| 43d Operations Group | |
|---|---|
Shield of the 43d Operations Group. |
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| Active | 20 November 1940 – present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Col Don Kimminau |
The 43d Operations Group (43 OG) was the operational flying component of the United States Air Force 43d Airlift Wing. It was stationed at Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina, and is assigned to the Air Mobility Command (AMC) Eighteenth Air Force.The unit was Air Mobility Command's only active-duty C-130 Hercules group and is composed of two flying squadrons, an aerial port squadron, the only active Air Force aeromedical evacuation squadron, and an operations support squadron.
The 43 OG was rolled in the 43d Airlift Group, which activated on 1 March 2011.[1]
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The 43 OG was part of the air force component of United States Transportation Command. It provides airlift, special missions, and tactical aeromedical evacuation for U.S. troops and regional Unified Commands using C-130 Hercules aircraft. It is composed of the following squadrons:
The unit's World War II predecessor unit, the 43d Bombardment Group, operated primarily in the Southwest Pacific Theater as a B-17 Flying Fortress, and later a B-24 Liberator heavy bomber unit assigned to Fifth Air Force. It was awarded two United States Distinguished Unit Citations and the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation for its combat service in China; Netherlands East Indies; New Guinea; the Bismark Archipelago; the Western Pacific; Leyte, Luzon, and Okinawa.
In the postwar era, the 43d Bombardment Group was one of the first USAAF units assigned to the Strategic Air Command on 1 October 1946, prior to the establishment of the United States Air Force as a redesignation of the 444th Bombardment Group due to the Air Force's policy of retaining only low-numbered groups on active duty after the war.
It conducted long-range test missions, including the first nonstop flight around the world (26 February-2 March 1949), accomplished in "Lucky Lady II", a B-50A (46–10) commanded by Capt James G Gallagher. The group was inactivated in 1952 when the parent wing adopted the Tri-Deputate organization and assigned all of the groups squadrons directly to the wing.
Reactivated as the 43d Operations Group in 1992 when the 43d Air Refueling Wing adopted the USAF Objective organization plan.
The 43d trained for bombardment operations during most of 1941. From December 1941 – February 1942, it flew antisubmarine patrols along the New England coast.
It then moved to the Southwest Pacific via Cape Town, South Africa, from February–March 1942. It then attacked Japanese shipping in the Netherlands East Indies and the Bismarck Archipelago from bases in Australia, New Guinea, and Owi Island between August 1942 and November 1944. While there it earned a Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC) for missions over Papua, New Guinea from August 1942 – January 1943. The unit used skip bombing to sink Japanese ships during the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, 2–4 March 1943, for which the unit earned a second DUC. It also provided support for ground forces on New Guinea and attacked airfields and other enemy installations in New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, Yap, Palau, and the southern Philippines in 1943 and 1944. The group conducted long-range raids on oil refineries on Ceram and Borneo late in the war. After moving to the Philippines in November 1944, the group attacked shipping along the Asiatic coast and struck factories, airfields, and other installations in China and on Formosa. It also supported ground forces on Luzon. The unit moved to Ie Shima in July 1945, from which it conducted raids against airfields and railways in Japan and against shipping in the Inland Sea and the Sea of Japan. It was moved on paper to the Philippines in December 1945 and inactivated in April 1946.
During the next period of activation, between October 1946 and February 1951, the group trained and conducted long-range test missions, including the first nonstop flight around the world (26 February – 2 March 1949), accomplished by Capt James G. Gallagher and his crew in a B-50 called Lucky Lady II. The group deployed to England for training, August–November 1949. It was not operational after 10 February 1951, and the flying squadrons attached directly to the 43d Wing for operations. Inactivated on 16 June 1952.
Between June 1992 and 1 July 1994, the group flew air refueling missions in training exercises. In 1997, it assumed an airlift mission. It cooperated with U.S. Army airborne organizations at nearby Fort Bragg, taking part with them in joint training exercises. Crews and aircraft deployed to Europe and later to Southwest Asia to support contingency operations such as enforcement of no-fly zones over Iraq and for expeditionary force rotations. After terrorist attacks on the U.S. on 11 September 2001, deployed resources in the Global War on Terror.
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This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
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