509th Weapons Squadron
Encyclopedia
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 is assigned to the USAF Weapons School
USAF Weapons School
The USAF Weapons School is a unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to the 57th Wing. It is stationed at Nellis AFB, Nevada.-Mission:...
, stationed at Fairchild AFB, Washington.
The 509th WPS is a Geographically Separated Unit (GSU) of the 57th Wing
57th Wing
The 57th Wing is an operational unit of the United States Air Force Warfare Center, stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.The 57 WG's mission is to provide well trained and well equipped combat forces ready to deploy into a combat arena to conduct integrated combat operations.-Mission:The 57...
, assigned to Nellis AFB, Nevada. The mission of the squadron is to provide KC-135 Stratotanker instructional flying.
History
Activated in 1943 as a B-24 LiberatorB-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...
Operational Training Unit (OTU); then a Replacement Training Unit (RTU). Inactivated in April 1944 with the end of heavy bomber training.
Reactivated in 1948 as an air refueling squadron, the first such unit in the United States Air Force. Initially equipped with KB-29M aerial tanker which carried a system of hoses, reels, winches and fuel pumps needed for the transfer of the fuel to the receiver aircraft. A power-driven reel for the refuelling hose was installed in the rear fuselage at the position where the lower aft turret had been located prior to its removal. The KB-29M also had a cable and associated winch (known as the contact line) that was used to assist in the setup of the connection between the two aircraft.
Although the hose refueling system proved to be feasible, in practice the system had the disadvantage in taking a long time to make the contact and engage the hoses. Once contact was made, the rate of fuel transfer was slow, and the hoses provided a lot of aerodynamic drag which limited the airspeed. Consequently, the hose system was used for only a few years before it was replaced by the Boeing-developed flying boom system (KB-29L)
Conducted air refueling using KC-97 and KC-135 stratotankers until being inactivated in 1994,
Lineage
- Constituted 609 Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 15 Feb 1943
- Activated on 1 Mar 1943
- Disbanded on 10 Apr 1944
- Reconstituted, and consolidated (19 Sep 1985), with the 509 Air Refueling Squadron, Medium, which was constituted on 30 Jun 1948
- Activated on 19 Jul 1948
- Discontinued, and inactivated, on 25 Jun 1965
- Redesignated 509 Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy, and activated, on 8 Aug 1966
- Organized on 2 Oct 1966
- Redesignated 509 Air Refueling Squadron on 1 Sep 1991
- Inactivated on 1 Oct 1994
- Redesignated 509 Weapons Squadron on 30 May 2003
- Activated on 1 Jun 2003
Assignments
- 400th Bombardment Group400th Bombardment GroupThe 400th Bombardment Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the First Air Force, stationed at Charleston Army Airfield, South Carolina. It was inactivated on 10 April 1944....
, 1 Mar 1943-10 Apr 1944 - 509th Bombardment Group, 19 Jul 1948
- 509th Bombardment Wing, 16 Jun 1952
- 817th Air Division817th Air DivisionThe 817th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command, assigned to Second Air Force, being stationed at Pease Air Force Base, New Hampshire...
, 5 Jan 1958 - 509th Bombardment Wing, 8 Jul 1958-25 Jun 1965; 2 Oct 1966
- 416th Bombardment Wing416th Bombardment WingThe 416th Bombardment Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Air Combat Command, being stationed at Griffiss Air Force Base, New York. It was inactivated on 30 September 1995....
, 1 Jul 1990 - 416th Operations Group, 1 Sep 1991
- 380th Operations Group, 1 Jun 1992-1 Oct 1994
- USAF Mobility Weapons School, 1 Jun 2003
- USAF Weapons School, 5 Jul 2006-Present
Stations
- Pyote Army Air Base, TexasTexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, 1 Mar 1943 - Davis-Monthan Field, ArizonaArizonaArizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, 11 Apr 1943 - Pueblo Army Air Base, 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...
, c. 2 May 1943 - Smoky Hill Army Airfield, KansasKansasKansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, 31 Jul 1943 - Alamogordo Army Airfield, New MexicoNew MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, 19 Sep 1943 - Charleston Army Airfield, South CarolinaSouth CarolinaSouth Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, 15 Dec 1943-10 Apr 1944
- Walker AFB, New MexicoNew MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, 19 Jul 1948
- 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...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, 4 Jun-3 Sep 1952 - Deployed at RAF LakenheathRAF LakenheathRAF 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...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, 26 Jan-1 May 1956- Pease AFB, New HampshireNew HampshireNew Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, 5 Jan 1958-25 Jun 1965; 2 Oct 1966 - Griffiss AFB, New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, 1 Jul 1990-1 Oct 1994 - Fairchild AFB, Washington, 1 Jun 2003-Present
- Pease AFB, New Hampshire
Aircraft
- 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...
, 1943-1944 - KB-29 Superfortress, 1948-1954
- KC-97 StratotankerKC-97 StratotankerThe Boeing KC-97 Stratotanker was a United States strategic tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker.-Design and development:...
, 1954-1965 - KC-135 StratotankerKC-135 StratotankerThe Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an aerial refueling military aircraft. It and the Boeing 707 airliner were developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype. The KC-135 was the US Air Force's first jet-powered refueling tanker and replaced the KC-97 Stratotanker...
, 1966-1994