731st Airlift Squadron
Encyclopedia
The 731st Airlift Squadron (731 AS) is part of the 302d Airlift Wing
at Peterson Air Force Base
, Colorado
. It operates C-130 Hercules
aircraft providing global airlift.
(ETO) assigned to VIII Bomber Command
in England
. Engaged in long-range strategic bombardment operations over Occupied Europe and Nazi Germany
, March 1944-May 1945 attacking enemy military and industrial targets as part of the United States' air offensive against Nazi Germany
. Most personnel demobilized in Europe after the German capitulation in May 1945; squadron inactivated as a paper unit in November.
Reactivated in 1947 as a B-29 Superfortress squadron in the reserves, however equipped with trainers until 1949 when equipped with B-26 Invader
light bomber. Squadron activated in 1951 as a result of the Korean War
; personnel and equipment assigned as replacements to units of Far East Air Forces, then inactivated as a paper unit.
Reactivated in 1952 with RB-26 Invader photo-reconnaissance aircraft; C-46 Commando
transports; F-51 Mustangs. and other second-line aircraft. In 1957 reassigned to Massachusetts
and re-equipped with C-119 Flying Boxcar
s for tactical airlift. Activated during Cuban Missile Crisis
in 1962; returned to reserve status after crisis was resolved. In 1966 re-equipped with C-124 Globemasters for performing strategic airlift on a worldwide scale. Reassigned to various reserve wings; flying C-123 Provider
s until inactivation in 1982. Reactivated in Colorado in the reserves same date and equipped with C-130 Hercules
.
302d Airlift Wing
The 302nd Airlift Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force Reserve based out of Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado.-Mission:...
at Peterson Air Force Base
Peterson Air Force Base
Peterson Air Force Base is a base of the United States Air Force located at Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States and it provides runways for the adjacent City of Colorado Springs Municipal Airport under a shared joint civil-military airport arrangement...
, 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...
. It operates C-130 Hercules
C-130 Hercules
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed, now Lockheed Martin. Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport...
aircraft providing global airlift.
History
Activated as a B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomb squadron; trained under Second Air Force. Completed training in early 1943; deploying to European Theater of OperationsEuropean Theater of Operations
The European Theater of Operations, United States Army was a United States Army formation which directed U.S. Army operations in parts of Europe from 1942 to 1945. It referred to Army Ground Forces, United States Army Air Forces, and Army Service Forces operations north of Italy and the...
(ETO) assigned to VIII Bomber Command
VIII Bomber Command
The VIII Bomber Command is an inactive United States Army Air Forces unit that is better known as the later appellation Eighth Air Force, as was popularized in post-World War II filmsand is frequently called the First Eighth Air Force by its veterans and successors in the services.The command was...
in England
England
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...
. Engaged in long-range strategic bombardment operations over Occupied Europe and Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, March 1944-May 1945 attacking enemy military and industrial targets as part of the United States' air offensive against Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. Most personnel demobilized in Europe after the German capitulation in May 1945; squadron inactivated as a paper unit in November.
Reactivated in 1947 as a B-29 Superfortress squadron in the reserves, however equipped with trainers until 1949 when equipped with B-26 Invader
A-26 Invader
The Douglas A-26 Invader was a United States twin-engined light attack bomber built by the Douglas Aircraft Co. during World War II that also saw service during several of the Cold War's major conflicts...
light bomber. Squadron activated in 1951 as a result of the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
; personnel and equipment assigned as replacements to units of Far East Air Forces, then inactivated as a paper unit.
Reactivated in 1952 with RB-26 Invader photo-reconnaissance aircraft; C-46 Commando
C-46 Commando
The Curtiss-Wright C-46 Commando was a transport aircraft originally derived from a commercial high-altitude airliner design. It was instead used as a military transport during World War II by the United States Army Air Forces as well as the U.S. Navy/Marine Corps under the designation R5C...
transports; F-51 Mustangs. and other second-line aircraft. In 1957 reassigned to 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...
and re-equipped with C-119 Flying Boxcar
C-119 Flying Boxcar
The Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar was an American military transport aircraft developed from the World War II-era Fairchild C-82 Packet, designed to carry cargo, personnel, litter patients, and mechanized equipment, and to drop cargo and troops by parachute...
s for tactical airlift. Activated during Cuban Missile Crisis
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation among the Soviet Union, Cuba and the United States in October 1962, during the Cold War...
in 1962; returned to reserve status after crisis was resolved. In 1966 re-equipped with C-124 Globemasters for performing strategic airlift on a worldwide scale. Reassigned to various reserve wings; flying C-123 Provider
C-123 Provider
The C-123 Provider was an American military transport aircraft designed by Chase Aircraft and subsequently built by Fairchild Aircraft for the United States Air Force...
s until inactivation in 1982. Reactivated in Colorado in the reserves same date and equipped with C-130 Hercules
C-130 Hercules
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed, now Lockheed Martin. Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport...
.
Lineage
- Constituted as 331 Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 28 Jan 1942
- Activated on 15 Jun 1942
- Redesignated 331 Bombardment Squadron, Heavy on 20 Aug 1943
- Inactivated on 29 Nov 1945
- Redesignated 331 Bombardment Squadron, Very Heavy on 13 May 1947
- Activated in the Reserve on 29 May 1947
- Redesignated 331 Bombardment Squadron, Light on 26 Jun 1949
- Ordered to active service on 10 Mar 1951
- Inactivated on 20 Mar 1951
- Redesignated 331 Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron on 26 May 1952
- Activated in the Reserve on 14 Jun 1952
- Redesignated 331 Bombardment Squadron, Tactical on 18 May 1955
- Redesignated 731 Troop Carrier Squadron, Medium on 1 July 1957
- Ordered to active service on 28 Oct 1962
- Relieved from active duty on 28 Nov 1962
- Redesignated: 731 Military Airlift Squadron on 1 Jan 1967
- Redesignated: 731 Tactical Airlift Squadron on 1 Oct 1972
- Inactivated on 1 Oct 1982
- Activated in the Reserve on 1 Oct 1982
- Redesignated 731 Airlift Squadron on 1 Feb 1992.
Assignments
- 94th Bombardment Group, 15 Jun 1942-29 Nov 1945; 29 May 1947-20 Mar 1951
- 94th Tactical Reconnaissance (later, 94 Bombardment; 94 Troop Carrier) Group, 14 Jun 1952
- 94th Troop Carrier Wing, 14 Apr 1959
- 901st (later, 901 Military Airlift; 901 Tactical Airlift) Group, 11 Feb 1963
- 439th Tactical Airlift Wing, 1 Apr 1974-1 Oct 1982
- 901st Tactical Airlift Group, 1 Oct 1982
- 302d Tactical Airlift (later, 302 Airlift) Wing302d Airlift WingThe 302nd Airlift Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force Reserve based out of Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado.-Mission:...
, 1 Apr 1985 - 302d Operations Group302d Operations GroupThe 302d Operations Group is the operational flying component of the United States Air Force Reserve 302d Airlift Wing. It is stationed at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado....
, 1 Aug 1992–present
Stations
- MacDill 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...
, 15 Jun 1942 - Pendleton Field, OregonOregonOregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, 29 Jun 1942 - Davis-Monthan Field, ArizonaArizonaArizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, 29 Aug 1942 - Biggs Field, TexasTexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, 1 Nov 1942 - Pueblo Army Air BasePueblo Memorial AirportPueblo 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...
, ColoradoColoradoColorado 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...
, 3 Jan-17 Apr 1943 - RAF Earls Colne (AAF-358), 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...
, 11 May 1943 - RAF Bury St. Edmunds (AAF-468), England, c. 13 Jun 1943-22 Nov 1945
- Camp KilmerCamp KilmerCamp Kilmer, New Jersey is a former United States Army camp that was activated in June 1942 as a staging area and part of an installation of the New York Port of Embarkation. The camp was organized as part of the Army Service Forces Transportation Corps. Troops were quartered at Camp Kilmer in...
, New JerseyNew JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, c. 27-29 Nov 1945 - Marietta Army Airfield (later Dobbins AFB), GeorgiaGeorgia (U.S. state)Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, 29 May 1947-20 Mar 1951; 14 Jun 1952 - Scott Air Force BaseScott Air Force BaseScott Air Force Base is a base of the United States Air Force in St. Clair County, Illinois, near Belleville.-Overview:The base is named after Corporal Frank S. Scott, the first enlisted person to be killed in an aviation crash...
, IllinoisIllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, 18 May 1955 - Hanscom Air Force BaseHanscom Air Force BaseHanscom Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately south-southwest of Bedford, Massachusetts. The facility is a joint use civil airport/military base with Hanscom Field which provides general aviation and charter service.The host unit at Hanscom is the non-flying...
, 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...
, 16 Nov 1957 - Westover Air Reserve Base, 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...
, 17 Sep 1973-1 Oct 1982 - Peterson Air Force BasePeterson Air Force BasePeterson Air Force Base is a base of the United States Air Force located at Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States and it provides runways for the adjacent City of Colorado Springs Municipal Airport under a shared joint civil-military airport arrangement...
, ColoradoColoradoColorado 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...
, 1 Oct 1982–Present
Aircraft Operated
- B-17 Flying Fortress (1942–1945)
- T-6 TexanT-6 TexanThe North American Aviation T-6 Texan was a single-engine advanced trainer aircraft used to train pilots of the United States Army Air Forces, United States Navy, Royal Air Force and other air forces of the British Commonwealth during World War II and into the 1950s...
(1947–1950, 1952–1954) - T-7 NavigatorBeechcraft Model 18The Beechcraft Model 18, or "Twin Beech", as it is better known, is a 6-11 seat, twin-engine, low-wing, conventional-gear aircraft that was manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas...
(1947–1951) - T-11 KansanBeechcraft Model 18The Beechcraft Model 18, or "Twin Beech", as it is better known, is a 6-11 seat, twin-engine, low-wing, conventional-gear aircraft that was manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas...
(1947–1951) - B-26 MarauderB-26 MarauderThe Martin B-26 Marauder was a World War II twin-engine medium bomber built by the Glenn L. Martin Company. First used in the Pacific Theater in early 1942, it was also used in the Mediterranean Theater and in Western Europe....
(1949–1951, 1953–1957) - C-46 CommandoC-46 CommandoThe Curtiss-Wright C-46 Commando was a transport aircraft originally derived from a commercial high-altitude airliner design. It was instead used as a military transport during World War II by the United States Army Air Forces as well as the U.S. Navy/Marine Corps under the designation R5C...
(1952–1955)
- P-51 MustangP-51 MustangThe North American Aviation P-51 Mustang was an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II, the Korean War and in several other conflicts...
(1953–1955) - T-28 TrojanT-28 TrojanThe North American Aviation T-28 Trojan is a piston-engined military trainer aircraft used by the United States Air Force and United States Navy beginning in the 1950s...
(1953–1954) - C-45 ExpeditorBeechcraft Model 18The Beechcraft Model 18, or "Twin Beech", as it is better known, is a 6-11 seat, twin-engine, low-wing, conventional-gear aircraft that was manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas...
(1953–1955) - T-33 Shooting StarT-33 Shooting StarThe Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star is an American-built jet trainer aircraft. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948, piloted by Tony LeVier. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then designated T-33A. It was used by the...
(1954–1955) - F-80 Shooting Star (1954–1955)
- RB-26 InvaderA-26 InvaderThe Douglas A-26 Invader was a United States twin-engined light attack bomber built by the Douglas Aircraft Co. during World War II that also saw service during several of the Cold War's major conflicts...
(1954–1955)
- F-84 ThunderjetF-84 ThunderjetThe Republic F-84 Thunderjet was an American turbojet fighter-bomber aircraft. Originating as a 1944 United States Army Air Forces proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 flew in 1946...
(1954–1955) - C-47 SkytrainC-47 SkytrainThe Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota is a military transport aircraft that was developed from the Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in front line operations through the 1950s with a few remaining in operation to this day.-Design and...
(1955) - C-119 Flying BoxcarC-119 Flying BoxcarThe Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar was an American military transport aircraft developed from the World War II-era Fairchild C-82 Packet, designed to carry cargo, personnel, litter patients, and mechanized equipment, and to drop cargo and troops by parachute...
(1957–1966) - C-124 Globemaster IIC-124 Globemaster IIThe Douglas C-124 Globemaster II, nicknamed "Old Shakey", was a heavy-lift cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, California....
(1966–1972) - C-123 ProviderC-123 ProviderThe C-123 Provider was an American military transport aircraft designed by Chase Aircraft and subsequently built by Fairchild Aircraft for the United States Air Force...
(1972–1982) - C-130 HerculesC-130 HerculesThe Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed, now Lockheed Martin. Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport...
(1982 – Present)