| 66th Air Base Group | |
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Emblem of the 66th Air Base Group |
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| Active | 1941–1957, 2010-Present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
The 66th Air Base Group is a non-flying United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Materiel Command Electronic Systems Center. It is stationed at Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts. The group is also the host unit at Hanscom.
The 66th ABG provide services to over 3,000 active duty, Reserve and National Guard military personnel and DoD civilians who work and live at Hanscom Air Force Base. Additionally, the 66 ABG supports over 100,000 retired military personnel, annuitants and spouses living in the six-state New England area and New York.
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Activated as an observation group in 1941, the unit performed field observation duties during various Army maneuvers in North Carolina and Tennessee prior to the United States entry into World War II. Performed anti-submarine missions along the Southeast Atlantic Coast in the early part of the war then functioned as a training unit. During the early years of the Cold War, the group operated as a NATO reconnaissance unit in West Germany, using a variety of propeller- and jet-powered aircraft. It was reactivated in October 2010 at Hanscom, when the 66th Air Base Wing was reduced in scope.
The 66th ABG consists of the following:
Activated as an observation group on 1 September 1941 at Imeson Field, Florida, the unit performed field observation duties during various Army maneuvers in North Carolina and Tennessee prior to the United States entry into World War II. Performed anti-submarine missions along the Atlantic Coast in the early part of the war then functioned as a training unit, being disbanded on 20 April 1944.
The unit was assigned to the Air Force Reserve after the war, being designated as the 66th Reconnaissance Group. It was assigned to First Air Force, being stationed at Newark Army Air Base, New Jersey on 27 December 1946 and equipped with RB-26 Invaders.
It was later transferred to McGuire AFB, New Jersey in June 1949 and trained for combat readiness where it became an associate unit of the Strategic Air Command 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Group. On 10 October 1949, the 66th was redesignated as the 66th Strategic Reconnaissance Group and moved to Barksdale AFB, Louisiana along with its associate 91st SRG. At Barksdale, the group was re-equipped with RF-80A Shooting Stars and trained with its active-duty counterpart.
With the outbreak of the Korean War, the group was activated on 1 May 1951. Its personnel and aircraft were reassigned to the 91st SRG to bring the unit up to authorized strength, and many of the reservists and their aircraft were sent to Japan for combat reconnaissance missions. The 66th TRG was inactivated as a paper unit on 16 May 1951
On 1 January 1953 the 66th was reactivated at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina as a Tactical Reconnaissance Group. Upon activation, the group was assigned to the new 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing under the Hobson Base-Wing Plan. The 66th TRW commanded the functions of both the support groups as well as the flying combat 66th TRG. At Shaw, the 66th TRW was considered an associate unit in training status at Shaw being supported by the 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, the host unit of the facility, as the unit was programmed for deployment to NATO once equipped and trained.
The new group was equipped with RB-26 Invaders and RF-80A Shooting Stars transferred from South Korea. Some second-line RF-51D Mustangs were also sent to Shaw for training. The squadrons formed and activated were:
On 25 June 1953 the 66th departed Shaw, being reassigned to West Germany. Just prior to the wing's deployment to NATO, the 303d TRS was reequipped with RF-80As.
The 66th arrived at Sembach Air Base, West Germany, on 8 July 1953. On that day, at 1045 hours, the first of 18 RB-26 Invader aircraft belonging to the 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Group (TRG) landed on the flightline of the new air base. Major General B. C. Struther, commander of Twelfth Air Force, welcomed the 66th to Sembach and to the United States Air Forces in Europe. The 66th's Wing Commander landed at 1509 hours in a T-33 Shooting Star trainer, bringing the remainder of the wing’s aircraft with him: 32 RF-80A Shooting Stars and 4 additional T-33s.
The 66th TRG had three operational squadrons: the 30th, 302nd and 303rd TRS. The 30th TRS flew the RB-26 Invader, equipped for night reconnaissance, while the 302nd and 303rd flew the RF-80A Shooting Star for day reconnaissance. The group commenced operations just three days after arrival at Sembach. The months of July to September 1953 were very successful in mission terms. This was due, in the main, to the relatively good weather in Northern Europe. Reconnaissance missions usually took place over the allied zones of Austria.
The autumn and winter of 1953 brought appalling weather conditions to northern Europe and a multitude of problems to all the tactical units of USAFE. The cameras of the RF-80's had to be rotated and spend one day per week in the hot box to thoroughly dry out. Excessive condensation between the lenses, because of extremes of temperature, had the potential of causing a fungal growth which forced the lenses apart and severely impaired the camera's effectiveness. It was during the time that regular deployments to North Africa began, when, in November, several RF-80's of the 302 TRS deployed there.
By 1954, it was acknowledged that the aircraft of the 66th TRG were becoming obsolete. It was decided to replace the RF-80A with the Republic RF-84F Thunderflash and the RB-26s with new RB-57A Canberras. This conversion was due to commence in 1955 and in the latter part of 1954, pilots from the 32, 38, 302 and 303 TRS commenced training at RAF Bentwaters and at Amarillo AFB, Texas. A mobile training detachment from the 363d TRW at Shaw AFB was sent to Sembach to provide instruction on the RB-57A.
However, during the latter part of 1954 and early 1955, more favourable weather did allow the 66th TRG to complete a relatively high number of successful missions. The 302 TRS took part in exercise Blue Danube and sent four aircraft to Vaerlose, Denmark for a 25 day joint training exercise with the Danish Air Force. The 302 TRS deployed to Giebelstadt and photographed some 21 army required targets and 15 weather recce missions. This visit was also given the task of taking oblique photos of castles and other places in Germany for publicity purposes. Spring 1955 saw some uncharacteristically good weather in Northern Europe, and both the 38th and 302 TRS' broke all previous records in terms of missions flown. Deployments to sunnier climes continued unabated during the early months of 1955. In February, four RF-80's of the 32nd TRS detached to Morocco for ten days, and six RF-80's went to Wheelus Air Base in Libya.
On 30 November 1954, the 30th TRS received the first Martin RB-57A Canberra. The pilots had already checked out on the T-33s by this time. They were required to fly 20 solo hours; during which time the observers, mechanics, camera specialists and hydraulic specialists spent time with the 363d's Mobile Training Detachment. There was a considerable period of time when the RB-57s and the RB-26s worked together as the transition to the new aircraft took some time. During the latter months of 1955 the 66th TRGe built up to full strength on the RB-57A; also acquiring, in December, one example of the B-57C dual trainer.
In August 1955, the RF-84F Thunderflash began to arrive, but the RF-80s were to soldier on for a further year. During the early part of 1956, the aircraft was paradoxically called upon to stand in for the RF-84F and the RB-57, which were experiencing teething problems until the end of 1956 when they were sent back to the United States.
On 1 January 1957 a fourth squadron, the 19th TRS was transferred from the SAC 47th Bombardment Wing at RAF Sculthorpe, England to the 66th TRW. The 47th TRS flew the RB-45C Tornado, however the squadron remained at Sculthrope and did not physically transfer it's assets to Sembach. At Sculthorpe, the 19th TRS transitioned to the RB-66 Invader aircraft.
In February 1957, the RB-57's of the 30th TFS at Sembach were also being replaced by the RB-66. The heavier RB-66's however, did not land well on Sembach's runway, and the 30th TRS was deployed to Landstuhl AB (now Ramstein AB) for their operations. The RB-66 simulator arrived at Sembach in the early part of 1957. Each pilot of the 30th TRS and the 19th TRS of the 66th TRW was required to complete a total of 15 hours on the simulator. The 30th retained a high mission profile on the RB-57 throughout the transition to the RB-66. By the end of 1957 all RB-57 aircraft had left Europe and returned to the United States where they were assigned to the Air National Guard.
As 1957 progressed USAFE HQ decided to reorganize its tactical reconnaissance assets. The 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Group was designated non-operational as part of the Air Force tri-deputate reorganization and all of the group's operational reconnaissance squadrons were assigned directly to the 66th TRW. The 66th TRG was inactivated on 8 December 1957 when the group was considered redundant.
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This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.