326th Fighter Group
Encyclopedia
- See 57th Operations Group57th Operations GroupThe 57th Operations Group is a non-flying component of the 57th Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command. The group is stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.-Overview:...
for the current organization
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. It was last assigned to the 25th Air Division, Air Defense Command. It was last stationed at Paine Air Force Base
Paine Air National Guard Base
Paine Air Force Base is a closed United States Air Force base, approximately 6 miles southwest of Everett, Washington. It was active during World War II as a IV Fighter Command air defense field for the Seattle, Washington area and during the Cold War as an Air Defense Command interceptor base...
, Washington. It was inactivated on 30 September 1968.
History
Performed air defense mission for First Air ForceFirst Air Force
The First Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida....
in the northeast during 1942 and 1943. Reassigned to become an operational and later replacement training unit, preparing pilots for combat duty in P-47's.
Inactivated after the war, was reactivated in 1955 as an Air Defense Command operational air defense unit at Paine AFB, Washington. Absorbed personnel and equipment of 529th Air Defense Group and was equipped with F-86D Sabres, becoming the host unit at Paine. Inactivated in April 1961 due to ADC reorganization and inactivation of the Western Air Defense Force
Western Air Defense Force
The Western Air Defense Force is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command being stationed at Hamilton Air Force Base, California. It was inactivated on July 1, 1960.- History :...
. Personnel and equipment were redesignated as the 57th Fighter Group (Air Defense) and also assumed host unit. Inactivated 30 September 1966 when Air Defense Command closed its facilities at Paine AFB.
Lineage
- Reconstituted and redesignated 57th Fighter Group (Air Defense) on 24 February 1961
- Activated on 24 February 1961
- Inactivated on 30 September 1968
Assignments
- I Fighter CommandI Fighter CommandThe I Fighter Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the First Air Force, based at Mitchel Army Airfield, New York...
, 19 August 1942 – 10 April 1944 - 4702d Defense Wing, 1 Apr 1952
- 25th Air Division, 8 Oct 1954
- Seattle Air Defense Sector, 10 February 1960
- 25th Air Division, 1 April – 30 September 1966
Components
- 321st Fighter (later Fighter-Interceptor) Squadron, 19 August 1942 – 10 April 1944; 18 August 1955-1 March 1960
- 322d Fighter Squadron, 19 August 1942 – 10 April 1944
- 538th Fighter Squadron, 25 November 1943 – 10 April 1944
- 539th Fighter Squadron, 25 November 1943 – 10 April 1944
- 442d Fighter Squadron, 24 February – 25 November 1943
- 83d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 16 Feb 1953 – 18 Aug 1955
- 64th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 15 March 1960 – 10 June 1966
Stations
- Mitchel Field, New York, 19 August 1942
- Bradley FieldBradley International AirportBradley International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located in Windsor Locks on the border with East Granby and Suffield, in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is owned by the State of Connecticut....
, ConnecticutConnecticutConnecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, 1 September 1942 - Westover Field, 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...
, 1 November 1942 - Seymour Johnson Field, North CarolinaNorth CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, 13 October 1943 – 10 April 1944 - Paine AFBPaine Air National Guard BasePaine Air Force Base is a closed United States Air Force base, approximately 6 miles southwest of Everett, Washington. It was active during World War II as a IV Fighter Command air defense field for the Seattle, Washington area and during the Cold War as an Air Defense Command interceptor base...
, Washington, 1 February 1952 – 30 September 1966
Aircraft
- P-47 ThunderboltP-47 ThunderboltRepublic Aviation's P-47 Thunderbolt, also known as the "Jug", was the largest, heaviest, and most expensive fighter aircraft in history to be powered by a single reciprocating engine. It was heavily armed with eight .50-caliber machine guns, four per wing. When fully loaded, the P-47 weighed up to...
, 1942–1944 - F-86D Sabre, 1955–1961
- F-102 Delta DaggerF-102 Delta DaggerThe Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was a US interceptor aircraft built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s. Entering service in 1956, its main purpose was to intercept invading Soviet bomber fleets...
, 1961–1966 - F-106 Delta DartF-106 Delta DartThe Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft for the United States Air Force from the 1960s through the 1980s. Designed as the so-called "Ultimate Interceptor", it has proven to be the last dedicated interceptor in USAF service to date...
, 1966–1968
See also
- List of USAF Aerospace Defense Command General Surveillance Radar Stations
- Aerospace Defense Command Fighter SquadronsAerospace Defense Command Fighter SquadronsThe second iteration of Aerospace Defense Command was established on 21 March 1946 as a component of the United States Army Air Forces, with the mission of planning for and executing the air defense of the United States...