64th Air Division

64th Air Division

Emblem of the 64th Air Division
Active 1942–1963
Country United States
Branch United States Air Force
Role Command and Control
Part of Air Defense Command
Commanders
Notable
commanders		 Carroll W. McColpin

The 64th Air Division (64th AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command, being stationed at Stewart Air Force Base, New York. It was inactivated on 1 July 1963

Contents

History

World War II

The organization was established during the early days of World War II as an air defense command and control wing assigned to First Air Force at Mitchel Field, New York.

By February 1943, it was clear that no German planes were heading to attack the East Coast, and the organization was realigned to become a command and control organization for Twelfth Air Force, engaged in combat as part of the North African Campaign. The wing moved to North Africa in February 1943 and supported combat operations with a warning and control system, and, occasionally, augmenting the operations section of the XII Air Support Command in the Tunisian campaign.

During the Sicilian and Italian campaigns (1943–1944), it administered fighter and fighter-bomber support to ground forces in a wide range of operations that included cover patrols, battle-area patrols, invasion coverage, escort missions, dive bombing missions, and reconnaissance. In Italy, the 64th directed close air support operations against enemy objectives in advance of Allied troops. Its primary targets included enemy gun positions, road junctions, traffic concentrations, assembly areas, bridges, and targets of opportunity.

In August 1944 during the invasion of southern France, wing personnel, applying techniques developed in the invasion of Sicily and Italy, controlled air operations while aboard ships patrolling the assault beaches. With the landing of troops, a beachhead control unit directed aircraft to hit enemy strong points, ammunition dumps, troop concentrations, road intersections, supply lines, and communications. As Allied forces advanced northward along the Rhone valley, the wing implemented a plan to give more rapid support to the ground troops. Forward control units, equipped with the latest in air ground communications, directed sector air ground support. During the operations in France and Germany (1944–1945), the 64th continued to coordinate the close air-ground support of its fighter aircraft.

After the end of hostilities in May 1945, the wing served in the occupation of Germany as part of the XII Tactical Air Command, United States Air Forces in Europe. In Occupied Germany the wing performed many occupation duties such as destroying captured enemy aircraft, repairing roads, bridges and processing Prisoners of War. It also commanded combat units which were inactivating and sending their aircraft to storage, disposal or return to the United States. It was inactivated in Germany on 5 June 1947.

Cold War

Reactivated as an Air Division under Northeast Air Command (NEAC), being stationed at Pepperrell AFB, Newfoundland in December 1952. NEAC had taken over the former Newfoundland Base Command atmospheric forces and ground air and radar stations in Newfoundland, Northeastern Canada and Greenland upon the former commands inactivation. The 64th Air Division was NEAC's command and control echelon of command over these assets.

It's mission was the administration, training and providing air defense combat ready forces within its designated geographic area of responsibility, exercising command jurisdiction over its assigned units, installations, and facilities. In addition, the division and its subordinate units under its control participated in numerous exercises. NEAC was inactivated in April 1957, and its mission was reassigned to Air Defense Command (ADC).

The 64th AD continued its operations under ADC at Pepperrell AFB including the operational control of the Distant Early Warning Line (DEW Line) and Air Forces Iceland. In January 1960, it activated the Goose Air Defense Sector (Manual) at Goose AFB. On 26 May 1960, the division headquarters moved from Newfoundland to Stewart AFB, New York, when part of its mission was taken over by the 26th Air Division (SAGE) in a realignment of forces.

The Division was reassigned to Stewart AFB, New York, where it assumed the mission of training and providing air defense combat ready forces for the aerospace defense of a 6,000,000 square miles (16,000,000 km2) region of North America, including New Jersey, New York, New England north of Massachusetts, Eastern Canada, and atmospheric forces in Greenland.

The Division was inactivated in July 1963 with the phasedown of ADC at Stewart AFB, it's mission being taken over by First Air Force.

Lineage

Activated on 12 December 1942
Redesignated 64th Fighter Wing on 24 July 1943
Inactivated on 5 June 1947
Activated on 8 April 1952
Inactivated on 20 December 1952
Discontinued, and inactivated, on 1 July 1963

Assignments

Attached First Tactical Air Force [Provisional], 27 Nov 1944 – May 1945), 9 Mar 1943 – 5 Jun 1947

Stations

Components

World War II

Groups
c. 28 May 1943 – c. 22 October 1945; c. 13 August 1946 – 5 June 1947
c. 31 July – c. 31 December 1943; 10 March 1945 – c. 15 February 1946; 20 August 1946 – 5 June 1947
Squadrons
Attached c. 3 September – 5 December 1943
Assigned 5 December 1943 – 15 February 1946

Air Defense Command

Force
Keflavik Airport, Iceland, 1 July 1962 – 1 July 1963
Sector
Goose AFB, Newfoundland, 1 April 1960 – 1 July 1963
Wings
  • 4083d Air Base Wing (SAC),
Thule AB, Greenland, 1 July 1960
Replaced by: 4683d Air Defense Wing (ADC), 1 July 1960 – 1 July 1963
  • 6604th Air Base Group (NEAC)
Pepperrell AFB, Newfoundland, 8 April 1952
Re-designated 6604th Air Base Wing, 1 June 1954
Re-designated 4737th Air Base Wing (ADC), 1 April 1957 – 1 May 1958
  • 6602d Air Base Group (NEAC)
Ernest Harmon AFB, Newfoundland, 8 April 1952
Re-designated 6605th Air Base Wing, 1 June 1954
Re-assigned to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
  • 6603d Air Base Group (NEAC)
Goose AFB, Labrador, 8 April 1952
Re-designated 6606th Air Base Wing, 1 June 1954
Re-assigned to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
  • 6612th Air Base Group (NEAC)
Thule AB, Greenland, 8 April 1952
Re-designated 6607th Air Base Wing, 1 June 1964
Re-assigned to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
  • 4061st Support Wing
Paramus, New Jersey, 1 October 1960 – 1 July 1963
  • 4602d Support Wing
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, 1 January 1961 – 1 July 1963
Groups
  • 4684th Air Base Group
Sondrestrom AB, Greenland, 1 July 1960 – 1 July 1963
  • 4737th Air Base Group
Pepperrell AFB, Newfoundland, 1 May 1958 – 1 September 1960
Ernest Harmon AFB, Newfoundland, 1 April 1957 – 1 July 1960
Goose AFB, Labrador, 1 April 1957 – 1 July 1960
Frobisher Bay AFB, Northwest Territories, 1 April 1957 – 1 May 1958
Thule AB, Greenland, 1 April 1957 – 1 May 1958
  • 6611th Air Base Group (NEAC)
Narsarsuaq AB, Greenland, 8 April 1952
Re-assigned to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
  • 6621st Air Base Group (NEAC)
Sondrestrom AB, Greenland, 8 April 1952
Re-assigned to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
  • 6614th Air Transport Group (NEAC)
Pepperrell AFB, Newfoundland, 8 April 1952
6622d Air Transport Squadron, Torbay Airport NF
6614th Air Ttransport Squadron, Harmon AB, NF
6615th Air Transport Squadron, Goose Bay AFB, LB
Transferred to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
Squadrons
  • 6614th Air Transport Squadron (NEAC)
Ernest Harmon AFB, Newfoundland, 8 April 1952
Transferred to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
  • 6615th Air Transport Squadron (NEAC)
Goose AFB, Labrador, 8 April 1952
Transferred to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
  • 6622d Transportation Squadron (NEAC)
Pepperrell AFB, Newfoundland, 8 April 1952
Transferred to Strategic Air Command, 1 April 1957 (Inactivated)
Goose AFB, Labrador, 28 October 1952 – 31 December 1966
Ernest Harmon AFB, Newfoundland, 6 August 1953 – 17 Oct 1957
Thule AB, Greenland, 20 August 1954 – 25 June 1958
Thule AB, Greenland, 1 July 1953 – 5 August 1954
Thule AB, Greenland, 3 July 1958 – 25 March 1960
Lowther AS, Ontario, 15 November 1958 – 1 April 1959
  • 105th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron (Fed ANG) (NEAC)
Stephenville AS, Newfoundland, 8 April 1952
Re-designated: 640th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron, 1 Jan 1953 (NEAC)
Reassigned to Air Defense Command, 1 November 1957 – 6 June 1960
Red Cliff AS, Newfoundland, 1 January 1953 – 1 October 1961
Resolution Island AS, Northwest Territory, 19 January 1952 – 1 April 1957
Saint Anthony AS, Labrador, 1 October 1953 – 1 April 1957
Hopedale AS, Labrador, 1 October 1953 – 1 April 1957
Saglek AS, Labrador, 1 October 1953 – 1 April 1957
Frobisher Bay AB, Northwest Territory, 1 October 1953 – 1 April 1957
Thule AS, Greenland, 1 May 1958 – 1 July 1960

See also

References

United States Air Force portal
Military of the United States portal
World War II portal

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

External links

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