham Common Goose Ernest Harmon RAF High Wycombe RAF Upper Heyford Torrejón RAF Manston Morón Nouasseur Rabat-Salé RAF Scampton RAF Sculthorpe Sidi Slimane RAF South Ruislip U-Tapao RAF Waddington RAF Woodbridge RAF Wyton Zaragoza Units Air Forces Second Air Force Eighth Air Force Fifteenth Air Force Sixteenth Air Force Twentieth Air Force Divisions Air 3d 4th 5th 6th 7th 12th 14th 17th 19th 21st 36th 40th 42d 45th 47th 57th 100th 311th 801st 802d 806th 817th 822d 823d 4310th Strategic aerospace 1st 18th 22d 810th 813th 816th 818th 819th 820th 821st 825th Strategic missile 13th Wings Bombardment 2d 5th 7th 9th 17th 19th 22d 28th 39th 40th 42d 43d 68th 70th 72d 92d 93d 96th 97th 99th 303d 319th 320th 340th 379th 380th 397th 410th 416th 449th 450th 454th 456th 461st 465th 484th 494th 509th Fighter 1st 4th 12th 27th 31st 33d 56th 71st Strategic Reconnaissance (Fighter) 82d 407th 506th 508th Missile 44th 90th 91st 308th 321st 341st 351st 381st 389th 390th 392d 451st 455th 702d 703d 704th 705th 706th 4320th Strategic Wing (Missile) Reconnaissance 6th Strategic Reconnaissance 26th Strategic Reconnaissance 55th Strategic Reconnaissance 544th Aerospace Reconnaissance Technical Refueling 11th 100th 301st 305th 384th 452d 497th 499th 500th Strategic Aerospace 310th 385th 462d AFCON 95th 98th 306th 307th 376th MAJCOM 3918th 3920th 3960th 3970th 3973d 4026th 4038th 4039th 4042d 4043d 4047th 4080th 4081st 4082d 4083d 4123d 4126th 4128th 4130th 4133d 4134th 4135th 4136th 4137th 4138th 4141st 4157th 4158th 4170th 4228th 4238th 4239th 4241st 4245th 4252nd 4258th 4321st USAAF Groups *= initial assigned unit upon SAC's activation Bombardment 2d (7/47) 7th (10/46) 28th (8/46) 40th (3/46*) 43rd (10/46) 44th (3/46*) 92nd (10/46) 93d (3/46*) 97th (8/46) 98th (7/47) 301st (8/46) 307th (8/46) 444th (3/46*) 448th (3/46*) 449th (3/46*) 467th (3/46*) 485th (3/46*) 498th (3/46*) 509th Composite (3/46*) Fighter 27th (6/47) 55th (2/47) Reconnaissance 91st Strategic Reconnaissance (1/47) Major weapon systems Bombers Rockwell B-1 Lancer Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit Boeing B-29 Superfortress Convair B-36 Peacemaker North American B-45 Tornado Boeing B-47 Stratojet Boeing B-50 Superfortress Boeing B-52 Stratofortress Convair B-58 Hustler General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark Command & Control Lockheed DC-130 Boeing E-4 Boeing EC-135 Boeing RC-135 Fighters North American F-2 Mustang North American F-82 Twin Mustang Republic F-84F Thunderstreak North American F-86 Sabre Convair F-102 Delta Dagger General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark Missiles ADM-20 AGM-28 AGM-69 AGM-84 AGM-86 AGM-129 HGM-16 LGM-30A/B LGM-30F LGM-30G LGM-118A SM-62 PGM-17A PGM-19A Reconnaissance Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird Lockheed TR-1 Lockheed U-2 Martin RB-57D Canberra Boeing RB-17 Boeing RB-29 Tankers Boeing KB-29 Superfortress Boeing KB-50 McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter Lockheed HC-130 Lockheed Martin KC-130 Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker Transport Beechcraft C-45 Douglas C-47 Skytrain Douglas C-54 Skymaster Fairchild C-82 Packet Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter Douglas C-118 Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar Douglas C-124 Globemaster II Convair C-131 Samaritan Boeing C-135 Stratolifter Commanders George Kenney Curtis LeMay Power Ryan Joseph J. Nazzaro Bruce K. Holloway John C. Meyer Russell E. Dougherty Richard H. Ellis Bennie L. Davis Larry D. Welch John T. Chain, Jr, George Lee Butler Emblems Strategic Air Command Emblem Gallery United States military aircraft designation systems v t e USAAF Eighth Air Force in World War II Stations United Kingdom Alconbury Aldermaston Andrews Field Atcham Attlebridge Bassingbourn Bodney Bottisham Bovingdon Boxted Bungay Burtonwood Depot Bury St. Edmunds Bushey Hall Chalgrove Cheddington Chelveston Chipping Ongar Daws Hill Debach Debden Deenethorpe Deopham Green Duxford Earls Colne East Wretham Eye Fersfield Fowlmere Framlingham Glatton Goxhill Grafton Underwood Great Ashfield Great Dunmow Halesworth Hardwick Harrington Hethel Honington Horham Horsham St. Faith Ibsley Keevil Kimbolton Kings Cliffe Kirton In Lindsey Knettishall Lavenham Leiston Little Walden Martlesham Heath Membury Mendlesham Metfield Molesworth Mount Farm North Pickenham Nuthampstead Old Buckenham Podington Polebrook Rackheath Ramsbury Rattlesden Raydon Ridgewell Seething Shipdham Snetterton Heath Steeple Morden Sudbury Thorpe Abbots Thurleigh Tibenham Wattisham Watton Wendling Westhampnett Wormingford Okinawa Bolo Ie Shima Kadena Futenma Yontan Units Commands VIII Air Support VIII Bomber VIII Air Divisions 1st 2nd 3rdf Wings Bombardment 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 12th 316th Fighter 6th 65th 66th 67th 301st Groups Bombardment 34th 44th 91st 92nd 93rd 94th 95th 96th 97th 100th 301st 303rd 305th 306th 310th 319th 320th 322nd 323rd 333rd 346th 351st 379th 381st 382nd 383rd 384th 385th 386th 387th 388th 389th 390th 392nd 398th 401st 445th 446th 447th 448th 452nd 453rd 457th 458th 466th 467th 482nd 486th 487th 489th 490th 491st 492nd 493rd 801st (Provisional) Fighter 1st 4th 14th 20th 31st 48th 55th 56th 78th 318th 339th 350th 352nd 353rd 354th 355th 356th 357th 358th 361st 362nd 364th 413th 479th 495th 496th 507th Troop Carrier 60th 62nd 315th Reconnaissance 3rd 7th 25th 67th United States Army Air Forces First Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth Seventh Eighth Ninth Tenth Eleventh Twelfth Thirteenth Fourteenth Fifteenth Twentieth v t e USAAF Second Air Force in World War II Airfields Airfields Units Commands II Air Support Command II Bomber Command II Fighter Command IV Air Support Command XX Bomber Command XXI Bomber Command XXII Bomber Command Wings 5th Bombardment 15th Bombardment Training 16th Bombardment Operational Training 17th Bombardment Training 18th Replacement 21st Bombardment 46th Bombardment Operational Training 58th Bombardment 73rd Bombardment 315th Bombardment 316th Bombardment Groups Bombardment 2nd Bombardment 6th Bombardment 7th Bombardment 9th Bombardment 12th Bombardment 16th Bombardment 17th Bombardment 19th Bombardment 25th Bombardment 29th Bombardment 34th Bombardment 39th Bombardment 40th Bombardment 42nd Bombardment 46th Bombardment 47th Bombardment 48th Bombardment 85th Bombardment 86th Bombardment 86th Bombardment 88th Bombardment 94th Bombardment 95th Bombardment 96th Bombardment 99th Bombardment 100th Bombardment 301st Bombardment 302nd Bombardment 303rd Bombardment 304th Bombardment 305th Bombardment 306th Bombardment 307th Bombardment 308th Bombardment 312th Bombardment 330th Bombardment 331st Bombardment 333rd Bombardment 346th Bombardment 351st Bombardment 376th Bombardment 379th Bombardment 381st Bombardment 382nd Bombardment 383rd Bombardment 384th Bombardment 385th Bombardment 388th Bombardment 390th Bombardment 393rd Bombardment 395th Bombardment 396th Bombardment 398th Bombardment 399th Bombardment 400th Bombardment 401st Bombardment 407th Bombardment 415th Bombardment 418th Bombardment 444th Bombardment 445th Bombardment 446th Bombardment 447th Bombardment 448th Bombardment 449th Bombardment 450th Bombardment 451st Bombardment 452nd Bombardment 453rd Bombardment 454th Bombardment 455th Bombardment 456th Bombardment 457th Bombardment 458th Bombardment 459th Bombardment 460th Bombardment 461st Bombardment 462nd Bombardment 464th Bombardment 467th Bombardment 468th Bombardment 469th Bombardment 470th Bombardment 471st Bombardment 472nd Bombardment 484th Bombardment 485th Bombardment 486th Bombardment 487th Bombardment 488th Bombardment 489th Bombardment 490th Bombardment 491st Bombardment 493rd Bombardment 494th Bombardment 497th Bombardment 498th Bombardment 499th Bombardment 500th Bombardment 501st Bombardment 502nd Bombardment 504th Bombardment 505th Bombardment 509th Composite Fighter 20th Fighter 54th Fighter 84th Fighter 85th Fighter 507th Fighter 508th Fighter Reconnaissance 2nd Reconnaissance 3rd Reconnaissance 4th Reconnaissance 5th Reconnaissance 6th Reconnaissance 7th Reconnaissance 8th Reconnaissance 71st Reconnaissance 77th Reconnaissance Troop Carrier 443nd Troop Carrier United States Army Air Forces First Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth Seventh Eighth Ninth Tenth Eleventh Twelfth Thirteenth Fourteenth Fifteenth Twentieth

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