417th Bombardment Group
Encyclopedia
The 417th Bombardment Group is an inactive United States Air Force
unit. Its last assignment was with V Bomber Command
, being stationed at Itami Airfield
, Japan, where it was inactivated on 5 November 1945.
During World War II
, the group operated primarily in the Southwest Pacific Theater as a light bombardment unit during the New Guinea
and Philippines
Campaigns. It was awarded both the United States Distinguished Unit Citation and the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation for its combat service.
the 417th trained on Douglas A-20 Havocs in Louisiana
and Oklahoma
. It moved to New Guinea between December 1943 and January 1944, and was assigned there to the Fifth Air Force
. It began combat in March 1944, operating in support of ground forces on New Guinea
and striking airfields, bridges personnel concentrations, installations, and shipping in that area.
Most sorties were flown at low level, since Japanese flak was not very intense. During these low level bombing operations, it was found that there was little need for a bomb aimer. Consequently, the bomb aimer was often replaced by additional forward-firing machine guns mounted in a faired-over nose. The A-20's heavy firepower, maneuverability, speed and bombload made it an ideal weapon for pinpoint strikes against aircraft, hangars, and supply dumps. In formation, their heavy forward firepower could overwhelm shipboard anti-aircraft defenses and at low level the A-20s could skip their bombs into the sides of transports and destroyers with deadly effect. Some A-20s had their heavy forward-firing armament supplemented by clusters of three Bazooka-type rocket tubes underneath each wing. These tubes each held an M8, T-30 4.5 inches (114.3 mm) spin-stabilized rocket. These rocket launcher tubes turned out to be heavy and complicated, and were generally more trouble than they were worth and were not often used.
The unit operated from Noemfoor between September and December 1944, attacking airfields and installations on Ceram
, Halmahera
, and western New Guinea. Moved to the Philippines in December 1944 at the end of the New Guinea campaign. Until June 1945 supported ground forces and attacked enemy airfields, transportation, and installations on Luzon
, Cebu
, Negros, and Mindanao
. Received a DUC for attacking Japanese convoys at Lingayen
, 30 December 1944 – 2 January 1945, an action that not only impaired enemy shipping and supply strength, but also helped to clear the way for the American invasion of Luzon. Flew its last missions in July, dropping propaganda leaflets to Japanese troops on Luzon. After the Philippines were secured, the group turned its attention to Japanese targets on Formosa
in early 1945. Moved to Okinawa in August 1945 and to Japan in November to be inactivated there on 15 November 1945.
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 V Bomber Command
V Bomber Command
The V Bomber Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Fifth Air Force, based at Irumagawa AB, Japan. It was inactivated on 31 May 1946....
, being stationed at Itami Airfield
Osaka International Airport
or Osaka-Itami International Airport is the primary domestic airport for the Kansai region of Japan, including the major cities of Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe. It is classified as a first class airport....
, Japan, where it was inactivated on 5 November 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 group operated primarily in the Southwest Pacific Theater as a light bombardment unit during the New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
and Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
Campaigns. It was awarded both the United States Distinguished Unit Citation and the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation for its combat service.
Lineage
- Constituted as 417th Bombardment Group (Light) on 23 March 1943
- Activated on 28 March 1943
- Inactivated on 15 November 1945
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 March – 10 December 1943 - V Bomber CommandV Bomber CommandThe V Bomber Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Fifth Air Force, based at Irumagawa AB, Japan. It was inactivated on 31 May 1946....
, 28 January 1944 – 1 November 1945
- Attached to: 309th Bombardment Wing309th Air DivisionThe 309th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Continental Air Command, assigned to Twelfth Air Force, being stationed at Hensley AFB, Texas. It was inactivated on 27 June 1949....
, 25 August-6 December 1944 - Attached to: 310th Bombardment Wing310th Air DivisionThe 310th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Continental Air Command, assigned to Twelfth Air Force, being stationed at Tinker AFB, Oklahoma...
, 9 January-1 November 1945
Components
- 672d Bombardment Squadron672d Technical Training SquadronThe 672d Technical Training Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 705th Strategic Missile Wing,, based at RAF Lakenheath, England. It was inactivated on October 1, 1959.-History:...
: 23 March 1943 – 15 November 1945 - 673d Bombardment Squadron673d Bombardment SquadronThe 673d Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 417th Bombardment Group, based at Itami Air Base, Japan...
: 23 March 1943 – 15 November 1945 - 674th Bombardment Squadron674th Bombardment SquadronThe 674th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 417th Bombardment Group, based at Itami Air Base, Japan...
: 23 March 1943 – 15 November 1945 - 675th Bombardment Squadron675th Bombardment SquadronThe 675th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 417th Bombardment Group, based at Itami Air Base, Japan...
: 23 March 1943 – 15 November 1945
Stations
- Will Rogers FieldWill Rogers World AirportWill Rogers World Airport , also known as Will Rogers Airport or simply Will Rogers, is located in southwestern Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 6 miles from downtown and is the principal commercial airport of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area...
, 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...
, 28 March 1943 - DeRidder Army Airbase, LouisianaLouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, 4 August – 10 December 1943 - Oro Bay (Cape Sudest) AirfieldOro Bay AirfieldOro Bay Airfield is a former World War II airfield in Oro Province, Papua New Guinea. The airfield was abandoned after the war and today is almost totally returned to its natural state.-History:...
, New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, 28 January 1944 - Dobodura AirfieldGirua Airport-History:Girua Airport is located near Dobodura, to the north-east of the Embi Lakes, north-east of Inonda. To the south is Mt. Lamington, a volcano that dominates the skyline. The airport was built during World War II as part of the Dobodura Airfield Complex during late 1942 and early 1943. ...
, New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, 7 February 1944 - Saidor AirfieldSaidor AirportSaidor Airport is an airport in Madang Province, Papua New Guinea. . It is a general aviation airport located at the coast near Saidor, near Saul Point with Dekys Bay to the east and the Bismarck Sea to the north.-History:...
, New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, 8 April 1944 - Kornasoren AirfieldKornasoren AirportKornasoren Airport is a civil airport in Noemfoor, Schouten Islands, Indonesia. . Currently, there is no commercial air service.-History:...
NoemfoorNoemfoorNumfor is one of the Biak Islands in Papua province, Indonesia. It was the site of conflict between Japanese and the Allied forces during World War II, and was major airbase for both sides.-Geography:The island is situated just north of the large Cenderawasih Bay...
, Schouten IslandsSchouten IslandsThe Indonesian Schouten Islands are an island group of Papua province, eastern Indonesia in the Cenderawasih Bay 50 km off the north-western coast of the island of New Guinea...
, New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
c. g September 1944 - Tacloban AirfieldDaniel Z. Romualdez Airport-Facilities:Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport's facilities include a single-storey terminal building, a communications tower and administrative building. Small cafes surround outside the terminal across the parking area.* Terminal...
, LeyteLeyteLeyte is a province of the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is Tacloban City and occupies the northern three-quarters of the Leyte Island. Leyte is located west of Samar Island, north of Southern Leyte and south of Biliran...
, Philippines, 6 December 1944 - McGuire FieldMcGuire FieldFor the airport in the United States, see San José International AirportSan Jose Airport , formerly known as McGuire Field, is an airport serving the general area of San Jose, Occidental Mindoro in the Philippines. It is one of three airports in Occidental Mindoro, the others being Mamburao...
, MindoroMindoroMindoro is the seventh-largest island in the Philippines. It is located off the coast of Luzon, and northeast of Palawan. The southern coast of Mindoro forms the northeastern extremum of the Sulu Sea.-History:...
, Philippines, 22 December 1944 - Motobu AirfieldMotobu AirfieldMotobu Airfield is a World War II airfield on the Motobu Peninsula of Okinawa, near the East China Sea coast. The airfield was deactivated after 1945.-History:...
, Okinawa, 17 August 1945 - Itami Air BaseOsaka International Airportor Osaka-Itami International Airport is the primary domestic airport for the Kansai region of Japan, including the major cities of Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe. It is classified as a first class airport....
, Japan, c. 1–15 November 1945.
Operational history
After activation with the Third Air ForceThird Air Force
The Third Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe . It is headquartered at Ramstein Air Base, Germany....
the 417th trained on Douglas A-20 Havocs in Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
and Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma 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...
. It moved to New Guinea between December 1943 and January 1944, and was assigned there to the Fifth Air Force
Fifth Air Force
The Fifth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces . It is headquartered at Yokota Air Base, Japan....
. It began combat in March 1944, operating in support of ground forces on New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
and striking airfields, bridges personnel concentrations, installations, and shipping in that area.
Most sorties were flown at low level, since Japanese flak was not very intense. During these low level bombing operations, it was found that there was little need for a bomb aimer. Consequently, the bomb aimer was often replaced by additional forward-firing machine guns mounted in a faired-over nose. The A-20's heavy firepower, maneuverability, speed and bombload made it an ideal weapon for pinpoint strikes against aircraft, hangars, and supply dumps. In formation, their heavy forward firepower could overwhelm shipboard anti-aircraft defenses and at low level the A-20s could skip their bombs into the sides of transports and destroyers with deadly effect. Some A-20s had their heavy forward-firing armament supplemented by clusters of three Bazooka-type rocket tubes underneath each wing. These tubes each held an M8, T-30 4.5 inches (114.3 mm) spin-stabilized rocket. These rocket launcher tubes turned out to be heavy and complicated, and were generally more trouble than they were worth and were not often used.
The unit operated from Noemfoor between September and December 1944, attacking airfields and installations on Ceram
CERAM
CERAM is a materials science and testing organisation based in Stoke-on-Trent specialising in the field of ceramics. The CERAM Group owns testing facilities around the world.-History:The British Refractories Research Association was formed in 1920...
, Halmahera
Halmahera
Halmahera is the largest island in the Maluku Islands. It is part of the North Maluku province of Indonesia.Halmahera has a land area of 17,780 km² and a population in 1995 of 162,728...
, and western New Guinea. Moved to the Philippines in December 1944 at the end of the New Guinea campaign. Until June 1945 supported ground forces and attacked enemy airfields, transportation, and installations on Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
, Cebu
Cebu
Cebu is a province in the Philippines, consisting of Cebu Island and 167 surrounding islands. It is located to the east of Negros, to the west of Leyte and Bohol islands...
, Negros, and Mindanao
Mindanao
Mindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
. Received a DUC for attacking Japanese convoys at Lingayen
Lingayen, Pangasinan
Lingayen is a 1st class municipality in the province of Pangasinan on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. It is the capital municipality and the seat of government of the province of Pangasinan. According to the latest census, it has a population of 95,773 people in 16,467 households.Lingayen...
, 30 December 1944 – 2 January 1945, an action that not only impaired enemy shipping and supply strength, but also helped to clear the way for the American invasion of Luzon. Flew its last missions in July, dropping propaganda leaflets to Japanese troops on Luzon. After the Philippines were secured, the group turned its attention to Japanese targets on Formosa
Formosa
Formosa or Ilha Formosa is a Portuguese historical name for Taiwan , literally meaning, "Beautiful Island". The term may also refer to:-Places:* Formosa Strait, another name for the Taiwan Strait...
in early 1945. Moved to Okinawa in August 1945 and to Japan in November to be inactivated there on 15 November 1945.