| 96th Air Base Wing | |
|---|---|
96th Air Base Wing emblem |
|
| Active | 19xx-Present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Garrison/HQ | Eglin AFB, Florida |
| Decorations | DUC AFOUA |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
George Lee Butler |
The 96th Air Base Wing (96 ABW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command Air Armament Center. It is stationed at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. The wing is also the host unit at Eglin.
The 96 ABW supports the Air Armament Center and associate units with traditional military services as well as all the services of a small city, to include civil engineering, personnel, logistics, communications, computer, medical, security, and all other host services.
The group is the successor organization to the World War II Eighth Air Force 96th Bombardment Group. A B-17 Flying Fortress unit in England, stationed primarily at RAF Snetterton Heath, the group was the first double-strength group in Eighth Air Force, and led the first shuttle mission to Regensburg on 17 August 1943. Active for over 60 years, the 96th Bombardment Wing was a component organization of Strategic Air Command's deterrent force during the Cold War, as a strategic bombardment wing.
It provides a myriad of base operating support functions: it is responsible for material resources, mobility requirements, and meeting the needs of Eglin personnel. The 96th Air Base Wing is composed of more than 5,000 professionals in five organizations. The unit is commanded by Colonel Sal M. Nodjomian. Its Command Chief Master Sergeant is Chief Master Sergeant Thomas S. Westermeyer.
Contents |
Constituted as 96th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 January 1942. Activated on 15 July 1942. Trained with B-17's and also served as an operational training unit. Moved to RAF Grafton Underwood England, April–May 1943, for duty with Eighth Air Force. The group was assigned to the 45th Combat Bombardment Wing of the 3d Bombardment Division. Its tail code was Square-C. The group consisted of the following squadrons:
This group commenced combat operations on 14 May but, as it was assigned to the 45th Wing with a general base area in north Essex, the 96th moved east at the end of May to RAF Andrews Field. The 96th appears to have only carried out one mission while based at Andrews Field. On 29 May 1943 they took part in a raid on Rennes naval storage depot from which one B-17 failed to return. The group was moved to RAF Snetterton Heath on 12 June 1943 in a general exchange of bases with B-26 Marauder groups.
As the most conveniently reached station from 3rd Division Headquarters at Elveden Hall, Snetterton Heath units often led to major operations carrying commanding generals. General Curtis LeMay led the famous Regensburg shuttle mission to North Africa flying out of this base, and received a Distinguished Unit Citation for withstanding severe assaults by enemy fighters. The 96th also led the 3rd Division on the famous Schweinfurt mission of 14 October 1943. In addition, the 93d attacked shipyards, harbours, railway yards, aerodromes, oil refineries, aircraft factories, and other industrial targets in Germany, France, Holland, Belgium, Norway, Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia.
The 96th received another DUC for leading the 45th Bomb Wing a great distance through heavy clouds and intense anti-aircraft fire to raid important aircraft component factories in Poland on 9 April 1944. Other significant targets included airfields at Bordeaux and Augsburg; marshalling yards at Kiel, Hamm, Brunswick, and Gdynia; aircraft factories at Chemnitz, Hanover, and Diósgyőr; oil refineries at Merseburg and Brux, and chemical works in Wiesbaden, Ludwigshafen, and Neunkirchen.
In addition to strategic operations, missions of the 96th BG included bombing coastal defences, railway bridges, gun emplacements, and field batteries in the battle area prior to and during the invasion of Normandy in June 1944; attacking enemy positions in support of the breakthrough at Saint-Lô in July 1944; aiding the campaign in France in August by striking roads and road junctions, and by dropping supplies to the Maquis; and attacking, during the early months of 1945, the communications supplying German armies on the western front.
After V-E Day, the group was scheduled for occupation duties in Germany however plans were revised and the 96th BG flew food to Holland and hauled redeployed personnel to French Morocco, Ireland, France, and Germany. In November 1945 its aircraft were flown back to the United States, and its squadrons were inactivated. The ground personnel left Snetterton Heath in early December, arriving at Camp Kilmer New Jersey.
The 96th Bomb Group was inactivated on 20 December 1945.
The 96th Bomb Group was activated in the Reserves on 29 May 1947 at Gunter AFB, Alabama. Conducted routine training activities. Inactivated on 27 July 1949.
Established again on 6 November 1953 at Altus AFB, Oklahoma, as the 96th Bombardment Wing, Medium. It was activated 8 November. Wing headquarters and most of the wing components were not manned until March 1954; those components manned were controlled by the 96th Air Base Group, whose commander served additional duty as the 96th's wing commander.[1] The wing soon received KC-97 Stratotankers and began air refueling operations in March 1954.
Began receiving new B-47E Stratojet swept-wing medium bombers in April 1955, capable of flying at high subsonic speeds and primarily designed for penetrating the airspace of the Soviet Union. Began bombardment training in April 1955 in support of SAC's global commitments. Deployed to Andersen AFB Guam, January–April 1957. Upon activation, the Wing was bestowed the lineage, legacy and honors of the USAAF World War II 96th Bomb Group.
Transferred to Dyess AFB, Texas on 8 September 1957
Controlled the 4th Strategic Support Squadron, a strategic airlift squadron, September 1959 – March 1961, and the 578th Strategic Missile Squadron, an Atlas F missile squadron, July 1961 – March 1965. The first Atlas missile went on alert in April 1962. The Atlas was phased out in March 1965.
In the early 1960s, the B-47 was considered to be reaching obsolescence, and was being phased out of SAC's strategic arsenal. In 1963, its three squadrons of B-47s (338th, 339th, 413th Bomb Squadrons) were replaced by one squadron (337th Bomb Squadron) of B-52s. The 96th received B-52Cs from the 99th Bomb Wing, then new B-52Ds and B-52Es from Boeing. It was redesignated the 96th Bombardment Wing, Heavy, on 31 March 1972. During several months of 1970, and for a lengthy period in 1972–1973, all wing aircraft, crews, and most support personnel were loaned to other SAC organizations based in the Far East or Southeast Asia for combat operations.
From 1980, the wing's 917th Air Refueling Squadron KC-135A aircraft regularly deployed to Europe, Alaska, and the Pacific to support SAC tanker task force requirements.
The 337th Bomb Squadron became the first squadron to operate the B-1B Lancer, after the arrival of the first aircraft in June 1985. In addition, the 338th Combat Crew Training Squadron (CCTS) received B-1Bs in June 1992. In October 1986, B-1Bs assumed SAC alert duties for the first time.
Wing 917th ARS KC-135 tankers provided refueling support to units involved in the invasion of Panama, December 1989. Ferried personnel and equipment to Andersen AFB, Guam for further movement to Southwest Asia, in August 1990. In December 1990 all remaining tanker aircraft and crews, except those on alert duty, were sent to Incirlik AB Turkey in support of Operation Desert Storm.
On 1 September 1991, the wing was redesignated as the 96th Wing and implemented the objective wing concept. It was relieved from assignment to SAC and assigned to Air Combat Command on 1 June 1992. Also on 1 June 1992, the 917th ARS acquired KC-135Qs in conjunction with the drawdown of tanker operations at Beale AFB, California.
In accordance with the realignment of tanker squadrons to Air Mobility Command, the 917th ARS was reassigned to the 43d Operations Group at Malmstrom AFB, Montana on 30 September 1993.
On 1 October 1993 the 96th Wing inactivated, replaced by the 7th Wing (7th WG) which was moved without personnel or equipment due to the BRAC transfer of Carswell AFB, Texas to the U.S. Navy and its redesignation as Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth/Carswell Field. The B-1Bs of the 337th BS were reassigned to the 7th WG, and the 337th BS was reorganized and absorbed the B-1s of the deactivating 338th CCTS as part of the new wing.
The 96th Air Base Wing stood up as a non-flying organization on 15 March 1994. It assumed the mission of supporting the Air Armament Center and associate units at Eglin AFB, Florida.
Groups
Squadrons
|
|
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||