365th Fighter Group
Encyclopedia
The 365th Fighter Group is an inactive United States Army Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Army Service Forces
stationed at Camp Myles Standish
, Massachusetts
. It was inactivated on 22 September 1945.
During World War II
the unit was assigned to Ninth Air Force
in England, flying its first combat mission on 22 February 1944. The 365th was one of the most successful P-47 groups of the Ninth Air Force when it came to air combat. It flew its last mission on 8 May 1945
Constituted as 365th Fighter Group on 27 April 1943. Activated on 15 May 1943. Trained with P-47's. Moved to RAF Gosfield
England in December 1943. Assigned to Ninth Air Force
. It was several weeks before the 365th received a full complement of 75 P-47D Thunderbolts and mid-February 1944 before they were placed on operational status. Their first mission. flown on 22 February, was a bomber support sweep of short duration over enemy-held territory.
Early missions were flown in support of Eighth Air Force B-17 and B-24 bomber operations and on one of these on 2 March, the 365th had its first encounter with enemy fighters
in the Bastogne
area resulting in the loss of one Thunderbolt and claims of six of the enemy shot down. Oberstleutant Egon Mayer. one of the most successful Luftwaffe
aces flying in the West with 102 victories, fell in this battle.
On 5 March, with only nine missions to its credit the group moved south to RAF Beaulieu
in Hampshire. The group was stood down three days after arrival so that it could undertake a two-week intensive course in ground attack and fighter-bombing. After training, the 365th flew dive-bombing missions to attack such targets as bridges, aerodromes, rail facilities, gun positions, and V-weapon sites prior to the invasion of the Continent.
On D-Day
, its duties were attacking gun emplacements and communications facilities behind the bridgehead. Two P-47s were lost. On the following day when 12 separate squadron-sized missions were flown five aircraft failed to return.
An unusual accident occurred on 9 June when two P-47s being delivered to Beaulieu by ferry pilots landed on different runways at the same time and collided at the runway intersection with one pilot being killed.
The 365th was one of the most successful P-47 groups of the Ninth Air Force when it came to air combat, and a total of 29 enemy aircraft were credited as shot down during the four months the group operated from Beaulieu. On 25 June, the 365th had one or its best days when eight enemy fighter-bombers were destroyed. On 2 July, Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Coffey, Jr., the Air Executive, became the Ninth Air Force's third Thunderbolt ace. As with other P-47 groups, losses were modest until ground attack became a regular task in June. All told, 24 P-47s were 'missing in action' during their stay at Beaulieu.
The 365th Group began its move to the Continent on 21 June, the first squadron taking up residence at Azeville, France (A-71) on 26 June, the last moving out of Beaulieu on 28 June and the rear party on 2 July providing tactical air support in support of U.S. First Army. On the continent, the group moved rapidly from one airfield to another, eventually winding up near Fritzlar
, Germany (Y-86) on VE-Day
.
After the end of hostilities, the 365th Fighter Group took part in the disarmament program until June, then returned to the United States in September 1945, being inactivated at Camp Myles Standish, near Taunton
, Massachusetts on 22 September 1945.
Army Service Forces
The Army Service Forces were one of the three autonomous components of the Army of the United States during World War II, the others being the Army Air Forces and Army Ground Forces. They were created on February 28, 1942 by Executive Order Number 9082 "Reorganizing the Army and the War Department"...
stationed at Camp Myles Standish
Camp Myles Standish
Camp Myles Standish was a U.S. Army camp located in Taunton, Massachusetts. It functioned as a prisoner-of-war camp, a departure area for about a million U.S...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. It was inactivated on 22 September 1945.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the unit was assigned to Ninth Air Force
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina....
in England, flying its first combat mission on 22 February 1944. The 365th was one of the most successful P-47 groups of the Ninth Air Force when it came to air combat. It flew its last mission on 8 May 1945
Lineage
- Constituted as 365th Fighter Group on 27 April 1943
- Activated on 15 May 1943
- Inactivated on 22 September 1945
Assignments
- I Fighter CommandI Fighter CommandThe I Fighter Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the First Air Force, based at Mitchel Army Airfield, New York...
, 15 May 1943
- Attached to: Philadelphia Fighter WingPhiladelphia Fighter WingThe Philadelphia Fighter Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the I Fighter Command, stationed at Philadelphia Airport, Pennsylvania It was inactivated on 3 April 1946....
, 19 July – 4 December 1943- 70th Fighter Wing70th Fighter Wing (World War II)The 70th Fighter Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with thr United States Air Forces in Europe, based at Neubiberg Air Base, Germany...
- 70th Fighter Wing
- Attached to: IX Air Service CommandIX Tactical Air CommandThe IX Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Ninth Air Force, based at Camp Shanks, New York...
, 22 December 1943- 84th Fighter Wing84th Fighter Wing (World War II)The 84th Fighter Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the IX Tactical Air Command, based at Brunswick, Germany...
- 84th Fighter Wing
- Attached to: IX Tactical Air CommandIX Tactical Air CommandThe IX Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Ninth Air Force, based at Camp Shanks, New York...
, 1 August 1944
- 70th Fighter Wing70th Fighter Wing (World War II)The 70th Fighter Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with thr United States Air Forces in Europe, based at Neubiberg Air Base, Germany...
- Attached to: IX Tactical Air CommandIX Tactical Air CommandThe IX Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Ninth Air Force, based at Camp Shanks, New York...
, 1 October 1944- XIX Tactical Air CommandXIX Tactical Air CommandThe XIX Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. The unit's last assignment was with the Ninth Air Force based at Biggs Field, Texas...
, 16 January 1945 - IX Tactical Air CommandIX Tactical Air CommandThe IX Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Ninth Air Force, based at Camp Shanks, New York...
, 1 February – 11 September 1945 - Army Service ForcesArmy Service ForcesThe Army Service Forces were one of the three autonomous components of the Army of the United States during World War II, the others being the Army Air Forces and Army Ground Forces. They were created on February 28, 1942 by Executive Order Number 9082 "Reorganizing the Army and the War Department"...
(for inactivation), 20–22 September 1945
- XIX Tactical Air Command
Components
- 386th Fighter Squadron386th Fighter SquadronThe 386th Fighter Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 365th Fighter Group, stationed at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts. It was inactivated on 22 September 1945-History:...
(D5), 15 May 1943 – 22 September 1945 - 387th Fighter Squadron (B4), 15 May 1943 – 22 September 1945
- 388th Fighter Squadron388th Electronic Combat SquadronThe 388th Electronic Combat Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 366th Fighter Wing, based at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington as a Geographically Separated Unit .-History:...
(C4), 15 May 1943 – 22 September 1945
Stations
- Richmond AABRichmond International Airport- Accidents and incidents :*In 1996, Eastwind Airlines Flight 517 from Trenton experienced loss of rudder control while on approach to Richmond, however rudder control was regained shortly after and the aircraft landed normally. There was one minor injury....
, VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, 15 May 1943 - Langley Field, VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, 19 July 1943 - Dover AAFld, DelawareDelawareDelaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
, ; 11 August 1943 - Richmond AABRichmond International Airport- Accidents and incidents :*In 1996, Eastwind Airlines Flight 517 from Trenton experienced loss of rudder control while on approach to Richmond, however rudder control was regained shortly after and the aircraft landed normally. There was one minor injury....
, VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, 18 November – 4 December 1943 - RAF GosfieldRAF GosfieldRAF Station Gosfield is a former World War II airfield in Essex, England. The airfield is located approximately north of Braintree; about north-northeast of LondonOpened in 1943, it was used by both the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Force...
(AAF-154), England, 22 December 1943 - RAF BeaulieuRAF BeaulieuRAF Station Beaulieu was a World War II airfield in the New Forest, Hampshire, England. It was also known as Beaulieu airfield, Beaulieu aerodrome and USAAF Station AAF 408...
(AAF-408), England, 5 March 1944 - Azeville AirfieldAzeville AirfieldAzeville Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield, which is located near the commune of Azeville in the Basse-Normandie region of northern France....
(A-7), France, 28 June 1944 - Lignerolles AirfieldLignerolles AirfieldLignerolles Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield, which is located near the commune of Lignerolles in the Haute-Normandie region of northern France....
(A-12), France, 15 August 1944 - Bretigny Airfield (A-48), France, 3 September 1944
- Juvincourt AirfieldJuvincourt AirfieldJuvincourt Airfield is an abandoned military airfield, which is located near the commune of Juvincourt-et-Damary in the Aisne department of northern France....
(A-68), France, 15 September 1944 - Chievres Airfield (A-84), BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, 4 October 1944 - Metz Airfield (Y-34), France, 27 December 1944
- Florennes/Juzaine Airfield (A-78), BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, 30 January 1945 - Aachen Airfield (Y-46), Germany, 16 March 1945
- Fritzlar Airfield (Y-86), Germany, 13 April 1945
- SuippesSuippesSuippes is a picturesque commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France.It is home to France's 15th Artillery Regiment which once operated the nuclear Pluton missile as part of France's deterrent during the Cold war....
, France, (Ground Echelon) c. 29 July 1945 - Antwerp, Belgium, (Ground Echelon) c. 22 August – 11 September 1945
- Camp Myles StandishCamp Myles StandishCamp Myles Standish was a U.S. Army camp located in Taunton, Massachusetts. It functioned as a prisoner-of-war camp, a departure area for about a million U.S...
, MassachusettsMassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, 20–22 September 1945
World War II
RAF Gosfield
RAF Station Gosfield is a former World War II airfield in Essex, England. The airfield is located approximately north of Braintree; about north-northeast of LondonOpened in 1943, it was used by both the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Force...
England in December 1943. Assigned to Ninth Air Force
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina....
. It was several weeks before the 365th received a full complement of 75 P-47D Thunderbolts and mid-February 1944 before they were placed on operational status. Their first mission. flown on 22 February, was a bomber support sweep of short duration over enemy-held territory.
Early missions were flown in support of Eighth Air Force B-17 and B-24 bomber operations and on one of these on 2 March, the 365th had its first encounter with enemy fighters
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
in the Bastogne
Bastogne
Bastogne Luxembourgish: Baaschtnech) is a Walloon municipality of Belgium located in the province of Luxembourg in the Ardennes. The municipality of Bastogne includes the old communes of Longvilly, Noville, Villers-la-Bonne-Eau, and Wardin...
area resulting in the loss of one Thunderbolt and claims of six of the enemy shot down. Oberstleutant Egon Mayer. one of the most successful Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
aces flying in the West with 102 victories, fell in this battle.
On 5 March, with only nine missions to its credit the group moved south to RAF Beaulieu
RAF Beaulieu
RAF Station Beaulieu was a World War II airfield in the New Forest, Hampshire, England. It was also known as Beaulieu airfield, Beaulieu aerodrome and USAAF Station AAF 408...
in Hampshire. The group was stood down three days after arrival so that it could undertake a two-week intensive course in ground attack and fighter-bombing. After training, the 365th flew dive-bombing missions to attack such targets as bridges, aerodromes, rail facilities, gun positions, and V-weapon sites prior to the invasion of the Continent.
On D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
, its duties were attacking gun emplacements and communications facilities behind the bridgehead. Two P-47s were lost. On the following day when 12 separate squadron-sized missions were flown five aircraft failed to return.
An unusual accident occurred on 9 June when two P-47s being delivered to Beaulieu by ferry pilots landed on different runways at the same time and collided at the runway intersection with one pilot being killed.
The 365th was one of the most successful P-47 groups of the Ninth Air Force when it came to air combat, and a total of 29 enemy aircraft were credited as shot down during the four months the group operated from Beaulieu. On 25 June, the 365th had one or its best days when eight enemy fighter-bombers were destroyed. On 2 July, Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Coffey, Jr., the Air Executive, became the Ninth Air Force's third Thunderbolt ace. As with other P-47 groups, losses were modest until ground attack became a regular task in June. All told, 24 P-47s were 'missing in action' during their stay at Beaulieu.
The 365th Group began its move to the Continent on 21 June, the first squadron taking up residence at Azeville, France (A-71) on 26 June, the last moving out of Beaulieu on 28 June and the rear party on 2 July providing tactical air support in support of U.S. First Army. On the continent, the group moved rapidly from one airfield to another, eventually winding up near Fritzlar
Fritzlar
Fritzlar is a small German town in the Schwalm-Eder district in northern Hesse, north of Frankfurt, with a storied history. It can reasonably be argued that the town is the site where the Christianization of northern Germany began and the birthplace of the German empire as a political entity.The...
, Germany (Y-86) on VE-Day
Victory in Europe Day
Victory in Europe Day commemorates 8 May 1945 , the date when the World War II Allies formally accepted the unconditional surrender of the armed forces of Nazi Germany and the end of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich. The formal surrender of the occupying German forces in the Channel Islands was not...
.
After the end of hostilities, the 365th Fighter Group took part in the disarmament program until June, then returned to the United States in September 1945, being inactivated at Camp Myles Standish, near Taunton
Taunton, Massachusetts
Taunton is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the seat of Bristol County and the hub of the Greater Taunton Area. The city is located south of Boston, east of Providence, north of Fall River and west of Plymouth. The City of Taunton is situated on the Taunton River...
, Massachusetts on 22 September 1945.