57th Reconnaissance Squadron
Encyclopedia
The 57th Reconnaissance Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force Reserve squadron. Its last assignment was with the 9th Weather Reconnaissance Wing, based at Hickam Air Force Base
, Hawaii
. The unit was inactivated on November 10, 1969.
; spent World War II
in the United States as an Operational Training Unit (OTU), initially equipped with P-39 Aircobras for advanced fighter training. Reassigned to Third Air Force
in 1944, becoming a Replacement Training Unit (RTU) for A-36 Apache fighter-dive bomber ground attack aircraft.
Reassigned to Stuttgart AAB, Arkansas in 1945 and realigned into a long-range strategic weather reconnaissance squadron, training with B-25 Mitchell
s and long-ranger P-61C Black Widow Night Fighters modified for weather reconnaissance missions. Reassigned to Rapid City AAB, South Dakota in late 1945, using P-61Cs as part of a NACA
/Air Weather Service Thunderstorm Project to learn more about thunderstorms and to use this knowledge to better protect civil and military airplanes that operated in their vicinity. The P-61's radar and particular flight characteristics enabled it to find and penetrate the most turbulent regions of a storm, and return crew and instruments intact for detailed study. Inactivated in 1946 as part of the general demobilization of the AAF.
Reactivated as part of Strategic Air Command
in 1951 in Alaska, Equipped with very long range WB-29 Superfortresses 1951, upgrading to extended long-range WB-50D Superfortresses in 1956. Conducted long-range weather flights over the Arctic and along the northern periphery of the Soviet Union
; the aircraft being equipped with sensors for detecting radioactive debris to gather evidence when the Soviets tested nuclear devices. Inactivated in 1958 as part of the phaseout of the WB-50s from SAC and development of faster jet aircraft for the long-range intelligence mission.
Reactivated in 1962 at Kirtland AFB, New Mexico. Beginning in 1963 began to be equipped with new high-altitude reconnaissance RB-57F Canberra aircraft modified for high altitude, long range intelligence gathering, assigned to the meteorological role. Part of their duties involved high-altitude atmospheric sampling and radiation detection work in support of nuclear test monitoring. Over the next decade the RB-57Fs were flown on a worldwide basis at very high altitudes at high speeds; the squadron being reassigned to Australia
, then to Hawaii
. Stress cracks began appearing in the wing spars and ribs of the RB-57Fs after a few years of service. Some were sent to General Dynamics for repairs. By 1969 the aircraft were basically worn out and they were flown to Davis-Monthan for storage. Squadron was then inactivated.
Hickam Air Force Base
Hickam Field, re-named Hickam Air Force Base in 1948, was a United States Air Force facility now part of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, named in honor of aviation pioneer Lt Col Horace Meek Hickam.- History :...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. The unit was inactivated on November 10, 1969.
History
Activated in early 1943 under Fourth Air ForceFourth Air Force
The Fourth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Reserve . It is headquartered at March Air Reserve Base, California....
; spent 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...
in the United States as an Operational Training Unit (OTU), initially equipped with P-39 Aircobras for advanced fighter training. Reassigned to Third Air Force
Third 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....
in 1944, becoming a Replacement Training Unit (RTU) for A-36 Apache fighter-dive bomber ground attack aircraft.
Reassigned to Stuttgart AAB, Arkansas in 1945 and realigned into a long-range strategic weather reconnaissance squadron, training with B-25 Mitchell
B-25 Mitchell
The 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...
s and long-ranger P-61C Black Widow Night Fighters modified for weather reconnaissance missions. Reassigned to Rapid City AAB, South Dakota in late 1945, using P-61Cs as part of a NACA
NACA
- Organizations :* National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, the forerunner of the U.S. federal agency NASA* National Association for Campus Activities, an organization for programmers of university and college activities...
/Air Weather Service Thunderstorm Project to learn more about thunderstorms and to use this knowledge to better protect civil and military airplanes that operated in their vicinity. The P-61's radar and particular flight characteristics enabled it to find and penetrate the most turbulent regions of a storm, and return crew and instruments intact for detailed study. Inactivated in 1946 as part of the general demobilization of the AAF.
Reactivated as part of 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...
in 1951 in Alaska, Equipped with very long range WB-29 Superfortresses 1951, upgrading to extended long-range WB-50D Superfortresses in 1956. Conducted long-range weather flights over the Arctic and along the northern periphery of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
; the aircraft being equipped with sensors for detecting radioactive debris to gather evidence when the Soviets tested nuclear devices. Inactivated in 1958 as part of the phaseout of the WB-50s from SAC and development of faster jet aircraft for the long-range intelligence mission.
Reactivated in 1962 at Kirtland AFB, New Mexico. Beginning in 1963 began to be equipped with new high-altitude reconnaissance RB-57F Canberra aircraft modified for high altitude, long range intelligence gathering, assigned to the meteorological role. Part of their duties involved high-altitude atmospheric sampling and radiation detection work in support of nuclear test monitoring. Over the next decade the RB-57Fs were flown on a worldwide basis at very high altitudes at high speeds; the squadron being reassigned to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, then to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. Stress cracks began appearing in the wing spars and ribs of the RB-57Fs after a few years of service. Some were sent to General Dynamics for repairs. By 1969 the aircraft were basically worn out and they were flown to Davis-Monthan for storage. Squadron was then inactivated.
Lineage
- Constituted 399th Fighter Squadron on May 26, 1943
- Activated on August 1, 1943
- Redesignated: 399th Fighter-Bomber Squadron on April 5, 1944
- Redesignated: 399th Fighter Squadron on April 5, 1944
- Redesignated: 57th Reconnaissance Squadron (Weather) on July 7, 1945
- Inactivated on January 25, 1946
- Redesignated: 57th Reconnaissance Squadron (Very Long Range, Weather) on July 3, 1947
- Activated in the reserve on August 1, 1947
- Inactivated on June 27, 1949
- Redesignated: 57th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron (Medium, Weather) on January 22, 1951
- Activated on February 21, 1951
- Redesignated: 57th Weather Reconnaissance Squadron on February 15, 1954
- Inactivated on October 18, 1958. Activated on February 8, 1962
- Organized on February 16, 1962
- Inactivated November 10, 1969.
Assignments
- Eighth Air ForceEighth Air ForceThe 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....
- 369th Fighter Group, August 1, 1943
- Continental Air Forces
- 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....
, July 7, 1945- III Reconnaissance Command, July 21, 1945 – January 25, 1946
- 70th Reconnaissance Group, August 1, 1947 – June 27, 1949
- Military Air Transport ServiceMilitary Air Transport ServiceThe Military Air Transport Service is an inactive Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy Naval Air Transport Service and the United States Air Force Air Transport Command into a single, joint, unified command...
- Military Air Transport Service
- Air Weather Service, February 21, 1951
- 2142d Air Weather Wing, May 20, 1951
- 1st Weather Wing, February 8, 1954 – October 18, 1958
- Military Air Transport ServiceMilitary Air Transport ServiceThe Military Air Transport Service is an inactive Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy Naval Air Transport Service and the United States Air Force Air Transport Command into a single, joint, unified command...
, February 8, 1962
- Military Air Transport Service
- 9th Weather Reconnaissance Group, February 16, 1962 – July 8, 1965
- 9th Weather Reconnaissance Wing9th Weather Reconnaissance WingThe 9th Weather Reconnaissance Wing is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the Air Weather Service, being stationed at McClellan Air Force Base, California. It was inactivated on 31 August 1975.- History :...
, July 8, 1965 – November 10, 1969
Stations
- Hamilton AAF, CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, August 1, 1943 - Redding AAFRedding Municipal Airport-References:* Maurer, Maurer . Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.-External links:* at City of Redding web site...
, CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, November 1, 1943 - Hamilton AAF, CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, March 16, 1944 - 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...
, March 28, 1944 - Stuttgart AAFStuttgart Municipal AirportStuttgart Municipal Airport is a public-use airport located in Prairie County, Arkansas, United States. It is seven nautical miles north of the central business district of Stuttgart, which owns the airport and is the county seat of Arkansas County...
, ArkansasArkansasArkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, February 8, 1945 - 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...
, July 21, 1945 - Rapid City AAF, South DakotaSouth DakotaSouth 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 29, 1945 – January 25, 1946 - Hamilton AAF (later AFB), CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, August 1, 1947 – June 27, 1949 - Hickam AFB, Territory of HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, February 21, 1951 – October 18, 1958 - Kirtland AFB, New MexicoNew MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, February 16, 1962 - [Laverton RAAF base, Laverton, VictoriaLaverton, VictoriaLaverton is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 17 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Hobsons Bay and Wyndham. At the 2006 Census, Laverton had a population of 4508.-History:...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
,September , 1963 - July 8, 1965 - Avalon AirportAvalon AirportAvalon Airport is the second busiest of the four airports serving Melbourne and is located in Avalon, Victoria, Australia, which is north-east of the city of Geelong and to the south-west of the state's capital city of Melbourne....
, Avalon, VictoriaAvalon, VictoriaAvalon is a locality situated north east of Geelong, Victoria. Its Local Government Area is the City of Greater Geelong and its Ward is Windermere...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, July 8, 1965 - Hickam AFB, HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, September 15, 1965 – November 10, 1969
Aircraft Assigned
- P-39 Airacobra, 1943–1944
- A-36 Apache, 1944
- Curtiss P-40Curtiss P-40The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk was an American single-engine, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry into production and operational...
, 1944–1945 - 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...
, 1945 - P-61C Black Widow, 1945
- WB-29 Superfortress, 1951–1956
- WB-50 Superfortress, 1956–1958
- WB-57F Canberra, 1962–1969.
- [U2} circa 1963