873d Tactical Missile Squadron
Encyclopedia
The 873d Tactical Missile Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force
unit. Its last assignment was with 498th Tactical Missile Group stationed at Kadena Air Base
, Okinawa.
Very Heavy bombardment squadrons. Trained in Kansas with early model B-29s, with frequent delays in training due to modifications of the aircraft correcting production deficiencies.
Deployed to Pacific Theater of Operations
(PTO), being assigned to XXI Bomber Command
in the Northern Mariana Islands
; assigned to Isley Field, Saipan
. Flew very long range strategic bombardment missions over the Japanese Home Islands, attacking military, industrial and transportation targets. Switched to night incendiary raids attacking major Japanese cities in the spring of 1945, causing massive destruction of urbanized areas. Awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation for combat over Japan
, 13 December 1944 and 1–7 June 1945. Continued strategic bombing raids and incendiary attacks until Japanese Capitulation in August 1945.
Reassigned to the United States as part of Continental Air Forces (later Strategic Air Command
). Assigned first to March Field, California
, then reassigned to MacDill Field, Florida
. Inactivated in early 1946 due to budget restrictions and lack of manpower due to demobilization. Remaining equipment and personnel consolidated into other SAC units.
Reactivated in 1961 as a MGM-13 Mace
Surface to Surface Missile squadron in Okinawa. Inactivated with the phaseout of the weapon in 1969.
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 498th Tactical Missile Group stationed at Kadena Air Base
Kadena Air Base
, is a United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Kadena Air Base is the hub of U.S. airpower in the Pacific, and home to the USAF's 18th Wing and a variety of associate units.-Units:The 18th Wing is the host unit at Kadena...
, Okinawa.
History
Established in 1943 as one of the initial B-29 SuperfortressB-29 Superfortress
The B-29 Superfortress is a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber designed by Boeing that was flown primarily by the United States Air Forces in late-World War II and through the Korean War. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II...
Very Heavy bombardment squadrons. Trained in Kansas with early model B-29s, with frequent delays in training due to modifications of the aircraft correcting production deficiencies.
Deployed to Pacific Theater of Operations
Pacific Theater of Operations
The Pacific Theater of Operations was the World War II area of military activity in the Pacific Ocean and the countries bordering it, a geographic scope that reflected the operational and administrative command structures of the American forces during that period...
(PTO), being assigned to XXI Bomber Command
XXI Bomber Command
The XXI Bomber Command was a unit of the Twentieth Air Force in Guam for strategic bombing during World War II.- Lineage:* Constituted as XXI Bomber Command on 1 Mar 1944, and activated the same day.-Assignments:...
in the Northern Mariana Islands
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines...
; assigned to Isley Field, Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
. Flew very long range strategic bombardment missions over the Japanese Home Islands, attacking military, industrial and transportation targets. Switched to night incendiary raids attacking major Japanese cities in the spring of 1945, causing massive destruction of urbanized areas. Awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation for combat over Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, 13 December 1944 and 1–7 June 1945. Continued strategic bombing raids and incendiary attacks until Japanese Capitulation in August 1945.
Reassigned to the United States as part of Continental Air Forces (later 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...
). Assigned first to March Field, California
California
California 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...
, then reassigned to MacDill Field, Florida
Florida
Florida 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...
. Inactivated in early 1946 due to budget restrictions and lack of manpower due to demobilization. Remaining equipment and personnel consolidated into other SAC units.
Reactivated in 1961 as a MGM-13 Mace
MGM-13 Mace
-See also:-External links:* * * * * * *...
Surface to Surface Missile squadron in Okinawa. Inactivated with the phaseout of the weapon in 1969.
Lineage
- Constituted 873d Bombardment Squadron on 19 November 1943
- Activated on 20 November 1943
- Inactivated on 4 August 1946
- Redesignated 873d Tactical Missile Squadron, and activated, on 25 April 1961
- Organized on 8 September 1961
- Inactivated on 8 July 1969
Assignments
- 498th Bombardment Group, 20 November 1943-4 August 1946
- Pacific Air Forces, 25 April 1961
- 498th Tactical Missile Group, 8 September 1961-8 July 1969
Stations
- Clovis Army Airfield, 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...
, 20 November 1943 - Great Bend Army AirfieldGreat Bend Army AirfieldGreat Bend Army Airfield is a closed United States Air Force base. It is located west-southwest of Great Bend, Kansas, and was closed in 1946. Today it is used as Great Bend Municipal Airport....
, KansasKansasKansas 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...
, 13 April-16 July 1944 - Isley Field, SaipanSaipanSaipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
, 7 September 1944-1 November 1945 - March Field, 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...
, c. 7 December 1943 - 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...
, 5 January-4 August 1946 - Kadena AB, Okinawa, 8 September 1961-8 July 1969
Aircraft and Missiles
- B-17 Flying Fortress, 1944
- B-29 SuperfortressB-29 SuperfortressThe B-29 Superfortress is a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber designed by Boeing that was flown primarily by the United States Air Forces in late-World War II and through the Korean War. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II...
, 1944–1946 - MGM-13 MaceMGM-13 Mace-See also:-External links:* * * * * * *...
, 1961–1969