| 6th Airlift Squadron | |
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6th Airlift Squadron Patch |
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| Active | 1 October 1933-present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Type | Airlift |
| Part of | Air Mobility Command 18th Air Force 305th Air Mobility Wing 305th Operations Group |
| Garrison/HQ | Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst |
| Nickname | Bully Beef Express |
| Decorations | DCU AFOUA PPUC ROK PUC |
The 6th Airlift Squadron (6 AS) is part of the 305th Air Mobility Wing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey. It operates the C-17 Globemaster III supporting the United States Air Force global reach mission world wide. The main base, along with the flying squadron, is located near the borough of Wrightstown, New Jersey.
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Train and equip C-17 aircrews for global airland operations.
The 6th Airlift Squadron is the oldest airlift squadron in the Air Force, having served with distinction since 1 October 1933. The squadron made airlift history during World War II when, in October 1942, it was transferred to Port Moresby, New Guinea. Then flying C-47s, the 6th became the first personnel transport squadron to fly in the Pacific. It was during this assignment that the squadron earned the nickname Bully Beef Express, as it carried tons of boiled beef to allied combat troops in Australia and New Guinea. The French called it "boujili boef', and the Americanization of the term has continued to this day to be the squadron's emblem.
The 6th performed aerial transportation in the Pacific Theater and Southwest Pacific Theater during World War II and in the Far East during the Korean War and after until 1968.
It has performed worldwide airlift operations since April 1970. The 6th conducted resupply missions in support of scientific stations in the Antarctic during Operation Deep Freeze from, 1971–1974. It evacuated Vietnamese refugees during the fall of Saigon, April–June 1975. It has also supported U.S. forces in Grenada, October–December 1983, during the invasion of Panama, December 1989–January 1990, and during the liberation of Kuwait, August 1990–March 1991.
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
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