315th Air Division
Encyclopedia
The 315th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Pacific Air Forces, based at Tachikawa Air Base
, Japan. It was inactivated in April 1969.
. The 315th BW engaged in very heavy bombardment B-29 Superfortress
operations against Japan.
During World War II, the 315th Bombardment Wing was the command and control organization for four very heavy Boeing B-29 bombardment groups in the South Pacific Theater
.
The Groups and Squadrons of the 315th Bomb Wing for the most part, flew the B-29B aircraft. The limited-production B-29B was designed to was to save weight by removing all of the guns and sighting equipment used on other B-29s, except the tail gun. The weight savings allowed the B-29B to fly a little higher and a little further. The B-29B aircraft also had two new radar units installed. One was the AN/APQ-7 Eagle Radar for bombing and navigation and the other was the AN/APG-15 used for aiming the tail gun. These two radar units gave the B-29B a distinctive shape as the APQ-7 antenna appeared as a small wing under the fuselage, between the two bomb bay doors and the APG-15 added a ball shaped antenna to the tail of the aircraft below the tail guns.
Its groups flew "shakedown" missions against Japanese targets on Moen
Island, Truk, and other points in the Carolines and Marianas. Bombing missions commenced against targets in the Japanese homeland
on 26 June 1945 when the wing damaged the Utsube River oil refinery at Yokkaichi. Thereafter, oil targets in Japan served as its primary targets.
When hostilities ended, the wing's B 29s carried relief supplies to Allied prisoner of war camps in Japan and Manchuria
.
In January 1951 at Ashiya AB, Japan, the 315th Air Division replaced and absorbed the resources of the Far East Air Forces Combat Cargo Command (Provisional).
During the Korean War
, its components evacuated wounded from Korea, airdropped supplies and personnel, hauled emergency supplies, materiel, replacement troops, mail, rations and ammunition, participated in joint training exercises in Japan, took part in numerous combat missions, and operated regular transport schedules within the Far East area.
Before combat operations ceased in Korea, the division began supporting French forces engaged in a war in Indochina
. From May 1953 – July 1954, it provided C-119s to the French, trained French air crews and maintenance personnel, performed additional airlift missions in support of the French, and finally evacuated wounded French troops from Indochina during operation Wounded Warrior.
In July 1954, the 315th resumed normal airlift operations and participated in training exercises in Japan.
In 1962, it established airlift support for the expanding conflict in Southeast Asia. Meantime, the division continued its routine airlift in the Far East, flew humanitarian missions, and participated in training exercises when possible.
The crisis prompted by the North Korea
n seizure of the USS Pueblo
in January 1968, found the 315th supporting an emergency airlift to the Republic of Korea.
The 315th AD was inactivated in April 1969. Its operational units (314th, 374th and 463d TAW) were reassigned.
Tachikawa Airfield
is an airfield in the city of Tachikawa, the western part of Tokyo, Japan. Currently under the administration of the Ministry of Defense, it has also served as the civil aviation with Japan's first scheduled air service.-Operations:...
, Japan. It was inactivated in April 1969.
History
The unit's origins begin with its predecessor, the World War II 315th Bombardment Wing (315th BW) was part of Twentieth Air ForceTwentieth 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...
. The 315th BW engaged in very heavy bombardment 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...
operations against Japan.
Lineage
- Established as 315 Bombardment Wing, Very Heavy on 7 June 1944
- Activated on 17 July 1944
- Redesignated 315 Composite Wing on 8 January 1946
- Inactivated on 20 August 1948
- Redesignated 315 Air Division (Combat Cargo) on 10 January 1951
- Activated on 25 January 1951
- Redesignated 315 Air Division on 1 August 1967
- Inactivated on 15 April 1969.
Assignments
- Second Air ForceSecond Air ForceThe Second Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Education and Training Command . It is headquartered at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi....
, 17 July 1944
- Attached XXII Bomber CommandXXII Bomber CommandThe XXII Bomber Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Second Air Force, based at Peterson Field, Colorado. It was inactivated on 13 February 1945.-Lineage:...
, c. 14 August – c. 7 December 1944- Twentieth Air ForceTwentieth Air ForceThe 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...
, c. 25 March 1945
- Twentieth Air Force
- XXI Bomber CommandXXI Bomber CommandThe 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:...
, 5 April 1945- Twentieth Air ForceTwentieth Air ForceThe 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...
, 16 July 1945 - Fifth Air ForceFifth Air ForceThe 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....
, 30 May 1946
- Twentieth Air Force
- V Fighter CommandV Fighter CommandThe V Fighter Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Fifth Air Force, based at Fukuoka AB, Japan. It was inactivated on 31 May 1946....
, 30 May 1946- Fifth Air ForceFifth Air ForceThe 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....
, 1 June 1946 – 1 March 1950 - Far East (later, Pacific) Air Forces, 25 January 1951 – 15 April 1969.
- Fifth Air Force
Stations
- Peterson Field, 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...
, 17 July 1944 - Fort LawtonFort LawtonFort Lawton is a United States Army fort located in the Magnolia neighborhood of Seattle, Washington. The fort was included in the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure list.-History:...
, Washington, 10–17 March 1945 - Northwest FieldNorthwest Field (Guam)Northwest Field is a former World War II airfield on Guam in the Mariana Islands. It was closed in 1949 and is unused.-History:Northwest Field was constructed in 1944–45 near Ritidian Point on the northwest end of the island of Guam as a base for Twentieth Air Force B-29 Superfortresses to carry...
, GuamGuamGuam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, Mariana IslandsMariana IslandsThe Mariana Islands are an arc-shaped archipelago made up by the summits of 15 volcanic mountains in the north-western Pacific Ocean between the 12th and 21st parallels north and along the 145th meridian east...
, 5 April 1945 - Ashiya AABAshiya Air Fieldis a military aerodrome of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force . It is located north of Ashiya in the Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan.-History:Ashiya Airfield was established as a Japanese Army Air Force facility in 1944, and was used primarily as a defensive airfield, launching interceptors against...
, Japan, 30 May 1946
- Itazuke AAB (later, Airfield; AB), Japan, 31 May 1946 – 1 March 1950.
- Ashiya ASAshiya Air Fieldis a military aerodrome of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force . It is located north of Ashiya in the Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan.-History:Ashiya Airfield was established as a Japanese Army Air Force facility in 1944, and was used primarily as a defensive airfield, launching interceptors against...
, Japan, 25 January 1951 - FuchūFuchu, Tokyois a city located in western Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 255,394 and a population density of 8,700 persons per km². The total area was 29.34 km²...
, Japan, 5 February 1951 - Tachikawa AB, Japan, 24 April 1954 – 15 April 1969
Components
- Wings
- 475th Fighter475th Air Base WingThe 475th Air Base Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last duty station was at Yokota Air Base, Japan, where it was inactivated on 1 April 1992....
: 18–20 August 1948 - 437th Troop Carrier437th Airlift WingThe 437th Airlift Wing is an active unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to 18th Air Force, Air Mobility Command. It is the mission wing at Charleston Air Force Base, Joint Base Charleston, in the City of North Charleston, South Carolina....
: 25 January 1951 – 10 June 1952 - 374th Troop Carrier374th Airlift WingThe 374th Airlift Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force assigned to Fifth Air Force. It is stationed at Yokota Air Base, Japan. It is part of Pacific Air Forces ....
: 25 January 1951 – 1 July 1957 - 403d Troop Carrier403d Wing403d Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force assigned to the Air Force Reserve Command. It is located at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi, and employs a military manning authorization of more than 1,400 reservists, including some 250 full-time air reserve technicians.403d Wing performs...
: 14 April 1952 – 1 January 1953 - 315th Troop Carrier315th Airlift WingThe 315th Airlift Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force Reserve. It is stationed at Charleston Air Force Base, in the City of North Charleston, South Carolina...
: 10 June 1952 – 18 January 1955 - 483d Troop Carrier483d Composite WingThe 483d Composite Wing was a tactical airlift and composite wing assigned to Pacific Air Forces during the Vietnam War. It was the host organization at Cam Ranh Bay Air Base South Vietnam from 1970–1972....
: 1 January 1953 – 25 June 1960 - 463d Tactical Airlift463d Airlift GroupThe United States Air Force's 463d Airlift Group is a tactical airlift unit headquartered in Little Rock AFB, Arkansas.During World War II as the 463d Bombardment Unit, it was one of the last B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomber groups deployed to Southern Italy as part of the Fifteenth Air Force in...
: 23 November 1965 – 8 April 1969 - 314th Tactical Airlift314th Airlift WingThe 314th Airlift Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force based out of Little Rock Air Force Base in Little Rock, Arkansas.-World War 2 and aftermath:...
: 22 January 1966 – 8 April 1969 - 374th Tactical Airlift374th Airlift WingThe 374th Airlift Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force assigned to Fifth Air Force. It is stationed at Yokota Air Base, Japan. It is part of Pacific Air Forces ....
: 8 August 1966 – 8 April 1969
- Groups
- 16th Bombardment16th Air Expeditionary WingThe United States Air Force's 16th Air Expeditionary Wing was an Air Expeditionary unit of the United States Air Forces in Europe until c.2005–06....
: 15 April – 1 June 1945 - 501st Bombardment501st Combat Support WingThe 501st Combat Support Wing is a United States Air Forces in Europe unit based at RAF Alconbury, England. The wing traces its history to a World War II bombardment group which served in the Pacific, mostly bombing mainland Japan, in 1944–45...
: 15 April 1945 – 15 May 1946 - 331st Bombardment331st Bombardment GroupThe 331st Bombardment Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 315th Bombardment Wing, being stationed at Northwest Field, Guam. It was inactivated on 15 April 1946....
: 12 May 1945 – 15 April 1946 - 502d Bombardment502d Bombardment GroupThe 502d Bombardment Group was a World War II United States Army Air Forces combat organization. The unit was inactivated on 15 April 1946....
: 12 May 1945 – 15 April 1946 - 38th Bombardment Group/Wing38th Combat Support WingThe 38th Combat Support Wing is an inactive wing of the United States Air Force. Its last assignment was with Third Air Force , being inactivated on 1 May 2007 at Ramstein Air Base, Germany....
: 31 May 1946 – 20 August 1948 - 8th Fighter Group/Wing8th Fighter WingThe United States Air Force 8th Fighter Wing is the host unit at Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea and is assigned to Seventh Air Force...
: 31 May 1946 – 20 August 1948 - 347th Fighter Group/Wing347th Rescue GroupThe United States Air Force's 347th Rescue Group is an active combat search and rescue unit assigned to the 23d Wing at Moody AFB, Georgia.-Mission:...
: 25 September 1947 – 20 August 1948 - 6315th Operations Group : 1963–1966
Operational history
South West Pacific theatre of World War II
The South West Pacific Theatre, technically the South West Pacific Area, between 1942 and 1945, was one of two designated area commands and war theatres enumerated by the Combined Chiefs of Staff of World War II in the Pacific region....
.
The Groups and Squadrons of the 315th Bomb Wing for the most part, flew the B-29B aircraft. The limited-production B-29B was designed to was to save weight by removing all of the guns and sighting equipment used on other B-29s, except the tail gun. The weight savings allowed the B-29B to fly a little higher and a little further. The B-29B aircraft also had two new radar units installed. One was the AN/APQ-7 Eagle Radar for bombing and navigation and the other was the AN/APG-15 used for aiming the tail gun. These two radar units gave the B-29B a distinctive shape as the APQ-7 antenna appeared as a small wing under the fuselage, between the two bomb bay doors and the APG-15 added a ball shaped antenna to the tail of the aircraft below the tail guns.
Its groups flew "shakedown" missions against Japanese targets on Moen
Moen (island)
Moen, also called Weno or Wono, is an island in Truk Lagoon, the main island group of the state of Chuuk in the Federated States of Micronesia....
Island, Truk, and other points in the Carolines and Marianas. Bombing missions commenced against targets in the Japanese homeland
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...
on 26 June 1945 when the wing damaged the Utsube River oil refinery at Yokkaichi. Thereafter, oil targets in Japan served as its primary targets.
When hostilities ended, the wing's B 29s carried relief supplies to Allied prisoner of war camps in Japan and Manchuria
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
.
In January 1951 at Ashiya AB, Japan, the 315th Air Division replaced and absorbed the resources of the Far East Air Forces Combat Cargo Command (Provisional).
During 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...
, its components evacuated wounded from Korea, airdropped supplies and personnel, hauled emergency supplies, materiel, replacement troops, mail, rations and ammunition, participated in joint training exercises in Japan, took part in numerous combat missions, and operated regular transport schedules within the Far East area.
Before combat operations ceased in Korea, the division began supporting French forces engaged in a war in 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...
. From May 1953 – July 1954, it provided C-119s to the French, trained French air crews and maintenance personnel, performed additional airlift missions in support of the French, and finally evacuated wounded French troops from Indochina during operation Wounded Warrior.
In July 1954, the 315th resumed normal airlift operations and participated in training exercises in Japan.
In 1962, it established airlift support for the expanding conflict in Southeast Asia. Meantime, the division continued its routine airlift in the Far East, flew humanitarian missions, and participated in training exercises when possible.
The crisis prompted by the 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...
n seizure of the USS Pueblo
USS Pueblo (AGER-2)
USS Pueblo is an American ELINT and SIGINT Banner-class technical research ship which was boarded and captured by North Korean forces on January 23, 1968, in what is known as the Pueblo incident or alternatively as the Pueblo crisis or the Pueblo affair. Occurring less than a week after President...
in January 1968, found the 315th supporting an emergency airlift to the Republic of Korea.
The 315th AD was inactivated in April 1969. Its operational units (314th, 374th and 463d TAW) were reassigned.