This air force lost most of its men and equipment in the defense of the Philippines after 7 Dec 1941. It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. 384th Bomb Group, Eighth Air Force 139. The 8th Air Force was targeted in this operation. $(".fancy-photo-detail-link").addClass("photo-detail-gradient");
385 th Bomb Group, 8 th Air Force.
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1st Air Division: 1943-1945. Support to the latter command included the operation of Task Force 204 (bombers). Units assigned to Eighth Air Force in the Pacific were: The atomic bombings of Japan led to the Japanese surrender before Eighth Air Force saw action in the Pacific theater. CAMPAIGNS. Get detailed instructios o how to register for the Reunion. 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. Description Ask questions about records of the U.S. Army, Air Force, . 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. 8th AF 448th BG World War II. . if (isMobile())
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.
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Maj. Gen. Andrew J. Gebara, commander of 8th Air Force, relieved two commanders today from their positions of leadership at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, due to a loss of confidence in their ability to complete their assigned duties."These personnel actions were necessary to maintain the very Login; Frequently Asked . Please include this amount with your annual renewal or new membership!
At Andersen AFB, the Eighth took over the direction of all bombing and refueling operations in Southeast Asia. The 398th was part of the 8th Air Force 1st Air Division during WWII and was one of many B-17 Bomb Groups stationed in England. let $this = $('[data-fancybox]').fancybox($.extend(true, {}, $.fancybox.defaults, {
We need help with transcribing data. These Veterans, born in the 1920s and before, were members of the greatest air armada of all time. var winHgt = $(window).innerHeight()
Redesignated Eighth AF on 22 Feb 1944. 'Tooey' Spaatz (right). buttons: ['share'],
Read here to learn more about who the 8th Air Force is. Eighth Air Force carries out its warfighting missions under U.S. Strategic Command and the air component commands of the other regional Unified combatant commands. On 22 February 1944, the Army reorganized its Air Forces in Europe by renaming Eighth Air Force as the United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe (now known as the United States Air Forces in Europe). caption += '
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Dates shown are when the Group was operational. An Eighth Air Force unit, the 2d Bomb Wing, spearheaded the air campaign by dispatching B-52s from Barksdale to launch conventional air-launched cruise missiles against Iraqi targets.
Men born between about 1877 and . Eighth Air Force Bomber Command became the Eighth Air Force in February 1944, it oversaw bombardment of strategic targets in Europe until 1945. });
However, the Luftwaffe was successful in shooting down 46 bombers in a very unequal fight.[10]. 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. During the Cold War (1945-1991), 8 AF was one of three Numbered Air Forces of the United States Air Force's Strategic Air Command (SAC), with a three-star general headquartered at Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts commanding USAF strategic bombers and missiles on a global scale. }
These Veterans, born in the 1920s and before, were members of the greatest air armada of all time. Many bodies were exhumed and returned to the U.S. at the request of families and many families opted to allow their loved ones to remain in U.S. Military and other cemetaries in the United Kingdom and the Continent. Regular combat operations by the VIII Bomber Command began on 17 August 1942, when the 97th Bombardment Group flew twelve Boeing B-17E Flying Fortresses on the first VIII Bomber Command heavy bomber mission of the war from RAF Grafton Underwood, attacking the Rouen-Sotteville marshalling yards in France. Some 230 B-24s hit the Messerschmitt Bf 110 assembly plant at Gotha with a loss of 24 aircraft. Thirty-one of these aces had 15 or more aircraft kills apiece. $(this).find('figcaption').html() +
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SAC fighter wings assigned to Eighth Air Force were: Fighter escorts were no longer needed once SAC was equipped with Boeing B-47 Stratojet and then Boeing B-52 Stratofortress jet bombers carrying nuclear bombs. Join Our Newsletter.
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Click here to view more information on the tours, American Ex-Prisoners of War Service Foundation. Constituted as VIII Bomber Command on 19 Jan 1942. 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.
With each step through 2002, the Eighth continues to add more feats to its growing legacy. Divisions, Wings & Groups Activated in the US on I Feb 1942. Fifteen months after Operation DESERT STORM, the Air Force reorganized.
Compiled by Bill Varnedoe. U.S. Military Personnel that Served in WWII. //initial desktop view
After the war in Europe, the Mighty Eighth moved to Okinawa in July 1945, where the unit started to train new bomber groups for combat against Japan. Their children and descendants, who are representatives of these Veterans, saw the need to keep the history and experiences of these warriors alive. $(".fancybox-caption__body").prepend(prependClosing());
Under ACC, Eighth Air Force provides command and control, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C2ISR); long-range attack; and information operations forces to Air Force components and warfighting commands.
REGISTRATIONRegister for the 2023 Reunion, REUNION SCHEDULEClick here to view the schedule, TOUR INFORMATIONClick here to view more information on the tours. 4th Bombardment Wing: 1942-1943. if (detailSize === "half") {
World War II U.S. Military Records Search. The Eighth Air Force was specifically charged with the atomic mission; however, only the 509th Composite Group at Roswell AAF had B-29s that had the capability to drop nuclear weapons the 7th Bomb Group at Fort Worth AAF was modifying their aircraft to carry the atomic bomb. This ongoing project documents a basic service history of participating individuals. 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]. As part of this realignment, most SAC bomber forces west of the Mississippi River were reassigned to 15th AF.
Redesignated Ninth AF in Apr 1942. Then in January 1994, ACC reorganized Eighth Air Force as a general purpose Numbered Air Force (NAF) with a warfighting mission to support the U.S. Joint Forces and U.S. Strategic Commands. The next day, over 900 bombers and 700 fighters of Eighth Air Force hit more aircraft factories in the Braunschweig area. The photograph shows housing destroyed by the RAF during night raids. In all, twelve aircraft factories were attacked, with the B-17s heading to Leipzig (Allgemeine Transportanlagen-Gesellschaft[de] Junkers Ju 88 production and Erla Maschinenwerk[de] Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters), Bernburg-Strenzfeld (Junkers Ju 88 plant) and Oschersleben (AGO plant making Focke Wulf Fw 190A fighters), while the B-24s hitting the Gothaer Waggonfabrik (production of Messerschmitt Bf 110 heavy fighters), the Fw 190 Arado Flugzeugwerke plant at Tutow and Heinkel's "Heinkel-Nord" headquarters at Rostock (production of He 111 bombers). Moved to Egypt and began operations on 12 Nov 1942, participating in the Allied drive across Egypt and Libya, the campaign in Tunisia, and the invasions of Sicily and Italy. "[citation needed].
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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. [9] Doolittle was well known to American airmen as the famous "Tokyo Raider" and former air racer. By war's end, they had been awarded a number of other medals to include 220 Distinguished Service Crosses, and 442,000 Air Medals. 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. $(".fancy-photo-detail-link").html($(".fancy-photo-detail-link").html().replace("CLOSE", "SHOW"));
in World War II. $(".fancybox-caption__body").removeClass("half");
Components: 1st Bombardment Wing: 1942-1943. In order to quickly assemble these formations, specially outfitted assembly ships were created from older bombers. The USAAF now finally had an aircraft that could compete on equal terms with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 and the later models of the Messerschmitt Bf 109. Luftwaffe airfields that were identified as jet and rocket bases, such as Parchim and Bad Zwischenahn, were frequently bombed, and Allied fighters patrolled over the fields to attack jets trying to land. No.
The mission of "The Mighty Eighth" is to safeguard America's interests through strategic deterrence and global combat power. 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. return '
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// Animation complete. 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. 8th Air Force 448th Bomb Group, England WWII - TaraCopp. 8th Air Force 448th Bomb Group, England WWII. 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. For instance, the Eighth suffered about half of the U.S. Army Air Force's casualties (47,483 out of 115,332), including more than 26,000 dead. The first combat group of VIII Bomber Command to arrive in the United Kingdom was the ground echelon of the 97th Bombardment Group, which arrived at RAF Polebrook and RAF Grafton Underwood on 9 June 1942. Several events in the late 1940s reversed the drawdown of United States strategic forces. At first, the Eighth deployed its B-52 bomber and KC-135 tanker units from the U.S. to operating bases in Guam, Okinawa and Thailand. , founded in 1975 by an original 8th Air Force pilot, Lt. Col. John Woolnough, serv as a central organization for its individual State Chapters and Wings. Air Offensive, Europe ; Normandy; Northern France; Rhineland; Ardennes-Alsace ; Central Europe; Asiatic-Pacific Theater.
INSIGNE. The 27th was relieved of its duties supporting U.N. forces in Korea and returned to Bergstrom AFB on 31 July 1951, but was redeployed to Misawa AB, Japan during 6 October 1952 13 February 1953 to provide air defense. Aircraft and ground crew of Boeing B-17F-25-BO Fortress "Hell's Angels" (AAF Ser. Major General James C. Dawkins Jr. assumed command of 8th Air Force on 20 August 2018, after having served as the Deputy Director for Nuclear, Homeland Defense, and Current Operations on the Joint Staff at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.[13] On 12 June 2020, he was succeeded by Major General Mark E. Weatherington, who had previously served as deputy commander of Air Education and Training Command at Joint Base San Antonio in Randolph, Texas.[14]. recalculateImageSize();
In the 1980s, the Eighth participated in several key operations such as running the tanker task force for Operation Urgent Fury in 1983 and directing all air refueling operations for Operation El Dorado Canyon in 1986 and Operation Just Cause in 1989. caption += $(this).find('figcaption').html() +
Join or renew for two years and never miss a thing! The RAF had been making night raids on Berlin since 1940, (with heavy raids in 1943) and nuisance de Havilland Mosquito raids in daylight, but this was the first major daylight bombing raid on the German capital. if (isMobile())
Click here to read to learn more about the history of the 8th Air Force. 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. return isMobile;
During World War II, under the leadership of such generals as Ira Eaker and Jimmy Doolittle, the VIII BC (then Eighth Air Force) formed the greatest air armada in history. The vinyl used is UV and water resistant, and will last many years without . Kegelman's aircraft lost altitude and even bounced off the ground, but he was able to bring the damaged bomber home and received the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) from General Spaatz on 11 July. (browser|link)|vodafone|wap|windows (ce|phone)|xda|xiino/i.test(navigator.userAgent)
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. We welcome members of the 388 FBW (Korea) the 388 TFW (VietNam) and the 388 FW (today). Commanding Officers Connections }
Their goal is to preserve the Legacy created by their relatives who went before them, not because of the vanity of their accomplishments, but rather for the preservation of Democracy and Civilization, for maintaining the values of honesty and patriotism exhibited by their generation. Looking for Roster of American Officers in the 3rd Army at Operation Dragoon during WWII 0. For two years, the wing remained in this status until the 58th Bomb Wing was inactivated on 16 October 1948.
From May 1942 to July 1945, the Eighth planned and precisely executed America's daylight strategic bombing campaign against Nazi-occupied Europe, and in doing so the organization compiled an impressive war record. The command conducted the heavy bombardment operations of Eighth AF from 17 Aug 1942 until early in 1944.
The Japanese, however, surrendered before the Eighth's first combat sortie in the Pacific. 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. As a professional researcher and World War II historian, Bill Beigel provides research services to genealogists, historians, authors, and civilians who are looking for information found in WW2 military unit records. Eighth Air Force was relieved from assignment to Strategic Air Command and assigned to the new Air Combat Command (ACC) on 1 June 1992. During World War II, Eighth Air Force earned a reputation as a great warfighting organization. 3d Air Division: 1943-1945. 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. That buildup limited the Eighth's Korean War involvement to the deployment of its 27th Fighter Escort Wing. }));
This was the first DSC earned by a member of the Eighth Air Force in World War II. Further ground fire caused damage to his right wing, and the engine caught fire. $(".fancybox-caption").addClass("af3-caption-bg");
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). The effect of the Mustangs, fully operating as an air supremacy fighter force, on the Luftwaffe defenders was arguably swift and decisive. Why pay every year? On 22 February 1944, a massive reorganization of American airpower took place in Europe. 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. (photo: American Cemetery,Cambridge, England). $(".fancybox-content").removeAttr("style");
Also, by using a four-bladed propeller, rather than the three-bladed one used on the P-51A, the performance was greatly improved; the XP-51B achieved a level speed of 441mph at 29,800ft (9,100m), over 100mph (160km/h) faster than the Allison-engined P-51A at that altitude. }
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