50th Education Squadron - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The 50th Education Squadron is a training squadron of the United States Air Force

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...

. It is currently stationed at the United States Air Force Academy

United States Air Force Academy

The United States Air Force Academy is an accredited college for the undergraduate education of officer candidates for the United States Air Force. Its campus is located immediately north of Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States...

, Colorado

Colorado

Colorado 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...

World War I

The unit was first organized as a service Squadron at Kelly Field. After training, it went to Garden City, New Jersey. From there it was shipped out to Liverpool

Liverpool

Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

, England, on board the RMS Carmania (1905)

RMS Carmania (1905)

The RMS Carmania was a British ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by John Brown & Company for the Cunard Line. In World War I the Carmania was converted to an armed merchant cruiser.-History:...

, arriving 24-January-1917. In England, the Squadron was stationed at a training airfield at Harlaxton

Harlaxton

Harlaxton is a village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It lies on the edge of the Vale of Belvoir and just off the A607, south-east from Grantham and north-east from Melton Mowbray.-History:...

, where it stayed until leaving for France. Finally, it arrived at Port of Le Havre

Port of Le Havre

The Port of Le Havre, Port Autonome du Havre, is the Port and port authority of the Normandy city of Le Havre, France.The port of Le Havre consists of a series of canal-like docks, the Canal de Tancarville and the Grand Canal du Havre, that connect Le Havre to the Seine, close to the Pont de...

on 14-July-1918. Its first station in France was Amanty

Amanty

Amanty is a commune in the Meuse department in the Lorraine region in north-eastern France....

and arrived there 27-July-1918. At Amanty it received 18 DH-4s divided into 3 flights, and began observation operations. Operations included St. Michael, Lorraine, Meuse-Argonne, and other locations as part of I Corps (United States). The squadron adopted the famous Dutch Girl insignia, trademark of Old Dutch Cleanser. To the fliers of the 50th Aero Squadron, the Dutch Girl meant one thing: "Clean up on Germany." The insignia was painted on the aircraft, and squadron members wore matching pins above the right breast pocket on their uniforms. On 6 October 1918, 1Lt Harold E. Goettler and 2Lt Erwin R. Bleckley

Erwin R. Bleckley

Erwin Russell Bleckley was a United States Army Air Service aviator during World War I, and posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor, killed in action on October 6, 1918. Bleckley entered service as a member of the Kansas National Guard, was commissioned as an artillery officer, then volunteered...

, of the 50th Aero Squadron were shot down near Bienville, Oise

Bienville, Oise

Bienville is a small village in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune within the département of Oise....

, France, while attempting to drop supplies to a battalion of the 77th Infantry Division (United States), surrounded by the enemy in the Argonne Forest. Both died from their wounds and were posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor during World War I. The Squadron was shipped home from the port of Marseille

Marseille

Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...

22-April-1919 on board the SS Caserta

SS Caserta

SS Caserta was an Italian ocean liner named for the city of Caserta in the Campania region of Italy. She was previously known as SS Maritzburg and SS Mendoza, and was later renamed SS Venezuela. Launched in 1904 as Maritzburg for the Bucknall Line, the ship was sold to Lloyd Italiano in 1905 and...

Inter-War era

Returned to the United States in May 1919; remained active with the Army Air Service Second Wing and performed demonstrations of effectiveness of aerial bombardment on naval warships, June–September 1921. Reassigned to Mexican Border in 1927 as an aerial observation squadron before inactivation. Reactivated as aerial observation and defensive patrol squadron off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii Territory, 1930. Remained in Hawaii throughout the 1930s as part of the air defenses of the islands.

World War II

After the Attack on Pearl Harbor, performed search and reconnaissance missions over the Pacific, 8 December 1941-July 1942; being redesignated as a heavy bomber squadron in April 1942. Initially flew early model B-17C/D Flying Fortresses, May–October 1943

Engaged in combat operations in the Central Pacific June 1942. Returned to Hawaii and converted to Very Long Range (VLR) B-24 Liberators in May 1943. Redeployed to Central Pacific May, Jun, Jul, September 1943; in South and Southwest Pacific, 2 August 1942-c. 16 February 1943; and in Central and Western Pacific, 13 November 1943-12 August 1945. The unit earned the Distinguished Unit Citation and the Presidential Unit Citation for its services in the Pacific.

Postwar era

Reorganized in the Philippines and returned to being a reconnaissance squadron, being equipped largely with B-17 and B-24s converted for photographic and mapping use. Performed aerial photography and mapping over the Southwest Pacific, Southeast Asia, Korea, Japan, Philippines, Formosa, and the Pescadores, 1946–1947.

The unit was subsequently deactivated on 20 October 1947.

Modern era

The squadron was reactivated at the United States Air Force Academy on 1 October 1983 and designated the 50th Airmanship Training Squadron. In 1994, the unit earned its fourth Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, three of them consecutively, in its time at the Academy. In November 1994 the squadron was redesignated as the 50th Training Squadron. The summer of 1997 saw the last flight of the T-43A for the squadron with a change in direction for the squadron mission and a loss of funding for the Buckley ANG Base unit which supported T-43 operations. In January 2001 the squadron was redesignated the 50th Education Squadron, reflecting the squadron's change in mission.

Lineage

Organized as 50th Aero Squadron on 6 August 1917

Redesignated: 50th Squadron on 14 March 1921

Redesignated: 50th Observation Squadron on 25 January 1923.

Inactivated on 1 August 1927

Activated on 1 November 1930

Redesignated: 50th Reconnaissance Squadron on 25 January 1938

Redesignated: 50th Reconnaissance Squadron (Medium Range) on 6 December 1939

Redesignated: 50th Reconnaissance Squadron (Heavy) on 20 November 1940

Redesignated: 431st Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 22 April 1942

Redesignated: 5th Reconnaissance Squadron (Very Long Range, Photographic) on 29 April 1946.

Inactivated on 20 October 1947

Redesignated 50th Airmanship Training Squadron and activated on 1 October 1983

Redesignated 50th Training Squadron on 1 November 1994

Redesignated 50th Education Squadron on 1 January 2001

Assignments

Unknown, 6 August 1917-September 1918
I Corps Observation Group
1st Corps Observation Group (World War I)
The 1st Corps Observation Group is an inactive United States Army unit. It was last assigned to the I Corps, United States Army Air Service, during World War I in France...

, September–November 1918
Unknown, November 1918-September 1919
2d Wing, September 1919

Attached to 1st Army Observation Group, c. October 1919

1st Army Observation Group, 24 May 1920
Air Service Field Officers’ School, 10 February 1921

Attached to 1st Provisional Air Brigade for operations, 6 May-3 October 1921

2d Wing

Attached to Air Service Field Officers’ [later Air Service Tactical; Air Corps Tactical] School, 8 August 1922

Air Corps Training Center, June-1 August 1927
5th Composite (later Bombardment) Group
5th Operations Group
The 5th Operations Group is an operational component of the United States Air Force 5th Bomb Wing, stationed at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota...

, assigned on 1 November 1930, and attached on 12 October 1938
11th Bombardment Group, attached on 1 February 1940, and assigned on 25 February 1942

Associated with: 1st Photographic Group

1st Photographic Group

The 1st Photographic Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 311th Photographic Wing, stationed at Buckley Field, Colorado. It was inactivated on 5 October 1944.-History:...

, 10 Jun 1941-22 Apr 1942 (training)

US Army Forces, Pacific, 29 April 1946
313th Bombardment Wing, 15 June 1946
5th Reconnaissance Group, 3 February-20 October 1947
34th Education Group, 1 October 1983 – Present

Stations

Kelly Field, Texas
Texas
Texas 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...

, 6 August-28 December 1917
Romsey, England, 24 January 1918
Grantham, England, 4 February 1918
Winchester, England, 3–13 July 1918
Amanty, France, 27 July 1918
Behonne, France, 4 September 1918
Bicqueley, France, 8 September 1918
Remicourt, France, 24 September 1918
Clermont-en-Argonne, France, 28 October 1918
Langres, France (operated from Longeau), 6 December 1918

B Flight operated from Clermont-en-Argonne to 18 December 1918 and from Clamecy thereafter

C Flight operated from Clermonten-Argonne to 12 December 1918 and from La Valbonne thereafter

Clamecy, France, 9 May 1919
Scott Field
Scott Air Force Base
Scott Air Force Base is a base of the United States Air Force in St. Clair County, Illinois, near Belleville.-Overview:The base is named after Corporal Frank S. Scott, the first enlisted person to be killed in an aviation crash...

, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, 27 May 1919
Langley Field, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

, August 1919
Brooks Field
Brooks City-Base
Brooks City-Base was a United States Air Force facility located in San Antonio, Texas, southeast of Downtown San Antonio.In 2002 Brooks Air Force Base was renamed Brooks City-Base when the property was conveyed to the Brooks Development Authority as part of a unique project between local, state,...

, Texas
Texas
Texas 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...

, 25 June-1 August 1927
Luke Field, Hawaii Territory, 1 November 1930

Hickam Field, Hawaii Territory, 9 October 1939
Nadi Airfield, Viti Levu
Viti Levu
Viti Levu is the largest island in the Republic of Fiji, the site of the nation's capital, Suva, and home to a large majority of Fiji's population.- Geography and economy :...

, Fiji Islands, 24 July 1942

Air echelon operated from Luganville Airfield, Espiritu Santo

Espiritu Santo

Espiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of . It belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu....

, New Hebrides

New Hebrides

New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...

, August 1942

Luganville Airfield, Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of . It belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu....

, New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...

, 1 November 1942-28 March 1943

Forward echelon operated from Henderson Field

Henderson Field (Guadalcanal)

Henderson Field is a former military airfield on Guadacanal, Solomon Islands during World War II. Today it is Honiara International Airport.-Japanese construction:...

, Guadalcanal

Guadalcanal

Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...

, Solomon Islands

Solomon Islands

Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...

, December 1942

Hickam Field, Hawaii Territory, 8 April 1943
Funafuti Airfield, Nanumea
Nanumea
Nanumea is the northwesternmost atoll in the Polynesian nation of Tuvalu, a group of nine coral atolls and islands spread over about four hundred miles of Pacific Ocean just south of the equator and west of the International Date Line.-Geography:...

, Gilbert Islands
Gilbert Islands
The Gilbert Islands are a chain of sixteen atolls and coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are the main part of Republic of Kiribati and include Tarawa, the site of the country's capital and residence of almost half of the population.-Geography:The atolls and islands of the Gilbert Islands...

, 11 November 1943
Hawkins Field
Hawkins Field
Hawkins Field is a baseball stadium in Nashville, Tennessee. It is the home field of the Vanderbilt Commodores college baseball team. The stadium opened in 2002 adjacent to Vanderbilt Stadium and Memorial Gymnasium and holds 3,700 people...

, Tarawa, Gilbert Islands
Gilbert Islands
The Gilbert Islands are a chain of sixteen atolls and coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are the main part of Republic of Kiribati and include Tarawa, the site of the country's capital and residence of almost half of the population.-Geography:The atolls and islands of the Gilbert Islands...

, 16 January 1944
Kwajalein Airfield, Kwajalein
Kwajalein
Kwajalein Atoll , is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands . The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island. English-speaking residents of the U.S...

, Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...

, 31 March 1944
Agana Airfield, Guam
Guam
Guam 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...

, Marianas Islands, 21 October 1944
Kadena Airfield, Okinawa, 2 July 1945
Fort William McKinley
Fort William McKinley
Fort William McKinley, was established in the Philippines during the Philippine–American War in 1901 when the whole land south of Pasig River down to Alabang was declared a U.S. Military Reservation. During the World War II era, it was where USAFFE had its headquarters for the Philippine Department...

, Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...

, Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

, December 1945
Clark Field, Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...

, Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

, 15 June 1946-20 October 1947
United States Air Force Academy
United States Air Force Academy
The United States Air Force Academy is an accredited college for the undergraduate education of officer candidates for the United States Air Force. Its campus is located immediately north of Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States...

, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado 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...

, 1 October 1983 – Present

Aircraft

DH-4, 1918–1919
In addition to DH-4, apparently included SE-5 during period 1919-1927
0-19, 1930–1936
In addition to B-12, included A-3, P-12, and others at various times during period 1936-1938
B-18, 1938–1941
B-17, 1941–1943
B-24, 1943–1945
F-13, 1946–1947
F-7, 1946–1947
C-47 1946
C-46, 1946-194
FB-17, 1947
T-43 Bobcat

External links

http://www.usafa.edu/df/dfmi/50ES/50eshome.htm official unit site
http://www.footnote.com/image/#19953694 Gorrells history
http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=AMUMAAAAYAAJ&dq=%2250th+Aero+Squadron%22&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=9jOdtFs8KX&sig=rnItQJ3VVEeu8clHZJrtJb1Kp0E&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result#v=onepage&q=&f=false

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.