337th Flight Test Squadron
Encyclopedia
The 337th Flight Test Squadron (337 FLTS) was most recently part of the 46th Test Wing
and based at McClellan Air Force Base
, California
. It performed depot acceptance testing until being inactivated with the closure of McClellan AFB on 13 July 2001.
P-38 Lightning
Replacement Training Unit (RTU). Trained P-38 pilots in California and Washington State until phaseout of Lightning training in March 1944.
Reactivated in 1953 as an Air Defense Command interceptor squadron. Performed air defense mission over Minneapolis and Upper Midwest United States, 1953-1955 with F-89D Scorpions. Re-assigned to air defense of Boston
and New England
with ith F-86D Sabre Interceptors. In 1957 began re-equipping with the North American F-86L Sabre, an improved version of the F-86D which incorporated the Semi Automatic Ground Environment
, or SAGE computer-controlled direction system for intercepts. The service of the F-86L destined to be quite brief, since by the time the last F-86L conversion was delivered, the type was already being phased out in favor of supersonic interceptors.
Received new F-104A Starfighter interceptor aircraft in early 1958, the third ADC squadron to receive the F-104. In addition, the squadron received the two-seat, dual-control, combat trainer F-104B. The performance of the F-104B was almost identical to that of the F-104A, but the lower internal fuel capacity reduced its effective range considerably. However, the F-104A was not very well suited for service as an interceptor. Its low range was a problem for North American air defense, and its lack of all-weather capability made it incapable of operating in conjunction with the SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment) system. Service with the ADC was consequently quite brief, and the F-104As of the 337th FIS were transferred to the Air National Guard.
With the transfer of the Starfighters, ADC shut down operations at Westover AFB and the 337th FIS was deactivated in July 1960
Reactivated as an F-4 Phantom II Tactical Fighter Squadron at Seymour Johnson AFB in 1982-1985; then as a flight test squadron at McClellan AFB. Conducted flight tests on aircraft returning to active service after depot maintenance, modification, or repair from, 1988-2001. Inactivated with closure of McClellan AFB.
46th Test Wing
The 46th Test Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force based out of Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. The wing operates as tenant unit at Holloman AFB, NM.-Mission:...
and based at McClellan Air Force Base
McClellan Air Force Base
McClellan Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located in the North Highlands area of Sacramento County, northeast of Sacramento, California...
, 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...
. It performed depot acceptance testing until being inactivated with the closure of McClellan AFB on 13 July 2001.
History
Activated in 1942 at Keflavik, Iceland, equipped with P-38 Lightnings. Mission was to intercept and destroy German planes that on occasion attempted to attack Iceland or that appeared in that area on reconnaissance missions. Returned to the United States in November 1942 as a IV Fighter CommandIV Fighter Command
The IV Fighter Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Fourth Air Force, based at Oakland Airport, California...
P-38 Lightning
P-38 Lightning
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a World War II American fighter aircraft built by Lockheed. Developed to a United States Army Air Corps requirement, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament...
Replacement Training Unit (RTU). Trained P-38 pilots in California and Washington State until phaseout of Lightning training in March 1944.
Reactivated in 1953 as an Air Defense Command interceptor squadron. Performed air defense mission over Minneapolis and Upper Midwest United States, 1953-1955 with F-89D Scorpions. Re-assigned to air defense of Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
and New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
with ith F-86D Sabre Interceptors. In 1957 began re-equipping with the North American F-86L Sabre, an improved version of the F-86D which incorporated the Semi Automatic Ground Environment
Semi Automatic Ground Environment
The Semi-Automatic Ground Environment was an automated control system for tracking and intercepting enemy bomber aircraft used by NORAD from the late 1950s into the 1980s...
, or SAGE computer-controlled direction system for intercepts. The service of the F-86L destined to be quite brief, since by the time the last F-86L conversion was delivered, the type was already being phased out in favor of supersonic interceptors.
Received new F-104A Starfighter interceptor aircraft in early 1958, the third ADC squadron to receive the F-104. In addition, the squadron received the two-seat, dual-control, combat trainer F-104B. The performance of the F-104B was almost identical to that of the F-104A, but the lower internal fuel capacity reduced its effective range considerably. However, the F-104A was not very well suited for service as an interceptor. Its low range was a problem for North American air defense, and its lack of all-weather capability made it incapable of operating in conjunction with the SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment) system. Service with the ADC was consequently quite brief, and the F-104As of the 337th FIS were transferred to the Air National Guard.
With the transfer of the Starfighters, ADC shut down operations at Westover AFB and the 337th FIS was deactivated in July 1960
Reactivated as an F-4 Phantom II Tactical Fighter Squadron at Seymour Johnson AFB in 1982-1985; then as a flight test squadron at McClellan AFB. Conducted flight tests on aircraft returning to active service after depot maintenance, modification, or repair from, 1988-2001. Inactivated with closure of McClellan AFB.
Lineage
- Constituted 337th Fighter Squadron on 29 August 1942
- Activated on 11 September 1942
- Redesignated: 337th Fighter Squadron (Twin Engine) on 1 July 1942
- Redesignated: 337th Fighter Squadron, Two Engine, on 5 February 1944
- Disbanded on 31 March 1944
- Reconstituted, and redesignated 337th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, on 23 March 1953
- Activated on 8 July 1954
- Discontinued on 8 July 1960
- Redesignated 337th Tactical Fighter Squadron on 11 December 1981
- Activated on 1 April 1982
- Inactivated on 1 July 1985
- Consolidated (1 October 1992) with the 2874th Test Squadron, which was designated, and activated, on 15 January 1988
- Redesignated: 337th Test Squadron on 1 October 1992
- Redesignated: 337th Flight Test Squadron on 1 March 1994
- Inactivated: 13 July 2001
Assignments
- 342d Composite Group, 11 September 1942
- 329th Fighter Group, November 1942-31 March 1944
- 514th Air Defense Group514th Air Defense GroupThe 514th Air Defense Group is a disbanded United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 31st Air Division, being stationed at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Minnesota...
, 8 July 1954 - 4707th Air Defense Wing4707th Air Defense WingThe 4707th Air Defense Wing is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 26th Air Division, being stationed at Stewart Air Force Base, New York...
, 18 August 1955 - 4622d Air Defense Wing (later, Boston Air Defense SectorBoston Air Defense SectorThe Boston Air Defense Sector is an inactive United States Air Force Air Defense Command organization. Its last assignment was with the ADC 26th Air Division, being stationed at Stewart Air Force Base, New York.-History:...
), 18 October 1956 - 4729th Air Defense Group4729th Air Defense GroupThe 4729th Air Defense Group is a discontinued United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the Boston Air Defense Sector, being stationed at Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts...
, 8 July 1957 - Boston Air Defense SectorBoston Air Defense SectorThe Boston Air Defense Sector is an inactive United States Air Force Air Defense Command organization. Its last assignment was with the ADC 26th Air Division, being stationed at Stewart Air Force Base, New York.-History:...
, 25 June 1958-8 July 1960 - 4th Tactical Fighter Wing, 1 April 1982-1 July 1985
- Sacramento Air Logistics Center, 15 January 1988
- Air Force Development Test Center, 1 July 1994
- 46th Operations Group46th Operations GroupThe 46th Operations Group 46 OG is a component of the United States Air Force 46th Test Wing. It is assigned to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida....
, 1 July 1994-13 July 2001
Stations
- KeflavikNaval Air Station KeflavikUnited States Naval Air Station Keflavik is a former NATO facility at Keflavík International Airport, Iceland. It is located on the Reykjanes peninsula on the south-west portion of the island...
, IcelandIcelandIceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
11 September-26 November 1942 - Glendale Airport, 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...
, 26 November 1942 - Muroc AAB, 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...
, 1 March 1943 - Glendale Airport, 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...
,, 6 May 1943 - Paine FieldPaine FieldPaine Field, also known as Snohomish County Airport is a public airport located in unincorporated Snohomish County, between Mukilteo and Everett, Washington...
, Washington, 12 August 1943 - Glendale Airport, 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. 2 November 1943 - Ontario Army Airfield, 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...
, 29 December 1943-31 March 1944 - Minneapolis-St Paul Intl Aprt, MinnesotaMinnesotaMinnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, 8 July 1954 - Westover AFB, 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...
, 18 August 1955-8 July 1960 - Seymour Johnson AFB, 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...
, 1 April 1982-1 July 1985 - McClellan AFB, 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...
, 15 January 1988-13 July 2001
Aircraft
- P-38 LightningP-38 LightningThe Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a World War II American fighter aircraft built by Lockheed. Developed to a United States Army Air Corps requirement, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament...
, 1942–1944 - F-89D Scorpion, 1954–1955
- F-86D Sabre Interceptor, 1955–1957
- F-86L Sabre Interceptor (SAGE) 1957-1958
- F-104A Starfighter, 1958–1960
- Phantom, 1982–1985
- F-111