501st Combat Support Wing
Encyclopedia
The 501st Combat Support Wing (501 CSW) 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. Successor tactical missile units carrying the 501st's heritage served in Europe during the Cold War
.
Today the 501st CSW ensures four UK-based Air Base Groups are resourced, sustained, trained and equipped to exacting command standards in order to provide mission support that enables US and NATO war fighters to conduct full spectrum flying operations during expeditionary deployments, theater munitions movements, global command and control communications to forward deployed locations, support for theater intelligence operations and joint/combined training.
The 501st CSW also serves as the administrative agent for NATO in the United Kingdom. The mission of each of the installations is unique, but the goal is the same—to enable today’s war-fighter. Each mission has a direct impact on the Global War on Terrorism and military (and civilian) operations throughout the world.
The wing has almost 2,600 U.S. military and civilian employees directly assigned, including non-appropriated fund employees. There are also 117 U.K. personnel who work directly for the wing in appropriated and non-appropriated positions and more than 180 U.K. Ministry of Defense
police assigned, along with a wide range of contractor support positions, This does not include personnel working for vital support agencies such as Army and Air Force Exchange Service
(AAFES), Defense Commissary Agency, Department of Defense Schools and our many tenant units along with family members and retirees who reside in the United Kingdom. See the unit's public website at http://www.501csw.usafe.af.mil
The 501st BG was a World War II
United States Army Air Forces
combat organization serving primarily in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II
. The 501st BG was part of Twentieth Air Force
and engaged in very heavy bombardment B-29 Superfortress
operations against Japan. It's aircraft were identified by a "Y" inside a diamond painted on the tail.
The 701st TMW served in West Germany during the Cold War
in the 1950s. The 501st TMW operated Ground Launched Cruise Missiles (GLCM) at RAF Greenham Common
, England during the Cold War in the 1980s.
The unit was established in early 1944 at Dalhart Army Air Field, Texas, being formed as a B-29 Superfortress
Very Heavy bombardment Group. The unit was formed with three reassigned bomb squadrons (21st, 41st and 485th). The 21st was formed in late 1940 and was deployed to Alaska
as part of Eleventh Air Force
, became part of forces engaged in combat against Japanese forces in the Aleutian Campaign, flying B-24 Liberator
s. In mid-1943 it participated in the first USAAF raid against Japan, attacking the Kuril Islands
of northern Japan. At the end of the Aleutian campaign, the squadron was inactivated in November 1943. The other squadrons (41st and 485th) had been previously assigned to other B-29 groups training in Nebraska, but were inactivated due to aircraft and equipment shortages.
In August 1944, the newly-formed group was sent to its training station at Harvard Army Airfield
, Nebraska
. Due to a shortage of B-29s, the group was equipped with former II Bomber Command
B-17 Flying Fortresses previously used for training heavy bomber replacement personnel. The 502d eventually received Atlanta-built B-29B Superfortresses.
The B-29B was in fact unique, for it was equipped entirely with the only true variant of the B-29 ever manufactured. These aircraft were actually stripped-down versions of the normal B-29, bereft of the General Electric
gun system and a variety of other components, in order to save weight and increase bomb-carrying capacity. The resultant unladen weight of 69,000 pounds was a vast improvement, lessening the strain on engines and airframe and enabling the payload to be increased from 12,000 to 18,000 pound ordnance. The only armament on these aircraft was in the tail, where two .50 caliber machine guns were installed. The elimination of the turrets and the associated General Electric computerized gun system increased the top speed of the Superfortress to 364 mph at 25,000 feet and made the B-29B suitable for fast, unescorted hit-and-run bombing raids and photographic missions.
In addition, the B-29Bs of the 501st were equipped with the new AN/APQ-7 "Eagle" radar sets which gave a much clearer presentation of ground images through a wing-shaped radar vane slung beneath the fuselage. It also gave a biplane effect in appearance. The "Eagle" was the product of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
's Eagle radar development group. It had been designed especially for night missions. During World War II
this special antenna and equipment for precision night radar missions was so secret that no B-29s were ever shown with it, and there are no actual official photographs in existence. Missions had to be planned and prepared so that briefing material could be slanted from the radar point of view.
The 501st was deployed to Pacific Theater of Operations
(PTO) in April 1945, being assigned to the XXI Bomber Command
315th Bombardment Wing in the Northern Mariana Islands
; being stationed at Northwest Field, Guam. Upon arrival the group's personnel were engaged in Quonset hut construction. By mid-June most personnel were able to move into the huts from the initial tents which they were assigned on arrival. As the crews arrived they commenced ground school and shakedown missions over Rota
, Pajoros and Truk. Entered combat on 19 June 1945 when its B-29’s bombed Japanese fortifications in the Truk Islands. Flew its first mission against Japan on 27 June 1945, and afterward operated principally against the enemy’s petroleum industry on Honshu
. Received a Distinguished Unit Citation for attacks on the Maruzen oil refinery at Shimotsu
, the Utsubo oil refinery at Yokkaichi, and the petroleum center at Kawasaki
.
All the Wing's missions were night attacks. This gave the crews the benefits of daylight take-offs and landings. No formation flying was employed by the Wing. The attacks were all by individual aircraft using what was called the compressibility factor. Planes were staggered on their altitudes going to the target. The last ships, in what amounted to each element of three ships, were given the altitude with the most favorable wind. Then all flew according to the cruise control practices, they would reach the target area at approximately the same time, thus giving the effect of formation flying. This type of attack was extremely successful as attested to by the damage assessment reports and the lessened physical strain
501st BG crews flew 15 combat missions before ending combat operations as a result of the Japanese Capitulation in August 1945. After V-J Day, the 501st dropped supplies to Allied prisoners, participated in show-of-force missions, and flew over Japan to evaluate bombardment damage. In September 1945, several flights were made to Chitose Airfield in Hokkaido
near Sapporo with gasoline for the first nonstop flight from Japan to the United States by Generals Giles and LeMay.
The Sunset Project gradually drained the group airfleet, in which B-29s were flown back to the states for mothballing. By Christmas, the group fleet was reduced to 30 or less planes and consolidation of the Groups became an impending probability. Merging of the various groups of the 315th BW began in February 1946, with the 16th
, 331st
and 502nd
Groups merging into the 501st. The other groups were inactivated on 15 April 1946.
On 5 May, many of the remaining veterans signed for "any conditions of travel" to get home, arriving three weeks later in Oakland, where troop trains scattered them for points of discharge close to their homes.
The 501st Bombardment Group was formally inactivated on 10 June 1946.
The 701st Tactical Missile Wing was established on 3 August 1956 and activated on 15 September 1956 at Hahn Air Base
, West Germany. The first tactical missile wing in the U.S. Air Force when activated, it replaced the 738d Guided Missile Group (Tactical) and controlled three tactical missile groups.
Each of these groups were equipped with the Martin MGM-1 Matador
. This was the first operational surface-to-surface cruise missile built by the United States, similar in concept to the German V-1 flying bomb
.
The wing was inactivated on 18 June 1958 and replaced by 38th Tactical Missile Wing
.
The wing was redesignated as the 501st Tactical Missile Wing on 11 January 1982, it was activated on 1 July 1982, at RAF Greenham Common
, Britain, to operate GLCMs. The honors and history of the inactivated 701st TMW were consolidated into the reactivated 501st. The first squadron of the 501st Tactical Missile Wing received its weapons in November 1983; they were flown onto the base by C-5 Galaxy
s.
A series of meetings held during August and September 1986 culminated in a summit between United States President Ronald Reagan
and the General Secretary of the CPSU Mikhail Gorbachev
in Reykjavík
, Iceland, on 11 October 1986. To the immense surprise of both men's advisers, the two agreed in principle to removing INF systems from Europe and to equal global limits of 100 INF missile warheads.
The United States and the Soviet Union
signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
in 1987, which led to the removal of all nuclear missiles from the base.
The 501 TMW was inactivated on 31 May 1991 after ratification of the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty resulted in decommissioning of the BGM-109G.
The USAFs first GLCM wing when it stood up, it was the also the last GLCM wing to be inactivated.
, England
The wing's mission is to manage and support geographically separated USAF units, installations and activities in the United Kingdom not directly supporting operations at RAF Mildenhall or RAF Lakenheath
.
Effective 1 May 2007, it relocated to RAF Alconbury
.
Squadrons
United States Air Forces in Europe
The United States Air Forces in Europe is the United States Air Force component of U.S. European Command, a Department of Defense unified command, and is one of two Air Force Major Commands outside of the continental United States, the other being the Pacific Air Forces...
unit based at RAF Alconbury
RAF Alconbury
RAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station in Cambridgeshire, England. The airfield is adjacent to the Stukeleys [Great and Little] and located about northwest of Huntingdon; about north of London....
, England. The wing traces its history to a World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
bombardment group which served in the Pacific, mostly bombing mainland Japan, in 1944–45. Successor tactical missile units carrying the 501st's heritage served in Europe during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
Today the 501st CSW ensures four UK-based Air Base Groups are resourced, sustained, trained and equipped to exacting command standards in order to provide mission support that enables US and NATO war fighters to conduct full spectrum flying operations during expeditionary deployments, theater munitions movements, global command and control communications to forward deployed locations, support for theater intelligence operations and joint/combined training.
Units
The 501 CSW currently oversees and supports four Air Base Groups operating a total of eleven installations and operating locations in the U.K. and Norway. These are:- 421st Air Base Squadron at RAF Menwith HillRAF Menwith HillRAF Menwith Hill is a Royal Air Force station near Harrogate, North Yorkshire which provides communications and intelligence support services to the United Kingdom and the United States of America...
- 422d Air Base Group at RAF CroughtonRAF CroughtonRAF Croughton is a United States Air Force communications base in Northamptonshire, England, to the southeast of the village of Croughton. The station is home to the 422nd Air Base Group and operates one of Europe's largest military switchboards and processes approximately a third of all U.S...
, RAF FairfordRAF FairfordRAF Fairford is a Royal Air Force station in Gloucestershire, England. It is a standby airfield, not in everyday use. Its most prominent use in recent years has been as an airfield for United States Air Force B-52s during the 2003 Iraq War, Operation Allied Force in 1999, and the first Gulf War in...
and RAF WelfordRAF WelfordRAF Welford is an active Royal Air Force station in Berkshire, England. The airfield is located approximately northwest of Newbury; about west-southwest of London... - 423d Air Base Group at RAF AlconburyRAF AlconburyRAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station in Cambridgeshire, England. The airfield is adjacent to the Stukeleys [Great and Little] and located about northwest of Huntingdon; about north of London....
, including RAF MolesworthRAF MolesworthRAF Molesworth is a Royal Air Force station located near Molesworth, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom with a history dating back to 1917.Its runway and flight line facilities were closed in 1973 and demolished to support ground-launched cruise missile operations in the early 1980s...
, RAF UpwoodRAF UpwoodRAF Upwood was a United States Air Force installation adjacent to the village of Upwood, Cambridgeshire in the United Kingdom.It is a non-flying station which was under the control of the United States Air Force, and one of three RAF stations in Cambridgeshire currently used by the United States...
and Stavanger Air BaseSola Air StationSola Air Station in Sola municipality in Norway is operated by the Royal Norwegian Air Force. Air Wing 134 is stationed at Sola along with helicopter Squadron 330....
, Norway.
The 501st CSW also serves as the administrative agent for NATO in the United Kingdom. The mission of each of the installations is unique, but the goal is the same—to enable today’s war-fighter. Each mission has a direct impact on the Global War on Terrorism and military (and civilian) operations throughout the world.
The wing has almost 2,600 U.S. military and civilian employees directly assigned, including non-appropriated fund employees. There are also 117 U.K. personnel who work directly for the wing in appropriated and non-appropriated positions and more than 180 U.K. Ministry of Defense
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
police assigned, along with a wide range of contractor support positions, This does not include personnel working for vital support agencies such as Army and Air Force Exchange Service
Army and Air Force Exchange Service
The Exchange is an agency of the United States Department of Defense. Its dual missions are to provide quality merchandise and services of necessity and convenience to authorized customers at uniform low prices, and to generate reasonable earnings to supplement appropriated funds for the support...
(AAFES), Defense Commissary Agency, Department of Defense Schools and our many tenant units along with family members and retirees who reside in the United Kingdom. See the unit's public website at http://www.501csw.usafe.af.mil
History
The wing's lineage and honors can be traced not just through its own history, but through the history of three earlier organizations:- The 501st Bombardment Group (501st BG) (1944–1946)
- The 701st Tactical Missile Wing (701st TMW) (1956–1958)
- The 501st Tactical Missile Wing (501st TMW) (1982–1991)
The 501st BG was a World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
United States Army Air Forces
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
combat organization serving primarily in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II
Pacific Ocean theater of World War II
The Pacific Ocean theatre was one of four major naval theatres of war of World War II, which pitted the forces of Japan against those of the United States, the British Commonwealth, the Netherlands and France....
. The 501st BG was part of 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...
and 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. It's aircraft were identified by a "Y" inside a diamond painted on the tail.
The 701st TMW served in West Germany during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
in the 1950s. The 501st TMW operated Ground Launched Cruise Missiles (GLCM) at RAF Greenham Common
RAF Greenham Common
RAF Station Greenham Common is a former military airfield in Berkshire, England. The airfield is located approximately south-southwest of Thatcham; about west of London....
, England during the Cold War in the 1980s.
501st Bombardment Group
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 bombardment Group. The unit was formed with three reassigned bomb squadrons (21st, 41st and 485th). The 21st was formed in late 1940 and was deployed to Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
as part of Eleventh Air Force
Eleventh Air Force
The Eleventh Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces . It is headquartered at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska....
, became part of forces engaged in combat against Japanese forces in the Aleutian Campaign, flying 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...
s. In mid-1943 it participated in the first USAAF raid against Japan, attacking the Kuril Islands
Kuril Islands
The Kuril Islands , in Russia's Sakhalin Oblast region, form a volcanic archipelago that stretches approximately northeast from Hokkaidō, Japan, to Kamchatka, Russia, separating the Sea of Okhotsk from the North Pacific Ocean. There are 56 islands and many more minor rocks. It consists of Greater...
of northern Japan. At the end of the Aleutian campaign, the squadron was inactivated in November 1943. The other squadrons (41st and 485th) had been previously assigned to other B-29 groups training in Nebraska, but were inactivated due to aircraft and equipment shortages.
In August 1944, the newly-formed group was sent to its training station at Harvard Army Airfield
Harvard Army Airfield
Harvard State Airport , also known as Harvard State Airfield, is a public use airport located two nautical miles northeast of the central business district of Harvard, a city in Clay County, Nebraska, United States. It is owned by the Nebraska Department of Aeronautics...
, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. Due to a shortage of B-29s, the group was equipped with former II Bomber Command
II Bomber Command
The II Bomber Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Second Air Force, based at Fort George Wright, Washington. It was inactivated on 6 October 1943....
B-17 Flying Fortresses previously used for training heavy bomber replacement personnel. The 502d eventually received Atlanta-built B-29B Superfortresses.
The B-29B was in fact unique, for it was equipped entirely with the only true variant of the B-29 ever manufactured. These aircraft were actually stripped-down versions of the normal B-29, bereft of the General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
gun system and a variety of other components, in order to save weight and increase bomb-carrying capacity. The resultant unladen weight of 69,000 pounds was a vast improvement, lessening the strain on engines and airframe and enabling the payload to be increased from 12,000 to 18,000 pound ordnance. The only armament on these aircraft was in the tail, where two .50 caliber machine guns were installed. The elimination of the turrets and the associated General Electric computerized gun system increased the top speed of the Superfortress to 364 mph at 25,000 feet and made the B-29B suitable for fast, unescorted hit-and-run bombing raids and photographic missions.
In addition, the B-29Bs of the 501st were equipped with the new AN/APQ-7 "Eagle" radar sets which gave a much clearer presentation of ground images through a wing-shaped radar vane slung beneath the fuselage. It also gave a biplane effect in appearance. The "Eagle" was the product of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
's Eagle radar development group. It had been designed especially for night missions. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
this special antenna and equipment for precision night radar missions was so secret that no B-29s were ever shown with it, and there are no actual official photographs in existence. Missions had to be planned and prepared so that briefing material could be slanted from the radar point of view.
The 501st was 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) in April 1945, being assigned to the 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:...
315th Bombardment Wing 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...
; being stationed at Northwest Field, Guam. Upon arrival the group's personnel were engaged in Quonset hut construction. By mid-June most personnel were able to move into the huts from the initial tents which they were assigned on arrival. As the crews arrived they commenced ground school and shakedown missions over Rota
Rota (island)
Rota also known as the "peaceful island", is the southernmost island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the second southernmost of the Marianas Archipelago. It lies approximately 40 miles north-northeast of the United States territory of Guam...
, Pajoros and Truk. Entered combat on 19 June 1945 when its B-29’s bombed Japanese fortifications in the Truk Islands. Flew its first mission against Japan on 27 June 1945, and afterward operated principally against the enemy’s petroleum industry on Honshu
Honshu
is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait...
. Received a Distinguished Unit Citation for attacks on the Maruzen oil refinery at Shimotsu
Shimotsu, Wakayama
was a town located in Kaisō District, Wakayama, Japan.On April 1, 2005 Shimotsu was merged into the city of Kainan.As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 14,481 and a density of 363.57 persons per km². The total area was 39.83 km²....
, the Utsubo oil refinery at Yokkaichi, and the petroleum center at Kawasaki
Kawasaki, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, between Tokyo and Yokohama. It is the 9th most populated city in Japan and one of the main cities forming the Greater Tokyo Area and Keihin Industrial Area....
.
All the Wing's missions were night attacks. This gave the crews the benefits of daylight take-offs and landings. No formation flying was employed by the Wing. The attacks were all by individual aircraft using what was called the compressibility factor. Planes were staggered on their altitudes going to the target. The last ships, in what amounted to each element of three ships, were given the altitude with the most favorable wind. Then all flew according to the cruise control practices, they would reach the target area at approximately the same time, thus giving the effect of formation flying. This type of attack was extremely successful as attested to by the damage assessment reports and the lessened physical strain
501st BG crews flew 15 combat missions before ending combat operations as a result of the Japanese Capitulation in August 1945. After V-J Day, the 501st dropped supplies to Allied prisoners, participated in show-of-force missions, and flew over Japan to evaluate bombardment damage. In September 1945, several flights were made to Chitose Airfield in Hokkaido
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
near Sapporo with gasoline for the first nonstop flight from Japan to the United States by Generals Giles and LeMay.
The Sunset Project gradually drained the group airfleet, in which B-29s were flown back to the states for mothballing. By Christmas, the group fleet was reduced to 30 or less planes and consolidation of the Groups became an impending probability. Merging of the various groups of the 315th BW began in February 1946, with the 16th
16th Air Expeditionary Wing
The 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....
, 331st
331st Bombardment Group
The 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....
and 502nd
502d Bombardment Group
The 502d Bombardment Group was a World War II United States Army Air Forces combat organization. The unit was inactivated on 15 April 1946....
Groups merging into the 501st. The other groups were inactivated on 15 April 1946.
On 5 May, many of the remaining veterans signed for "any conditions of travel" to get home, arriving three weeks later in Oakland, where troop trains scattered them for points of discharge close to their homes.
The 501st Bombardment Group was formally inactivated on 10 June 1946.
701st Tactical Missile Wing
Hahn Air Base
Hahn Air Base was a frontline NATO facility in Germany for over 40 years during the Cold War...
, West Germany. The first tactical missile wing in the U.S. Air Force when activated, it replaced the 738d Guided Missile Group (Tactical) and controlled three tactical missile groups.
- 585th Tactical Missile Group585th Tactical Missile GroupThe 585th Tactical Missile Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 38th Tactical Missile Wing and stationed at Bitburg Air Base, West Germany...
(Bitburg AB) - 586th Tactical Missile Group (Hahn AB)
- 587th Tactical Missile Group587th Tactical Missile GroupThe 587th Tactical Missile Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 38th Tactical Missile Wing and stationed at Sembach Air Base, West Germany...
(Sembach AB)
Each of these groups were equipped with the Martin MGM-1 Matador
MGM-1 Matador
The Martin MGM-1 Matador was the first operational surface-to-surface cruise missile built by the United States. It was similar in concept to the German V-1, but the Matador included a radio link that allowed in-flight course corrections. This allowed accuracy to be maintained over greatly extended...
. This was the first operational surface-to-surface cruise missile built by the United States, similar in concept to the German V-1 flying bomb
V-1 flying bomb
The V-1 flying bomb, also known as the Buzz Bomb or Doodlebug, was an early pulse-jet-powered predecessor of the cruise missile....
.
The wing was inactivated on 18 June 1958 and replaced by 38th Tactical Missile Wing
38th Combat Support Wing
The 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....
.
501st Tactical Missile Wing
The Soviet deployment of the SS-20 missile in 1975 caused major concern in the NATO alliance. The longer range, greater accuracy, mobility and striking power of the new missile was perceived to alter the security of Western Europe. In 1980 it was announced that the United States would deploy the General Dynamics BGM-109G Ground Launced Cruise Missile (GLCM) to Europe to counter this threat.The wing was redesignated as the 501st Tactical Missile Wing on 11 January 1982, it was activated on 1 July 1982, at RAF Greenham Common
RAF Greenham Common
RAF Station Greenham Common is a former military airfield in Berkshire, England. The airfield is located approximately south-southwest of Thatcham; about west of London....
, Britain, to operate GLCMs. The honors and history of the inactivated 701st TMW were consolidated into the reactivated 501st. The first squadron of the 501st Tactical Missile Wing received its weapons in November 1983; they were flown onto the base by C-5 Galaxy
C-5 Galaxy
The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is a large military transport aircraft built by Lockheed. It provides the United States Air Force with a heavy intercontinental-range strategic airlift capability, one that can carry outsize and oversize cargos, including all air-certifiable cargo. The Galaxy has many...
s.
A series of meetings held during August and September 1986 culminated in a summit between United States President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and the General Secretary of the CPSU Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
in Reykjavík
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
, Iceland, on 11 October 1986. To the immense surprise of both men's advisers, the two agreed in principle to removing INF systems from Europe and to equal global limits of 100 INF missile warheads.
The United States and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is a 1987 agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union. Signed in Washington, D.C. by U.S. President Ronald Reagan and General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev on December 8, 1987, it was ratified by the United States Senate on May 27, 1988 and...
in 1987, which led to the removal of all nuclear missiles from the base.
The 501 TMW was inactivated on 31 May 1991 after ratification of the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty resulted in decommissioning of the BGM-109G.
The USAFs first GLCM wing when it stood up, it was the also the last GLCM wing to be inactivated.
501st Combat Support Wing
The unit was redesignated the 501st Combat Support Wing on 22 March 2005 and activated on 12 May 2005 at RAF MildenhallRAF Mildenhall
RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force station located at Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as an RAF station, it primarily supports United States Air Force operations and is currently the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing...
, England
The wing's mission is to manage and support geographically separated USAF units, installations and activities in the United Kingdom not directly supporting operations at RAF Mildenhall or RAF Lakenheath
RAF Lakenheath
RAF Lakenheath, is a Royal Air Force military airbase near Lakenheath in Suffolk, England. Although an RAF station, it hosts United States Air Force units and personnel...
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Effective 1 May 2007, it relocated to RAF Alconbury
RAF Alconbury
RAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station in Cambridgeshire, England. The airfield is adjacent to the Stukeleys [Great and Little] and located about northwest of Huntingdon; about north of London....
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501st Combat Support Wing
- Established as 501st Bombardment Group, Very Heavy, on 25 May 1944
- Activated on 1 June 1944
- Inactivated on 10 June 1946
- Redesignated 501st Tactical Missile Wing and consolidated with 701st Tactical Missile Wing, 11 January 1982
- Activated on 1 July 1982.
- Inactivated on 31 May 1991.
- Redesignated 501st Combat Support Wing on 22 March 2005
- Activated on 12 May 2005.
701st Tactical Missile Wing
- Established as 701st Tactical Missile Wing, 3 August 1956
- Activated on 15 September 1956
- Inactivated on 18 June 1958, personnel and equipment reassigned 38th Tactical Missile Wing
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....
, 1 June 1944
- Attached to 17th Bombardment Operational Training Wing (Very Heavy), 22 August 1944 – 10 March 1945
- 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:...
, 14 April 1945
- XXI Bomber Command
- Attached to 315th Bombardment Wing, 15 April – 18 June 1945
- 315th Bombardment Wing, (later, 315th Composite Wing), 19 June 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...
, 15 May 10 June 1946 - Twelfth Air Force, 15 September 1956
- United States Air Forces in EuropeUnited States Air Forces in EuropeThe United States Air Forces in Europe is the United States Air Force component of U.S. European Command, a Department of Defense unified command, and is one of two Air Force Major Commands outside of the continental United States, the other being the Pacific Air Forces...
, 1 January – 18 June 1958 - Third Air ForceThird Air ForceThe Third Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe . It is headquartered at Ramstein Air Base, Germany....
, 1 July 1982 – 31 May 1991; 12 May 2005–present
Components
Groups- 585th Tactical Missile Group585th Tactical Missile GroupThe 585th Tactical Missile Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 38th Tactical Missile Wing and stationed at Bitburg Air Base, West Germany...
: 15 September 1956 – 18 June 1958 - 586th Tactical Missile Group: 15 September 1956 – 18 June 1958
- 587th Tactical Missile Group587th Tactical Missile GroupThe 587th Tactical Missile Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 38th Tactical Missile Wing and stationed at Sembach Air Base, West Germany...
: 15 September 1956 – 18 June 1958
Squadrons
- 11th Tactical Missile Squadron: 1 October 1982 – 31 May 1991 (96 missiles)
- 501st Tactical Missile Maintenance Squadron: 1 July 1982 - 31 May 1991
- 21st Bombardment Squadron21st Bombardment SquadronThe 21st Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 501st Bombardment Group, based at Northwest Field, Guam in the Mariana Islands. It was inactivated on 10 June 1946....
: 1 June 1944 – 10 June 1946 (not operational, c. 21 May 10 June 1946) - 41st Bombardment Squadron41st Bombardment SquadronThe 41st Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 448th Bombardment Group, based at Long Beach Municipal Airport, California...
: 1 June 1944 – 10 June 1946 (not operational, c. 21 May 10 June 1946) - 485th Bombardment Squadron485th Bombardment SquadronThe 485th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 505th Bombardment Group. It was inactivated at Northwest Field, Guam on 10 June 1946.-History:...
: 1 June 1944 – 10 June 1946 (not operational, c. 21 May 10 June 1946)
Stations
- Dalhart AAFDalhart Municipal AirportDalhart Municipal Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located three miles southwest of the central business district of Dalhart, Texas, a city straddling the border of Dallam and Hartley counties in the northwest corner of the Texas Panhandle.The airport is not served by any commercial...
, Texas, 1 June 1944 – 22 August 1944 - Harvard AAFHarvard Army AirfieldHarvard State Airport , also known as Harvard State Airfield, is a public use airport located two nautical miles northeast of the central business district of Harvard, a city in Clay County, Nebraska, United States. It is owned by the Nebraska Department of Aeronautics...
, NebraskaNebraskaNebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, 22 August 1944 – 10 March 1945 - 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 - Hickam AAF, Territory of HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, 25 – 30 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...
, 14 April 1945 – 10 June 1946
- Hahn AB, West Germany, 15 September 1956 – 18 June 1958
- RAF Greenham CommonRAF Greenham CommonRAF Station Greenham Common is a former military airfield in Berkshire, England. The airfield is located approximately south-southwest of Thatcham; about west of London....
, England, 1 July 1982 – 31 May 1991
- BGM-109G Missile site located at: 51°22′42"N 001°18′07"W
- RAF MildenhallRAF MildenhallRAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force station located at Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as an RAF station, it primarily supports United States Air Force operations and is currently the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing...
, England, 12 May 2005 – 30 April 2007 - RAF AlconburyRAF AlconburyRAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station in Cambridgeshire, England. The airfield is adjacent to the Stukeleys [Great and Little] and located about northwest of Huntingdon; about north of London....
, England, 1 May 2007 – present
- RAF Mildenhall
Aircraft and missiles
- 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-1 MatadorMGM-1 MatadorThe Martin MGM-1 Matador was the first operational surface-to-surface cruise missile built by the United States. It was similar in concept to the German V-1, but the Matador included a radio link that allowed in-flight course corrections. This allowed accuracy to be maintained over greatly extended...
, 1956–1958 - BGM-109, 1982–1990
Wing Commanders
- Capt Harry L. Young, 27 June 1944
- Lt Col Arch G. Campbell, Jr., 6 July 1944
- Col Boyd Hubbard, Jr., 11 August 1944
- Col Vincent M. Miles, Jr., 15 April – 20 May 1946
- Not manned, 21 May – 10 June 1946
- Lt Col Robert F. Zachmann 15 September 1956
- Col Theodore H. Runyon 7 January 1957 – 18 June 1958
- Col Robert M. Thompson, 1 July 1982
- Col John Bacs, 25 January 1985
- Col William E. Jones, 2 June 1987
- Col Richard P. Riddick, 21 July 1988
- Col Wendell S. Brande, 7 January – 31 May 1991
- Col Blake F. Lindner, 12 May 2005
- Col Kimberly K. Toney, 21 June 2007
- Col Timothy S. Cashdollar, May 2009
Bestowed Honors
- Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Streamer
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- Air Offensive
- Japan Eastern Mandates
- Western Pacific
Decorations
Distinguished Unit Citation Japan 6 – 13 July 1945
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 15 September 1956 – 30 April 1958- Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 July 1982 – 30 June 1984
- Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 July 1987 – 31 May 1989
- Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 June 1989 – 31 May 1991
- Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 January 2006 – 31 December 2007
See also
- List of BGM-109G GLCM Units