14th Air Division

14th Air Division
Active 1940–1942; 1942–1945; 1951–1991
Country  United States
Branch  United States Air Force
Engagements European Theater of Operations
Insignia
14th Air Division emblem (approved 16 November 1962)[1]

The 14th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Fifteenth Air Force, stationed at Beale Air Force Base, California. It was inactivated on 14 June 1989.

History

World War II

The organization was initially activated in Hawaii as the 14th Pursuit Wing to contribute to the defense of the Hawaiian Islands. Its designation was soon changed to Hawaiian Interceptor Command. The Hawaiian Interceptor Command suffered heavy losses during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor (7 December 1941), but airmen managed to shoot down several enemy aircraft.[1] A short time later, it was inactivated and its men and equipment became the cadre for VII Fighter Command.

The wing was reformed as the 14th Bombardment Wing, the unit was one of the primary Consolidated B-24 Liberator heavy strategic bombardment groups of the Eighth Air Force's 2d Bombardment Division in World War II. Its subordinate groups flew bombing missions against German airfields, oil installations, and marshalling yards. Wing components supported Operation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy, in June 1944 by attacking strong points in the beachhead area and transportation targets behind the front lines. Later, in December 1944–January 1945, the wing helped to check the German offensive during the Battle of the Bulge. In March 1945, subordinate units supported Operation Lumberjack, the campaign to cross the Rhine River.[1]

Cold War

Reactivated in 1951, the 14th Air Division was an intermediate command echelon of Strategic Air Command. The command provided operational reconnaissance, maintained round the clock radar surveillance to detect sea launched ballistic missiles from the Pacific Ocean area, and provided for crisis management during periods of increased operational readiness. For a brief period, between 1962 and 1965, the division maintained a SM-68 Titan I intercontinental ballistic missile complex, in addition to its assigned aircraft. The division also supervised all of Strategic Air Command's initial combat crew training for the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, Boeing B-52G Stratofortress and B-52H, Lockheed U-2, and Lockheed SR-71 aircraft.[1]

It was inactivated in 1991 as part of the military drawdown of the USAF after the end of the Cold War.

Lineage

Activated on 1 November 1940
Inactivated on 23 January 1942
Activated on 1 October 1942
Redesignated: 14th Bombardment Wing (Heavy) on 1 February 1943
Redesignated: 14th Combat Bombardment Wing, Heavy on 7 August 1944
Redesignated: 14th Bombardment Wing, Heavy on 15 June 1945
Inactivated on 7 November 1945
Organized on 10 February 1951
Discontinued on 16 June 1952
Redesignated: 14th Strategic Aerospace Division on 1 March 1962
Redesignated: 14th Air Division on 31 March 1972
Inactivated on 1 September 1991[1]

Assignments

Attached to: Third Air Force, 1 October 1942 - c. 11 May 1943
Attached to: 96th Combat Bombardment Wing, Heavy, 5 – 15 June 1945

Components

Wings

Groups

Squadrons

Stations

  • Wheeler Field, Hawaii, 1 November 1940
  • Fort Shafter, Hawaii, 17 December 1941 – 23 January 1942
  • MacDill Field, Florida, 1 October 1942-May 1943
  • Camp Lynn, High Wycombe, England, 1 June 1943
  • RAF Hethel, England, 4 June 1943
  • Camp Thomas, Old Patton, England, c. 1 July 1943

Aircraft and Missiles
  • Convair RB-36 Peacemaker, 1951-1955, 1955–1958;
  • Convair B-36 Peacemaker, 1955–1958;
  • Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, 1958–1971, 1972–1991;
  • Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, 1959–1991;
  • SM-68 (later LGM-25) Titan I, 1962–1965;
  • Northrop T-38 Talon, 1965–1966;
  • Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, 1966–1991;
  • Ryan AQM-34 Firebee, 1971–1972;
  • Sikorsky CH-3, 1971–1972;
  • Lockheed DC-130 Hercules, 1971–1972;
  • Boeing EC-135 ARIA, 1971–1976, 1986–1991;
  • Boeing RC-135 Rivet Joint, 1971–1976, 1986–1991;
  • Lockheed U-2, 1971–1972, 1976–1991;
  • Boeing E-4 "Nightwatch", 1975–1976, 1986–1991;
  • Lockheed TR-1, 1982–1991;
  • TC-135, 1986–1991[1]

See also

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Factsheet 14 Air Division". Air Force Historical Research Agency. 4 October 2007. Archived from the original on 29 September 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2014.

Bibliography

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

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, September 03, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.