2d Bombardment Squadron
Encyclopedia
The 2d Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force
unit. Its last assignment was with the Strategic Air Command
22d Bombardment Wing
stationed at March AFB, California. It was inactivated on 1 October 1982.
s and stationed at Langley Field, Virginia
. Received early production B-26 Marauder
aircraft in late 1941. After the Pearl Harbor Attack, deployed to California
and flew antisubmarine patrols over the central and southern California coast.
Deployed to the new Fifth Air Force
in Australia
during February 1942, carrying out combat operations over Papua New Guinea
in support of Allied ground forces engaging the invading Japanese beginning in April. Engaged in combat throughout the Southwest Pacific Area, being re-equipped with B-25 Mitchell
s in 1943, and very long range B-24 Liberator
heavy bombers in 1944. Fought in the 1944-1945 Philippines Campaign, continuing raids on Japanese forces on Okinawa in 1945.
Squadron demobilized after the Japanese Capitulation, however carried as a B-29 Superfortress
Very Heavy bombers and assigned to Twentieth Air Force
in 1946 but not manned or equipped. Returned to the United States and assigned to Strategic Air Command
at March AFB in 1948, operating B-29s. Deployed to Okinawa and flew combat operations over North Korea
after the breakout of the Korean War
in 1950, remaining attached to Far East Air Force Bomber Command until returning to the United States in October. Operated B-29s under SAC until 1953, upgraded to B-47 Stratojet
medium bombers. Engaged in worldwide training exercises throughout the 1950s and early 1960s until the B-47 was phased out of the inventory.
Equipped with B-52B Stratofortresses for training in 1963; then operational B-52Ds in 1966. Deployed to Western Pacific bases during the Vietnam War
and conducted combat operations over Indochina
, engaging in Operation Arc Light, Linebacker I and Linebacker II raids over North Vietnam
until 1973. Returned to the United States and stood nuclear alert until being inactivated in 1982.
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 the 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...
22d Bombardment Wing
22d Air Refueling Wing
The 22d Air Refueling Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Mobility Command's Eighteenth Air Force. It is stationed at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas and also functions as the host wing for McConnell AFB....
stationed at March AFB, California. It was inactivated on 1 October 1982.
History
Established as a medium bombardment squadron in 1940 under the GHQAF Northeast Air District; being assigned B-18 BoloB-18 Bolo
The Douglas B-18 Bolo was a United States Army Air Corps and Royal Canadian Air Force bomber of the late 1930s and early 1940s. The Bolo was built by Douglas Aircraft Company and based on its DC-2 and was developed to replace the Martin B-10....
s and stationed at Langley Field, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. Received early production B-26 Marauder
B-26 Marauder
The 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....
aircraft in late 1941. After the Pearl Harbor Attack, deployed to 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...
and flew antisubmarine patrols over the central and southern California coast.
Deployed to the new 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....
in 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...
during February 1942, carrying out combat operations over Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
in support of Allied ground forces engaging the invading Japanese beginning in April. Engaged in combat throughout the Southwest Pacific Area, being re-equipped 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 in 1943, and very long range B-24 Liberator
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...
heavy bombers in 1944. Fought in the 1944-1945 Philippines Campaign, continuing raids on Japanese forces on Okinawa in 1945.
Squadron demobilized after the Japanese Capitulation, however carried as a B-29 Superfortress
B-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 bombers and assigned to Twentieth Air Force
Twentieth Air Force
The Twentieth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming.20 AF's primary mission is Intercontinental Ballistic Missile operations...
in 1946 but not manned or equipped. Returned to the United States and assigned to 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...
at March AFB in 1948, operating B-29s. Deployed to Okinawa and flew combat operations over North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
after the breakout 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...
in 1950, remaining attached to Far East Air Force Bomber Command until returning to the United States in October. Operated B-29s under SAC until 1953, upgraded to B-47 Stratojet
B-47 Stratojet
The Boeing Model 450 B-47 Stratojet was a long-range, six-engined, jet-powered medium bomber built to fly at high subsonic speeds and at high altitudes. It was primarily designed to drop nuclear bombs on the Soviet Union...
medium bombers. Engaged in worldwide training exercises throughout the 1950s and early 1960s until the B-47 was phased out of the inventory.
Equipped with B-52B Stratofortresses for training in 1963; then operational B-52Ds in 1966. Deployed to Western Pacific bases during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and conducted combat operations over Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
, engaging in Operation Arc Light, Linebacker I and Linebacker II raids over North Vietnam
North Vietnam
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam , was a communist state that ruled the northern half of Vietnam from 1954 until 1976 following the Geneva Conference and laid claim to all of Vietnam from 1945 to 1954 during the First Indochina War, during which they controlled pockets of territory throughout...
until 1973. Returned to the United States and stood nuclear alert until being inactivated in 1982.
Lineage
- Constituted 2d Bombardment Squadron on 1 January 1938
- Redesignated: 2d Bombardment Squadron (Medium) and activated on 1 February 1940
- Redesignated: 2d Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 3 February 1944
- Redesignated: 2d Bombardment Squadron (Very Heavy) on 30 April 1946
- Redesignated: 2d Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 28 July 1948
- Redesignated: 2d Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 15 September 1963
- Inactivated on 1 October 1982
Assignments
- 22d Bombardment Group, 1 February 1940
- 22d Bombardment Wing, 16 June 1952 – 1 October 1982
Stations
- Bolling Field, Washington, D.C., 1 February 1940
- Langley Field, VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, 14 November 1940 - Muroc AAF, California, c. 9 December 1941 – 29 January 1942
- Archerfield Airport (Brisbane)Archerfield AirportArcherfield Airport is a small airport located 7 1/2 miles at Archerfield in the south west of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. For some time it was the primary airport in Brisbane. During World War II it was used as a Royal Australian Air Force station. Airport traffic peaked in the 1980s...
, Australia, 25 February 1942 - RAAF Base Amberley (Ipswich Afld)RAAF Base AmberleyRAAF Base Amberley is a Royal Australian Air Force base located southwest of Ipswich, Queensland and southwest of Brisbane. It is currently home to No. 1 Squadron and No. 6 Squadron , No. 33 Squadron and No. 36 Squadron...
, Australia, 2 March 1942 - RAAF Base TownsvilleRAAF Base TownsvilleRAAF Base Townsville is, along with RAAF Base Tindal and RAAF Base Darwin, one of northern Australia's primary defence installations. It is also Headquarters for No...
, Australia, 7 April 1942 - Reid River AirfieldReid River AirfieldReid River Airfield is a World War II airfield located to the south of the Reid River near Townsville, Queensland, Australia.Disused since the war as an airfield, the former base is private property used for mustering cattle and horses. An arch marks the western edge of the strip, easily accessible...
, Australia, 9 April 1942 - 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...
, 9 October 1943 - Nadzab AirfieldLae Nadzab AirportLae Nadzab Airport is a regional airport located in Lae, Papua New Guinea. It is served by regional aircraft with domestic flight.-Airlines and destinations:-History:...
, New Guinea, 19 December 1943 - Owi AirfieldOwi AirfieldOwi Airfield is a World War II airfield located on Pulau Owi island in the Schouten Islands, Indonesia.The airfield was built by the Americans and used as a major command and control, as well as an operational fighter and bomber base in from the summer of 1944 until the end of the war in September...
, 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...
, Netherlands East Indies, 11 August 1944 - Dulag, 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, c. 19 November 1944
- AngaurAngaurAngaur or Ngeaur is an island in the island nation of Palau. The island, which forms its own state, has an area of 8 km² . Its population is 188 . State capital is the village of Ngeremasch on the western side...
, Palau IslandsPalauPalau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
, c. 28 November 1944 - Guiuan AirfieldGuiuan AirfieldGuiuan Airfield is a World War II airfield located near Guiuan in the province of Eastern Samar, Samar, Philippines. It was closed after the war.-History:...
, Samar, Philippines, 26 January 1945 - Clark Field, LuzonLuzonLuzon 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...
, Philippines, March 1945 - 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, 18 August 1945 - Fort William McKinleyFort William McKinleyFort William McKinley, was established in the Philippines during the Philippine–American War in 1901 when the whole land south of Pasig River down to Alabang was declared a U.S. Military Reservation. During the World War II era, it was where USAFFE had its headquarters for the Philippine Department...
, Luzon, 23 November 1945 - 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, 15 May 1946 - Smoky Hill AFB, Kansas, 18 May 1948
- March AFB, California, 10 May 1949 – 1 October 1982
- Operated from Kadena AFB, Okinawa, c. 9 July – c. 30 October 1950
- Deployed at: RAF WytonRAF WytonRAF Wyton is a Royal Air Force station near St. Ives, Cambridgeshire, England.In terms of organisation RAF Wyton is now part of the combined station RAF Brampton Wyton Henlow, a merger of Wyton with two previously separate bases, RAF Brampton and RAF Henlow. Wyton is the largest of the three. It...
, England, 5 September – 9 December 1951 - Deployed at: RAF Upper HeyfordRAF Upper HeyfordRAF Upper Heyford was a Royal Air Force station located north-west of Bicester near the village of Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire, England. The base was brought into use for flying in July 1918 by the Royal Flying Corps. During World War II it was used by many units of the RAF, mainly as a training...
, England, 9 December 1953 – 5 March 1954
Aircraft
- B-18 BoloB-18 BoloThe Douglas B-18 Bolo was a United States Army Air Corps and Royal Canadian Air Force bomber of the late 1930s and early 1940s. The Bolo was built by Douglas Aircraft Company and based on its DC-2 and was developed to replace the Martin B-10....
, 1940–1941 - 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....
, 1941–1943 - 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...
, 1943–1944 - B-24 LiberatorB-24 LiberatorThe Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...
, 1944–1945 - 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...
, 1946–1953 - B-47 StratojetB-47 StratojetThe Boeing Model 450 B-47 Stratojet was a long-range, six-engined, jet-powered medium bomber built to fly at high subsonic speeds and at high altitudes. It was primarily designed to drop nuclear bombs on the Soviet Union...
, 1953–1963 - B-52 StratofortressB-52 StratofortressThe Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber operated by the United States Air Force since the 1950s. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, who have continued to provide maintainence and upgrades to the aircraft in service...
- B-52B, 1963–1966; B-52D, 1966–1982
See also
- United States Army Air Forces in AustraliaUnited States Army Air Forces in AustraliaDuring World War II, the United States Army Air Forces established a series of airfields in Australia for the collective defense of the country, as well as for conducting offensive operations against the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy...
- List of B-52 Units of the United States Air Force