521st Air Mobility Operations Wing
Encyclopedia
The 521st Air Mobility Operations Wing (521 AMOW) is part of Air Mobility Command
and is stationed at Ramstein Air Base
, Germany
. It coordinates logistical air movements into, out of, and through Europe
.
and France
following the D-Day
invasion, and during the occupation of Germany from, 1944-1945.
The unit provided radar
coverage and navigational aid to allied
aircraft flying over the US Zone of Occupied Europe from, 1946-1947. Between 1949-1960, provided tactical
control systems, including aircraft control and warning facilities, passive detection devices and guidance units, in central Europe
an area.
Air Mobility Command
Air Mobility Command is a Major Command of the U.S. Air Force. AMC is headquartered at Scott AFB, Illinois, east of St. Louis....
and is stationed at Ramstein Air Base
Ramstein Air Base
Ramstein Air Base is a United States Air Force base in the German state of Rheinland-Pfalz. It serves as headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe and is also a North Atlantic Treaty Organization installation...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It coordinates logistical air movements into, out of, and through Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Units
The 521st Air Mobility Operations Wing is composed of two groups:- 521st Air Mobility Operations Group (521 AMOG)
- 721st Air Mobility Operations Group (721 AMOG)
History
Originally constituted as the 555th Signal Aircraft Warning Battalion the unit served as an aircraft warning unit in defense of the continental United States from, 1942-1943. The battalion went on to provide communications support in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
following the 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...
invasion, and during the occupation of Germany from, 1944-1945.
The unit provided radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
coverage and navigational aid to allied
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
aircraft flying over the US Zone of Occupied Europe from, 1946-1947. Between 1949-1960, provided tactical
Military tactics
Military tactics, the science and art of organizing an army or an air force, are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating an enemy in battle. Changes in philosophy and technology over time have been reflected in changes to military tactics. In...
control systems, including aircraft control and warning facilities, passive detection devices and guidance units, in central Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an area.
Lineage
- 555th Signal Aircraft Warning Battalion (Separate) (1942–1943)
- 555th Signal Aircraft Warning Battalion (1943–1945)
- 501st Tactical Control Group (1945–1949)
- 501st Aircraft Control and Warning Group (1949–1952)
- 501st Tactical Control Group (1952–1957)
- 501st Tactical Control Wing (1957–1985)
- 521st Tactical Control Wing (1985–2008)
- 521st Air Mobility Operations Wing(2008–Present)
Assignments
- III Fighter Command (1942)
- Aircraft Warning Unit Training Center (1942–1943)
- 70th Fighter Wing (1943–1944)
- IX Tactical Air Command (1944–1945)
- 70th Fighter Wing (1945)
- XXIX Tactical Air CommandXXIX Tactical Air CommandThe XXIX Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Ninth Air Force, based at Weimar, Germany...
(1945) - XII Tactical Air Command (1945–1947)
- 51st Troop Carrier Wing (1947)
- United States Air Forces in EuropeUnited States Air Forces in EuropeThe United States Air Forces in Europe is the United States Air Force component of U.S. European Command, a Department of Defense unified command, and is one of two Air Force Major Commands outside of the continental United States, the other being the Pacific Air Forces...
(1949) - 2d Air Division (1949–1951)
- 12th Air Force (1951–1957)
- United States Air Forces in Europe (1957–1959)
- 17th Air Force (1959–1960)
- 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force (2008–Present)
Bases stationed
- Drew Field, FloridaFloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
(1942–1943) - 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...
(1943–1944) - Popham AirfieldPopham AirfieldPopham Airfield is an unlicensed airfield located south west of Basingstoke, Hampshire, UK. It lies alongside the A303 road.The airfield has two grass runways, designated 08/26 and 03/21. The latter has restricted operational dates...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
(1944) - RAF BoxtedRAF BoxtedRAF Boxted is a former World War II airfield in Essex, England. The airfield is located approximately north-northeast of Colchester; about northeast of London...
, England (1944) - RAF IbsleyRAF IbsleyRAF Station Ibsley is a former World War II airfield in Hampshire, England. The airfield is located near the village of Ibsley, approximately north of Ringwood; about southwest of London...
, England (1944) - PlymouthPlymouthPlymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
, England (1944) - Vierville-sur-MerVierville-sur-Mer-External links:* *...
, FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
(1944) - Cricqueville, France (1944)
- Villedieu, France (1944)
- Le Teilleuie, France (1944)
- Aillieres, France (1944)
- Les Loges-an-Josas, France (1944)
- ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France (1944) - Ham-sur-Huere, 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...
(1944)
- VerviersVerviersVerviers is a Walloon city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Liège. The Verviers municipality includes the old communes of Ensival, Lambermont, Petit-Rechain, Stembert, and Heusy...
, Belgium (1944, 1945) - GosseliesGosseliesGosselies is a section of the Belgian town of Charleroi within the Walloon region in the Province of Hainaut. It was a commune of its own before the merger of the communes in 1977. Gosselies is the home for the headquarters of Caterpillar Belgium, and Solar Turbines Europe....
, Belgium (1944–1945) - BrühlBrühl-Places and locations:Germany* Brühl * Brühl * Brühl , a street in LeipzigPoland* Brühl Palace, Warsaw-People:* Alois Friedrich von Brühl , a Polish-Saxon diplomat, politician, soldier, actor and playwright...
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
(1945) - Bad WildungenBad WildungenBad Wildungen is a state-run spa and a small town in Waldeck-Frankenberg district in Hesse, Germany. It is located on the German Framework Road.-Geography:-Location:...
, Germany (1945) - GöttingenGöttingenGöttingen is a university town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Göttingen. The Leine river runs through the town. In 2006 the population was 129,686.-General information:...
, Germany (1945) - NohraNohraNohra is a municipality in the Weimarer Land district of Thuringia, Germany. On 1 December 2007, the former municipality Utzberg was incorporated by Nohra....
, Germany (1945) - FritzlarFritzlarFritzlar 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 (1945) - Fürstenfeldbruck Air BaseFürstenfeldbruck Air BaseFürstenfeldbruck Air Base is a German Air Force airfield located near the town of Fürstenfeldbruck in Bavaria, near Munich, Germany....
, Germany (1945–1946) - Bad KissingenBad KissingenBad Kissingen is a spa town in the Bavarian region of Lower Franconia and is the seat of the district Bad Kissingen. Situated to the south of the Rhön Mountains on the Franconian Saale river, it is a world-famous health resort.- Town structure :...
, Germany (1946–1947) - Wiesbaden Air Base (1947)
- ZwingenbergZwingenbergZwingenberg lies in the Bergstraße district in southern Hesse, Germany, south of Frankfurt and Darmstadt, and with the granting of town rights coming in 1274 it is the oldest town on the Hessian Bergstraße.- Location :...
, Germany (1949) - Landsberg-Lech Air BaseLandsberg-Lech Air BaseLandsberg-Lech Air Base is a German Air Force base located near the town of Landsberg am Lech in Bavaria.Landsberg is used as a transport base...
, Germany (1949–1952) - KaiserslauternKaiserslauternKaiserslautern is a city in southwest Germany, located in the Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate forest . The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, and from Luxembourg.Kaiserslautern is home to 99,469 people...
, Germany (1952–1954) - Ramstein Air BaseRamstein Air BaseRamstein Air Base is a United States Air Force base in the German state of Rheinland-Pfalz. It serves as headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe and is also a North Atlantic Treaty Organization installation...
, Germany (1954–1960, 2008–Present) - NAVSTA Rota, Spain (2009–Present)