309th Troop Carrier Group
Encyclopedia
The 309th Troop Carrier Group is an inactive United States Air Force
unit. Its last assignment was with 60th Troop Carrier Wing stationed at Dreux-Louvilliers Air Base, France. It was inactivated on 20 April 1958.
Postwar the group was redesignated and reconstituted as a reserve Tactical Air Command
Troop Carrier Group involved in joint airborne training with Army forces, developed assault airlift operations, and participated in aerial demonstrations, exercises, maneuvers, and joint operations. Inactivated in 1951 and personnel and equipment deployed to Far East Air Force to support 315th Air Division
transport units during the Korean War
.
The unit was last reactivated in 1955 and the group trained to airlift troops, equipment, and supplies for assault landings. Inactivated in 1956 due to fiscal reductions.
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
unit. Its last assignment was with 60th Troop Carrier Wing stationed at Dreux-Louvilliers Air Base, France. It was inactivated on 20 April 1958.
Lineage
- Constituted as 309th Bombardment Group (Medium) on 28 January 1942
- Activated on 15 March 1942
- Disbanded on 1 May 1944
- Personnel and Equipment redesignated as: 329th Bombardment Group, 1 May 1944
- Personnel and Equipment redesignated as: 329th Army Air Force Base Replacement Unit, 1 August 1944
- Personnel and Equipment redesignated as: 129th Army Air Force Base Unit, 1 February 1945
- Inactivated, 30 November 1945.
- Reconstituted, redesignated 309th Troop Carrier Group (Medium), and allotted to the reserve, on 16 May 1949.
- Activated on 26 June 1949
- Inactivated on 20 February 1951.
- Redesignated 309th Troop Carrier Group (Assault, Fixed Wing), and activated on 8 July 1955
- Inactivated 20 April 1958
Assignments
- Third Air ForceThird Air ForceThe Third Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe . It is headquartered at Ramstein Air Base, Germany....
, 28 January 1942 – 1 February 1945 - First Air ForceFirst Air ForceThe First Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida....
, 1 February – 30 November 1945 - 314th Troop Carrier Wing314th Airlift WingThe 314th Airlift Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force based out of Little Rock Air Force Base in Little Rock, Arkansas.-World War 2 and aftermath:...
, 26 June 1949 – 20 February 1951 - 463d Troop Carrier Wing463d Airlift GroupThe United States Air Force's 463d Airlift Group is a tactical airlift unit headquartered in Little Rock AFB, Arkansas.During World War II as the 463d Bombardment Unit, it was one of the last B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomber groups deployed to Southern Italy as part of the Fifteenth Air Force in...
, 8 July 1955
- Attached to 60th Troop Carrier Wing, 22 March – 7 August 1956
- 60th Troop Carrier Wing, 7 August 1956 – 20 April 1958
Components
- 376th Bombardment (later Troop Carrier) Squadron376th Troop Carrier SquadronThe 3776h Troop Carrier Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 60th Troop Carrier Wing. It was inactivated at Dreux-Louvilliers Air Base, France on 25 September 1958.-History:...
: 1942–1944; 1949–1951; 1955–1958
- Later known as: Training Squadron "A", 1944–1945
- 377th Bombardment (later Troop Carrier) Squadron377th Troop Carrier SquadronThe 377th Troop Carrier Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 60th Troop Carrier Wing. It was inactivated at Dreux-Louvilliers Air Base, France on 25 September 1958.-History:...
: 1942–1944; 1949–1950; 1955–1958
- 377th Bombardment (later Troop Carrier) Squadron
- Later known as: Training Squadron "B", 1944–1945
- 378th Bombardment (later Troop Carrier) Squadron378th Troop Carrier SquadronThe 378th Troop Carrier Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 60th Troop Carrier Wing. It was inactivated at Dreux-Louvilliers Air Base, France on 25 September 1958.-History:...
: 1942–1944; 1955–1958
- 378th Bombardment (later Troop Carrier) Squadron
- Later known as: Training Squadron "C", 1944–1945
- 426th Bombardment Squadron426th Bombardment SquadronThe 426th Bombardment Squadronn is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 309th Bombardment Group. It was inactivated at Columbia Army Air Base, South Carolina on 1 May 1944.-History:...
: 1942–1944
- 426th Bombardment Squadron
- Later known as: Training Squadron "D", 1944–1945
Stations
- Davis-Monthan Field, ArizonaArizonaArizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, 15 March 1942 - Jackson AAB, MississippiMississippiMississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, 15 March 1942 - Key FieldKey fieldA key field is a field or set of fields of a database table which together form a unique identifier for a database record . The aggregate of these fields is usually referred to simply as "the key". Key fields also define searches...
, MississippiMississippiMississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, c. 26 April 1942 - Columbia AAB, South CarolinaSouth CarolinaSouth Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, 16 May 1942-1 May 1944;1 May 1944-30 November 1945 - Smyrna AFB, TennesseeTennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, 26 June 1949 – 20 February 1951 - Ardmore AFB, OklahomaOklahomaOklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, 8 July 1955 - Dreux-Louvilliers Air Base, France, 22 March 1956 – 20 April 1958
Aircraft
- B-25 MitchellB-25 MitchellThe North American B-25 Mitchell was an American twin-engined medium bomber manufactured by North American Aviation. It was used by many Allied air forces, in every theater of World War II, as well as many other air forces after the war ended, and saw service across four decades.The B-25 was named...
, 1942–1945 - A-26 InvaderA-26 InvaderThe Douglas A-26 Invader was a United States twin-engined light attack bomber built by the Douglas Aircraft Co. during World War II that also saw service during several of the Cold War's major conflicts...
, 1945 - C-82 PacketC-82 PacketThe C-82 Packet was a twin-engine, twin-boom cargo aircraft designed and built by Fairchild Aircraft. It was used briefly by the United States Army Air Forces and United States Navy following World War II.-Design and development:...
, 1949–1951 - C-119 Flying BoxcarC-119 Flying BoxcarThe Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar was an American military transport aircraft developed from the World War II-era Fairchild C-82 Packet, designed to carry cargo, personnel, litter patients, and mechanized equipment, and to drop cargo and troops by parachute...
, 1949–1951 - YC-122 AvitrucYC-122 Avitruc|-References:NotesBibliography* Taylor, Michael J. H. Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions, 1989. ISBN 0-517-69186-8.* World Aircraft Information Files, File 891 Sheet 26–27. London: Bright Star Publishing....
, 1955–1956 - C-123 ProviderC-123 ProviderThe C-123 Provider was an American military transport aircraft designed by Chase Aircraft and subsequently built by Fairchild Aircraft for the United States Air Force...
, 1955–1958
Operations history
During World War II, trained bombardment groups and later trained replacement crews, using B-25 and later A-26 aircraft in both the operational and the replacement training programs.Postwar the group was redesignated and reconstituted as a reserve Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 being headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia...
Troop Carrier Group involved in joint airborne training with Army forces, developed assault airlift operations, and participated in aerial demonstrations, exercises, maneuvers, and joint operations. Inactivated in 1951 and personnel and equipment deployed to Far East Air Force to support 315th Air Division
315th Air Division
The 315th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Pacific Air Forces, based at Tachikawa Air Base, Japan. It was inactivated in April 1969.-History:...
transport units during the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
.
The unit was last reactivated in 1955 and the group trained to airlift troops, equipment, and supplies for assault landings. Inactivated in 1956 due to fiscal reductions.