381st Training Group
Encyclopedia
The United States Air Force
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...

 381st Training Group (381st TRG) at Vandenberg AFB, California provides training for the nation's space and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) operations and ICBM and Air Launched Missile (ALM) maintenance forces. This Air Education and Training Command (AETC) organization is a tenant unit located on an 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) site at Vandenberg AFB.

During the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

, the 381st Strategic Missile Wing maintained and operated Titan II Intercontinental ballistic missile
Intercontinental ballistic missile
An intercontinental ballistic missile is a ballistic missile with a long range typically designed for nuclear weapons delivery...

s for the Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...

 at McConnell AFB, Kansas.

During World War II, its predecessor unit, the 381st Bombardment Group (Heavy) was an Eighth Air Force
Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana....

 B-17 Flying Fortress unit in England, stationed at RAF Ridgewell
RAF Ridgewell
RAF Ridgewell is a former World War II airfield in England. The field is located 7½ miles NW of Halstead in Essex. During the war, the airfield was used by the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces Eighth Air Force.-Overview:...

. The group had the highest losses of all groups on first Schweinfurt mission on 17 August 1943. It flew 296 combat missions, with its last mission being flown on 25 April 1945

World War II

Constituted as the 381st Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 October 1942. Activated on 3 November 1942. Used B-17's in preparing for duty overseas. Moved to RAF Ridgewell
RAF Ridgewell
RAF Ridgewell is a former World War II airfield in England. The field is located 7½ miles NW of Halstead in Essex. During the war, the airfield was used by the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces Eighth Air Force.-Overview:...

 England, May–June 1943, and assigned to Eighth Air Force
Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana....

. The 381st was assigned to the 1st Combat Bombardment Wing of the 1st Bombardment Division.

The 381st Bomb Group operated chiefly against strategic objectives on the Continent. Specific targets included an aircraft assembly plant at Vélizy-Villacoublay
Vélizy-Villacoublay
Vélizy-Villacoublay is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the south-western suburbs of Paris from the center and east of Versailles...

, an airdrome at Amiens
Amiens
Amiens is a city and commune in northern France, north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in Picardy...

, locks at St Nazaire, an aircraft engine factory at Le Mans
Le Mans
Le Mans is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region.Its inhabitants are called Manceaux...

, nitrate works in Norway, aircraft plants in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...

, industrial areas of Münster
Münster
Münster is an independent city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also capital of the local government region Münsterland...

, U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...

 yards at Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...

, marshalling yards at Offenberg
Deggendorf (district)
Deggendorf is a district in Bavaria, Germany. It is bordered by the districts of Regen, Freyung-Grafenau, Passau, Rottal-Inn, Dingolfing-Landau and Straubing-Bogen.-History:The district was established in 1936...

, aircraft factories at Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...

, aircraft assembly plants at Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...

, oil refineries at Gelsenkirchen
Gelsenkirchen
Gelsenkirchen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the Ruhr area. Its population in 2006 was c. 267,000....

, and ball-bearing works at Schweinfurt
Schweinfurt
Schweinfurt is a city in the Lower Franconia region of Bavaria in Germany on the right bank of the canalized Main, which is here spanned by several bridges, 27 km northeast of Würzburg.- History :...

.

The Group received a Distinguished Unit Citation for performance on 8 October 1943 when shipyards at Bremen were bombed accurately in spite of persistent enemy fighter attacks and heavy flak, and received a second DUC for similar action on 11 January 1944 during a mission against aircraft factories in central Germany.

Aircraft from the 381st participated in the intensive campaign of heavy bombers against enemy aircraft factories during Big Week
Big Week
Between February 20–25, 1944, as part of the European strategic bombing campaign, the United States Strategic Air Forces launched Operation Argument, a series of missions against the Third Reich that became known as Big Week. The planners intended to lure the Luftwaffe into a decisive battle by...

, 20–25 February 1944, and the Group often supported ground troops and attacked targets of interdiction when not engaged in strategic bombardment.

The Group supported the Normandy invasion
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...

 in June 1944 by bombing bridges and airfields near the beachhead. Attacked enemy positions in advance of ground forces at Saint-Lô
Saint-Lô
Saint-Lô is a commune in north-western France, the capital of the Manche department in Normandy.-History:Originally called Briovère , the town is built on and around ramparts. Originally it was a Gaul fortified settlement...

 in July 1944. Assisted the airborne assault on Holland in September. Struck airfields and communications near the battle zone during the Battle of the Bulge
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...

, December 1944 – January 1945. Supported the Allied crossing of the Rhine in March 1945 and then operated against communications and transportation in the final push through Germany.

After V-E Day, the 381st Bomb Group returned to Sioux Falls AAF, South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...

 in July 1945 and was deactivated on 28 August.

Strategic Air Command

During the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

, the United States Air Force
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...

, via the Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...

 (SAC), established the 381st Strategic Missile Wing (381 SMW), based at McConnell AFB Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...

. The 381st maintained Titan II intercontinental ballistic missile
Intercontinental ballistic missile
An intercontinental ballistic missile is a ballistic missile with a long range typically designed for nuclear weapons delivery...

s on alert from 1 March 1962 until being deactivated on 8 August 1986. The 381st placed its first Titan II missile on alert in the fall of 1963. It became the host wing for McConnell AFB on 1 July 1973.

The wing was composed of two Strategic Missile Squadrons (the 532nd and the 533rd). These squadrons were each composed of nine ballistic launch complexes, each housing a Titan II Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. The Titan II being 105 feet long and 10 feet in diameter. The launch complex was about 150 feet deep and 50 feet in diameter including the 20 feet (6.1 m) launch tube which comprised its center.

The Titans were fully configured for immediate launch in a matter of two minutes. The launch sequence included a number of test and initiation functions as well as a 20 second door opening sequence. The Silo closure door weighed 780 tons and was locked down with hydraulically operated locks, and raised on hydraulic jacks. The hydraulics also operated the radial motors that pulled the door open with 1.5 inches (38.1 mm) steel cables (four of them). Launch initiation was also accompanied with attenuation water which flowed 9000 gallons per minute for sound suppression and protection of the silo during the launch.

Launch crews were composed of four personnel. Two officers were responsible for launch initiation, while two enlisted crewmembers were responsible for equipment checkout, repair and readiness. All four crewmembers were together responsible for communications, and final responsibility for launch. With an average of eight alerts (duty shifts at the site) per month, a crewmember achieved 200 alerts in about two years.

On 24 August 1978, an accident involving an oxidizer leak at launch complex 533-7 killed two Air Force personnel, caused the temporary evacuation of local communities, and damaged the site. A more positive event occurred during the following month as First Lieutenant Patricia E. Dougherty became the first female officer to perform SAC Titan II alert.

On 2 October 1981, Deputy Secretary of Defense Frank Carlucci
Frank Carlucci
Frank Charles Carlucci III is a former official in the United States Government, associated with the Republican Party. The most prominent office held by Carlucci was as Secretary of Defense from 1987 until 1989 in the Reagan Administration.-Early life and career:Carlucci was born in Scranton,...

 III ordered the inactivation of the Titan II weapon system. For McConnell, the end began on 2 July 1984, when Launch Complex 533-8 was removed from alert status. This silo would be placed in caretaker status on 31 August. The deactivation process received a setback on 2 November 1984, when fire broke out at Launch Complex 532-7 after liquid fuel had been unloaded from a deactivated Titan II. As a result of the ensuing investigation, Headquarters Strategic Air Command and the Ogden Air Logistics Center determined that the accident could have been prevented if different procedures were followed. With implementation of these procedures, Titan II deactivation continued.

On 8 August 1986, the 381st Strategic Missile Wing became the second Titan II wing to be deactivated. The 381st was deactivated after providing twenty-plus years of strategic deterrence and winning numerous awards, including the SAC missile combat competition Blanchard Trophy in 1972, 1975, 1980, and 1983.

Modern era

On 1 April 1994, the 381st was reactivated and re-designated by Air Education and Training Command
Air Education and Training Command
Air Education and Training Command was established July 1, 1993, with the realignment of Air Training Command and Air University. It is one of the U.S. Air Force's ten major commands and reports to Headquarters, United States Air Force....

 (AETC) as the 381st Training Group Provisional (381 TRG) under Second Air Force
Second Air Force
The Second Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Education and Training Command . It is headquartered at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi....

 and located at Vandenberg AFB, CA. A non-flying unit, the group, which was activated on 30 September 1994, is responsible for the consolidation of all space and missile training for Air Force Space Command
Air Force Space Command
Air Force Space Command is a major command of the United States Department of the Air Force, with its headquarters at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. AFSPC supports U.S. military operations worldwide through the use of many different types of satellite, launch and cyber operations....

.

The 381 TRG provides qualification training for ICBM, space surveillance, missile warning, spacelift, and satellite command and control operators. It also performs initial and advanced maintenance training on ALM and ICBM's. It conducts training in joint space fundamentals and associated computer maintenance. The group also conducts qualification and orientation training for Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) staff and senior-level personnel, as well as instructor enhancement in support of operational units.

In July 1993, responsibility for missile training was transferred from Air Combat Command to AETC. In September 1994, responsibility for space training was transferred from AFSPC to AETC and consolidated with the missile training units into the 381st Training Group. In October 1996, the space training squadrons moved from Colorado Springs to Vandenberg to further complete the unit's consolidation.

The group consists of five squadrons. The 381st Training Support Squadron provides faculty training, interactive courseware, registrar services, facility management, and resource management and procurement. The four other squadrons are dedicated to student training. The 392nd Training Squadron (TRS) conducts Enlisted Space Operations Training, Undergraduate Space and Missile Training, and ICBM Initial Qualification Training (IQT). The 532 TRS provides courses for ICBM, ALM, and spacelift maintenance. The 533TRS conducts space surveillance and early warning training. Detachment 1, 533 TRS, located at Schriever AFB, CO, performs training for command, missile warning, air defense and space operations at USNORTHCOM / NORAD's Cheyenne Mountain
Cheyenne Mountain
Cheyenne Mountain is a mountain located just outside the southwest side of Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S., and is home to the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station and its Cheyenne Mountain Directorate, formerly known as the Cheyenne Mountain Operations Center .Throughout the Cold War and...

 Air Force Station complex in Colorado. The 534 TRS provides spacelift and satellite command and control IQT. All in all, the group has graduated more than 6000 students from more than 100 different courses.

The 381 TRG is linked to the Air Force global engagement vision and its supporting core competencies through its mission of providing the highest quality space and missile operations and maintenance training for the Air Force and other agencies.

Lineage

  • Constituted as the 381st Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 October 1942
Activated on 3 November 1942
Inactivated 28 August 1945
  • Reactivated and redesignated as the 381st Strategic Missile Wing on 1 March 1962
Inactivated on 8 August 1986
  • Redesignated as 381st Training Group and reactivated on 1 April 1994

Assignments

  • II Bomber Command
    II Bomber Command
    The II Bomber Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Second Air Force, based at Fort George Wright, Washington. It was inactivated on 6 October 1943....

    , 3 November 1942 – 9 May 1943
  • 1st Bombardment Wing
    1st Bombardment Wing (World War II)
    The 1st Bombardment Wing is an inactive United States Army Air Force unit. It was the first wing formed in the reorganized United States Army Air Service, created in August 1919 to control three groups patrolling the border with Mexico after revolution broke out there. Its last assignment was with...

    , 31 June 1943
Attached to: 101st Provisional Combat Bombardment Wing, 31 June 1943
  • 1st Combat Bombardment Wing
    1st Bombardment Wing (World War II)
    The 1st Bombardment Wing is an inactive United States Army Air Force unit. It was the first wing formed in the reorganized United States Army Air Service, created in August 1919 to control three groups patrolling the border with Mexico after revolution broke out there. Its last assignment was with...

    , 13 September 1943 – 24 June 1945
  • Second Air Force
    Second Air Force
    The Second Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Education and Training Command . It is headquartered at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi....

    , July-28 August 1945
  • Strategic Air Command
    Strategic Air Command
    The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...

    , 29 November 1961

  • 42d Air (later 42d Strategic Aerospace) Division
    42d Air Division
    The 42d Air Division was a unit of the United States Air Force. It was established as the 42 Bombardment Wing on 8 February 1943. The wing first saw combat in September 1943. It was inactivated in 1991.-History:...

    , 1 March 1962
  • 17th Strategic Aerospace Division, 1 July 1963
  • 12th Strategic Missile (later 12th Air) Division, 30 June 1971
  • 19th Air Division, 1 July 1973 – 8 August 1986
  • Air Education and Training Command
    Air Education and Training Command
    Air Education and Training Command was established July 1, 1993, with the realignment of Air Training Command and Air University. It is one of the U.S. Air Force's ten major commands and reports to Headquarters, United States Air Force....

    , 1 April 1994–present


Components

  • 532d Bombardment (Later Strategic Missile, Training) Squadron
    532d Training Squadron
    The 532d Training Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 381st Training Group, stationed at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.-Mission:...

     (VE), 3 November 1942 – 28 August 1945; 1 March 1962-8 August 1986; 1 April 1994–present
  • 533d Bombardment (Later Strategic Missile, Training) Squadron
    533d Training Squadron
    The 533d Training Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 381st Training Group, stationed at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.-Mission:...

     (VP), 3 November 1942 – 28 August 1945; 1 March 1962-8 August 1986; 1 April 1994–present
  • 534th Bombardment Squadron
    534th Bombardment Squadron
    The 534th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 381st Bombardment Group, stationed at Sioux City Army Air Base, Iowa. It was inactivated on 27 June 1949.-History:...

     (GD), 3 November 1942 – 28 August 1945
  • 535th Bombardment Squadron
    535th Bombardment Squadron
    The 535th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 381st Bombardment Group, stationed at Sioux Falls Army Air Field, South Dakota. It was inactivated on 28 August 1945-History:...

     (MS), 3 November 1942 – 28 August 1945
  • 381st Training Support Squadron, 30 September 1994–present
  • 392d Training Squadron
    392d Training Squadron
    The United States Air Force's 392d Training Squadron is an intercontinental ballistic missile training unit at Vandenberg AFB, California...

    , 30 September 1994–present

Stations

  • Gowen Field
    Boise Airport
    Boise Airport , also known as Boise Air Terminal or Gowen Field, is a joint civil-military, commercial and general aviation airport located three nautical miles south of downtown Boise in Ada County, Idaho, USA...

    , Idaho
    Idaho
    Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....

    , 3 November 1942
  • Ephrata AAF
    Ephrata Municipal Airport
    Ephrata Municipal Airport is a public airport located two miles southeast of the central business district of Ephrata, a city in Grant County, Washington, USA. The airport covers and has two runways.-History:...

    , Washington, c. 1 December 1942
  • Pyote AAB
    Pyote Air Force Base
    Pyote Air Force Base was a World War II United States Army Air Forces training airbase. It was on a mile from the town of Pyote, Texas on Interstate 20, twenty miles west of Monahans and just south of U.S...

    , Texas, c. 3 January 1943
  • Pueblo AAB
    Pueblo Memorial Airport
    Pueblo Memorial Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located five miles east of the central business district of Pueblo, a city in Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. It is mostly used for general aviation, but is also served by one commercial airline. The Pueblo Airport is a popular...

    , Colorado
    Colorado
    Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

    , c. 5 April – c. 9 May 1943
  • RAF Ridgewell
    RAF Ridgewell
    RAF Ridgewell is a former World War II airfield in England. The field is located 7½ miles NW of Halstead in Essex. During the war, the airfield was used by the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces Eighth Air Force.-Overview:...

     (USAAF Station 167), England, June 1943 – June 1945
  • Sioux Falls AAF
    Sioux Falls Regional Airport
    Sioux Falls Regional Airport , also known as Joe Foss Field, is a joint civil and military use airport located three nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Sioux Falls, a city in Minnehaha County, South Dakota, United States...

    , South Dakota
    South Dakota
    South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...

    , July – 28 August 1945
  • McConnell AFB, Kansas
    Kansas
    Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...

    , 1 March 1962 – 8 August 1985
  • Vandenberg AFB, California, 1 April 1994–present

Aircraft and missiles

  • Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, 1942–1945
  • LGM-25C Titan II, 1962–1986

External links

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