' + Personnel and group records to digital. if (isMobile()) Read more about Supporting the AALCM. It was reassigned to Savannah Army Air Base, Georgia on 10 February 1942. It was created from a. ROSTER OF AIRMEN. This operation involved German pilots of the unit ramming their worn-out Bf 109Gs, each barely armed with only one MG 131 machine gun and 50 rounds of ammunition, into American bombers in order to get the Allies to suspend bombing raids long enough for the Germans to make a significant amount of Me 262A jet fighters. Major General Mark E. Weatherington assumed command of 8th Air Force on 12 June 2020. These bomb wings were drastically undermanned and under equipped. Components: 1st Bombardment Wing: 1942-1943. } These missions, however, carried a high price. The 8th lost 31 bombers, the 15th lost 33. VIII Bomber Command, after redesignation as Eighth Air Force, was assigned VIII Fighter and VIII Air Support Commands under its command. For the Mighty Eighth, that change heralded an interesting future, one that bring further restructuring, different aircraft systems, and a new challenging mission to the NAF. Some 230 B-24s hit the Messerschmitt Bf 110 assembly plant at Gotha with a loss of 24 aircraft. Stations: Langley Field, Va, 1 Feb 1942; Savannah AB, Ga, c. 10 Feb 1942; Daws Hill, England, 23 Feb 1942; High Wycombe, England, 15 May 1942-16 Jul 1945; Okinawa, 16 Jul 19457 Jun 1946; MacDill Field, Fla, 7 Jun 1946; Ft Worth AAFld, Tex, I Nov 1946; Westover AFB, Mass, Jun 1g55-. Writing about our entire adventure would take a great deal more space than this article . We also located the series World War II Statistical Summaries, 1942-1945 in Record Group 18 . (Approved 20 May 1943. function captionToggle() { The P-51 Mustang first entered squadron service in Europe with the British in early 1942; the Allison V-1710-engined P-51A (Mustang I) having much success with the RAF, although it found the aircraft's performance inadequate at higher altitudes. Many more awards were made to Eighth Air Force veterans after the war that remain uncounted. The 8th AF was primarily engaged in the bombardment of strategic targets in Europe. In order to quickly assemble these formations, specially outfitted assembly ships were created from older bombers. Eighth Air Force was established as VIII Bomber Command on 19 January 1942 and activated at Langley Field, Virginia on 1 February. Annual Dues fund our work including the magazine* and reunions. The command serves as Air Forces Strategic Global Strike, one of the air components of United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM). Several events in the late 1940s reversed the drawdown of United States strategic forces. Researching World War II Bombing Aerial Photography. . Although there were many available which were returned from Twentieth Air Force in the Pacific Theater they were war-weary from the many long combat missions flown during the war. In 1965, Eighth Air Force entered combat again, this time in Southeast Asia. First Name. The Mighty Eighth's modern history is equally impressive. General Carl Spaatz returned to England to command the USSTAF. if (detailSize === "half") { On 22 February 1944, a massive reorganization of American airpower took place in Europe. getDetailsURL($(this).parent()) + $(".fancybox-button").css("display", "none"); In the planned invasion of Japan, the mission of Eighth Air Force would be to conduct B-29 Superfortress raids from Okinawa in coordination with Twentieth Air Force operating from airfields in the Mariana Islands.[12]. } It could, and often did, dispatch more than 2,000 four-engine bombers and more than 1,000 fighters on a single mission to multiple targets. Activated in the US on I Feb 1942. Eighth Air Force is one of two active duty numbered air forces in Air Force Global Strike Command. Then in April 1970, SAC moved the Eighth without personnel or equipment to Andersen AFB Guam, absorbing resources of the 3d Air Division. } The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). During the Cold War (19451991), 8 AF was one of three Numbered Air Forces of the United States Air Force's Strategic Air Command (SAC), with a three-star general headquartered at Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts commanding USAF strategic bombers and missiles on a global scale. var $currentSlide = $(".fancybox-slide.fancybox-slide--current.fancybox-slide--image").parent().parent(); It dispersed its planes to a large number of bases across the United States so as not to have too many concentrated at a single location. '">DETAILS'; $(".fancybox-content").css("width", newImgWth + "px"); Its flexible, conventional and nuclear deterrence mission provides the capability to deploy forces and engage enemy threats from home station or forward positioned, anywhere, any time. } 8th AF 448th BG World War II. Do you have items such as papers, photos, uniforms, gear and other artifacts? 226 Squadron RAF) commanded by Captain Charles C. Kegelman attacked four airfields[b] in the Netherlands. $(".fancybox-caption").removeClass("af3-caption-bg"); var ratio = Math.min(winWth / origImgWth, caption += $(this).find('figcaption').html() + } var winHgt = $(window).innerHeight() $(".fancy-photo-detail-link").html($(".fancy-photo-detail-link").html().replace("CLOSE", "SHOW")); function recalculateImageSize() { At the same time, a smaller force hit an Fw 190 repair depot at Zwickau. In memory of those who gave their lives in the cause of freedom. At peak strength, Eighth Air Force had forty heavy bomber groups, fifteen fighter groups, and four specialized support groups. The ALLIED FORCE campaign also marked the Eighth's return to Europe and the participation of U.S. bombers in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) first combat operation. isMobile = true; Hard copies will be available for an additional $25 per year. One notable Eighth Air Force casualty was Brigadier General Arthur W. Vanaman, Chief of Intelligence, who was captured by the Germans in northern France on 27 June 1944, becoming the highest-ranked American POW captured in Europe during the war.[11]. Nick was a life member of the 8th Air Force Historical Society, the 15th Air Force Association and the 414th Bombardment Squadron, 97th Bombardment Group Association. Eighth Air Force, with headquarters at Barksdale Air Force Base in the Bossier City Shreveport, Louisiana metro area, supports U.S. Strategic Command, and is designated as U.S. Strategic Command's Task Force 204, providing on-alert, combat-ready forces to the president. Eighth Air Force spent its first decade in the continental U.S. building up its strategic capabilities. For instance, the Eighth suffered about half of the U.S. Army Air Force's casualties (47,483 out of 115,332), including more than 26,000 dead. That base assignment lasted until 1 November 1946, when SAC transferred the Eighth to Fort Worth (later renamed Carswell AFB). Importantly, the Eighth's bombing effectiveness influenced the North Vietnamese to end hostilities. This was the first DSC earned by a member of the Eighth Air Force in World War II. Over 300 German fighters attacked the bomber forces, losing almost half its aircraft, with claims of upwards of 47 Luftwaffe fighters by American fighter pilots. 8th Air Force 448th Bomb Group, England WWII - TaraCopp. Azure, in the lower lobe of the winged Arabic numeral 8 or a mullet throughout argent charged with a torteaux. fbObj.find(".actions .details").attr("href") + -Lt. General Jimmy Doolittle, Commanding General, 8th Air Force. The 388 Bomb Group association was formed to insure the accomplishments and sacrifices of the men and women of the 388th are remembered. By 6 June, Allied fighter pilots had succeeded in damaging or destroying hundreds of locomotives, thousands of motorized vehicles, and many bridges. caption: function (instance, item) { Fifteen months after Operation DESERT STORM, the Air Force reorganized. 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