8th air force wwii roster

The Eighth's brave men earned 17 Medals of Honor, 220 Distinguished Service Crosses, and 442,000 Air Medals. In memory of those who gave their lives in the cause of freedom. debounceTimer = setTimeout(function () { if ($(".af3-caption-body").length > 0 && $(".af3-caption-body").css("height") != undefined) { It became operational on 7 November 1942 (along with the 44th, 91st and 303rd . Rudder, James E. 2nd Ranger Battalion; 109th Infantry Regiment, 28th Infantry Division 53; 243; 384; 476; 557 . The 8th lost 31 bombers, the 15th lost 33. Activated in the US on I Feb 1942. $(".fancybox-content").css("width", newImgWth + "px"); A strategic air force was that with a mission to attack an enemy's war effort beyond his front-line forces, predominantly production and supply facilities, whereas a tactical air force supported ground campaigns, usually with objectives selected through co-operation with the armies. The Eighth Air Force includes the heart of America's heavy bomber force: the Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit stealth bomber, the Rockwell B-1 Lancer supersonic bomber, and the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress heavy bomber aircraft. However, it was believed that a strong strategic air arm equipped with B-29s would deter a possible aggressor from attacking the United States for fear of massive retaliation with nuclear weapons. First Name. Moved to England in Oct 1943 to become the tactical air force for the invasion of the Continent. This strategy fatally disabled the twin-engined Zerstrergeschwader heavy fighter wings and their replacement, single-engined Sturmgruppen of heavily armed Fw 190As, clearing each force of bomber destroyers in their turn from Germany's skies throughout most of 1944. Eighth Air Force is one of two active duty numbered air forces in Air Force Global Strike Command. The integration process started on 1 February 2001, when the Air Force realigned the Air Intelligence Agency (AIA) under ACC and assigned the 67th Information Operations Wing and the 70th Intelligence Wing to the Eighth. Pearl Harbor had just been bombed about a month and a half earlier. if (isMobile()) Altogether, the Eighth's bombers flew 325 sorties to drop over 7 million pounds of ordnance on a nation slightly smaller than the state of Colorado. "[citation needed]. This operation involved German pilots of the unit ramming their worn-out Bf 109Gs, each barely armed with only one MG 131 machine gun and 50 rounds of ammunition, into American bombers in order to get the Allies to suspend bombing raids long enough for the Germans to make a significant amount of Me 262A jet fighters. No. VIII Bomber Command, re-designated as Eighth Air Force, and Ninth Air Force were assigned to (USSTAF). $(".af3-caption-body").animate({ height: displayhgt }, 800); $(".fancybox-caption__body").removeClass("half"); } have served in the 8th Air Force since World War II. 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. Rolls-Royce engineers rapidly realized that equipping the Mustang with a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine with its two speed, two stage supercharger would substantially improve performance. The reorganization transformed the Eighth into the only information operations and bomber NAF in the Air Force. Importantly, the Eighth's bombing effectiveness influenced the North Vietnamese to end hostilities. Over 950 fighters had been sent west from the Eastern Front for "Operation Bodenplatte". A Tradition Since 1942. $(".fancybox-caption").removeClass("desktop-init"); In a prelude to the invasion of France, American air attacks began in February 1944 against railroad junctions, airfields, ports and bridges in northern France and along the English Channel coastline. $(".fancy-photo-detail-link").addClass("photo-detail-gradient"); fbObj.find(".actions .download").attr("href") + We also located the series World War II Statistical Summaries, 1942-1945 in Record Group 18 . It also . Elements of 8 AF engaged in combat operations during the Korean War (19501953); Vietnam War (19611975), as well as Operation Desert Storm (19901991) over Iraq and occupied Kuwait in the First Persian Gulf War. In Europe, Eighth Air Force was the first USAAF strategic air force, with a mission to support an invasion of continental Europe from the British Isles. getDetailsURL($(this).parent()) + displayhgt = "90vh"; Read more about Supporting the AALCM. One notable Eighth Air Force casualty was Brigadier General Arthur W. Vanaman, Chief of Intelligence, who was captured by the Germans in northern France on 27 June 1944, becoming the highest-ranked American POW captured in Europe during the war.[11]. $(this).find('figcaption').html() + In 1965, Eighth Air Force entered combat again, this time in Southeast Asia. closeDetails(); [citation needed] By 1955, SAC no longer needed its fighters and these fighter units were transferred to Tactical Air Command and utilized in a tactical role. The USAAF was finally fully sold on the Mustang, and a letter contract for 2200 P-51Bs was issued. With the end of fighting in Korea, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who had taken office in January 1953, called for a "new look" at national defense. 8th Air Force, 1st Wing, 1st Division The Ragged Irregulars. The operation failed to achieve air superiority, even temporarily, and the German Army continued to be exposed to air attack. Visit our 8th Air Force Honor Project with rosters of servicemen who served in the groups of the 8th. They did not realize that they were over Dutch territory; 850 civilians, including children on their way to school, were among the casualties. Visit our 8th Air Force Honor Project with rosters of servicemen who served in the groups of the 8th. } Eighth Air Force 139. 8th Air Force 448th Bomb Group, England WWII. 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. "translate(" + dstLeft + "px, " + dstTop + "px)"); This was the first B-17 to complete 25 combat missions in the 8th Air Force, on 13 May 1943. $(".fancy-photo-detail-link").removeClass("photo-detail-gradient"); Although some personnel and combat units were assigned before V-J Day, the Eighth did not participate in combat against Japan. 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 . 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. Commanding Officers Connections 385 th Bomb Group, 8 th Air Force. This air force lost most of its men and equipment in the defense of the Philippines after 7 Dec 1941. function recalculateImageSize() { // Fancy box miscalculates because of race conditions with new layout Eighth Air Force's effort was over 1,000 B-17s and B-24s and over 800 fighters and the RAF provided sixteen squadrons of North American P-51 Mustangs and Supermarine Spitfires in addition. }); Originally, the U.S. Army Air Forces activated the Eighth at Savannah, Georgia, on 28 January 1942 with three major subordinate units: the VIII Bomber Command (BC), the VIII Fighter Command (FC), and the VIII Ground Air Services Command (GASC). 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. function prependClosing() { About 23 February, the VIII BC moved to England, first to Daws Hill and later to High Wycombe, where it established its wartime headquarters in the Wycombe Abbey school for girls. As a headquarters, the Eighth had another important role in victory over Iraqi forces--operating the logistics supply and air refueling bridge between the U. S. and gulf region. if (detailSize === "half") { 8th and 15th AF flight, ground crew and crash photos: B-24, B-17, P-51, B-26, P-47, P-38. 8th Air Force commander relieves two commanders at Minot. Photo Details 12th Bombardment Wing: 1942-1944. Archived from the original on 4 December 2003. Eighth Air Force bomb wings, stationed in the Persian Gulf region, also attacked Iraq's Republican Guard forces and numerous key strategic targets, while other units provided air refueling and tactical reconnaissance throughout the conflict. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); National and Regional Reunions held annually across the United States, Tours, Seminars, Symposiums, Banquets, Veteran Question & Answer Sessions and more, Access to Bomb Group, Fighter Group and POW experts and researchers, Our award-winning magazine presented quarterly by mail or electronically. That base assignment lasted until November 1950, when SAC transferred the Eighth to Carswell AFB (formerly Fort Worth Army Air Field), Texas. It was created from a. ROSTER OF AIRMEN. function isMobile() { U.S. Military Personnel that Served in WWII. Based in Parham, England, the 390th Bombardment Group (H) flew 301 combat missions against German military targets. On 7 April, Eighth Air Force dispatched thirty-two B-17 and B-24 groups and fourteen Mustang groups (the sheer numbers of attacking Allied aircraft were so large in 1945 that they were now counted by the group) to targets in the small area of Germany still controlled by the Nazis, hitting the remaining airfields where the Luftwaffe jets were stationed. Eighth Air Force also supports STRATCOM's Joint Force Headquarters Information Operations and serves as the command element for Air Force wide computer network operations. } return ''; United States Air Force. The 131st Bomb Wing is operationally-gained by AFGSC and 8 AF from the Air National Guard, while the 307th Bomb Wing is operationally-gained from Air Force Reserve Command and 10th Air Force.[4][5]. getDetailsURL($(this).parent()) + clearTimeout(debounceTimer); 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. $(".fancybox-content").removeAttr("style"); With each step through 2002, the Eighth continues to add more feats to its growing legacy. Eighth Air Force carried out strategic daytime bombing operations in Western Europe from airfields in eastern England as part of the Combined Bomber Offensive. 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. With the end of combat in Southeast Asia, the Eighth Air Force moved without personnel or equipment to Barksdale Air Force Base Louisiana on 1 January 1975, absorbing the resources of Second Air Force. Those east of the Mississippi were assigned to SAC's other strategic air force, Eighth Air Force, which moved to Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts, where it commanded all SAC bases in the eastern United States. The Eighth's weapons inventory also changed to include KC-135 air refuelers and intercontinental ballistic missiles (the Atlas, Titan I and Titan II, and all Minuteman models.) Join Our Newsletter. On 16 April, this record was broken when over 700 German aircraft were destroyed on the ground. Then in April 1970, SAC moved the Eighth to Andersen AFB, Guam, to take over the direction of all bombing and refueling operations in Southeast Asia. If you don't know of anyone in your family who served during the war, consider asking your family or looking at your family tree for those who would have been the right age to have registered for the draft or who may have served. That record, however, carried a high price. Year. The other American-flown Boston had been shot down over De Kooy[6]. It was a last-ditch effort to keep up the momentum of the German forces during the stagnant stage of the Battle of the Bulge (Unternehmen Wacht am Rhein). On 8 March, another raid of 600 bombers and 200 fighters hit the Berlin area again, destroying the VKF ball-bearing plant at Erkner. Personnel and equipment from the inactivated 40th and 444th Bomb Groups were reassigned to the 43d Bomb Group. At MacDill, Eighth Air Force headquarters were manned chiefly by personnel from the 58th Bombardment Wing, Very Heavy, stationed at Fort Worth Army Air Fied, Texas. 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. Fighters from both Eighth and Ninth Air Forces made wide sweeps over the area, mounting strafing missions at airfields and rail networks. For the Mighty Eighth, that change heralded an interesting future, one that bring further restructuring, different aircraft system purchases, and a new challenging mission to the NAF. Under ACC, the Eighth received control over active duty, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard units in the central U. S. and two overseas locations. 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. var dstLeft = Math.floor((winWth - newImgWth)) / 2; Redesignated Eighth AF on 22 Feb 1944. Eighth Air Force was relieved from assignment to Strategic Air Command and assigned to the new Air Combat Command (ACC) on 1 June 1992. Donations Page. '