57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron
Encyclopedia
The 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, also known as "The Black Knights of Keflavik", is an inactive United States Air Force
unit. The 57 FIS was last stationed at Naval Air Station Keflavik
, Iceland
. It was inactivated on 1 March, 1995.
, California. Along with the 42nd and 56th squadrons it was a part of the 54th Pursuit Group. It was formed with a cadre from the 35th Pursuit Group.
The squadron operated both Bell P-39 Aircobras and Curtiss P-40 Warhawks alongside each other which was rather unusual, and in June 1942 it was sent to Alaska
. It was first based at Elmendorf Field, Anchorage and according to the official records, it would seem that it did not in itself take any part in the action against the Japanese in the Aleutians, but a detachment of eleven of the pilots saw service with the 42d which was based at Kodiak
NAS, Adak
and between them got three confirmed victories and two probables. On August 4, 1942, the 57th was moved to Kodiak NAS, Adak and there replaced the 42d. All its pilots were rotated to Adak to gain combat experience.
The assignment of the 57th to Alaska came to end on November 26, 1942 and the P-39s were to be flown to Duncan Army Airfield
, San Antonio, Texas for depot-level overhaul. With the squadron back at Harding Army Airfield, Baton Rouge, it was reequipped with the North American P-51A Mustang, thereby becoming the first P-51 unit in the AAF. On May 12, 1943 the 54th Group with the 57th and 56th squadrons was transferred to Bartow Army Airfield, Florida. There it became a replacement training group, training P-51 pilots for overseas duty. It reequipped with P-51Bs at Bartow. The 57th squadron was disbanded on April 30, 1944, being replaced by an Army Air Force Base Unit as part of a re-orgazation of training units.
The unit was reactivated under Strategic Air Command
on 24 March 1947 as an Air Force Reserve fighter-escort squadron under the reserve 459th Bombardment Group at Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona. It is unclear whether or nor the unit was manned or equipped as the 459th was located at Long Beach Army Air Field, California with B-29 Superfortress
es. It was inactivated in June 1959 due to budget reductions.
. It maintained a 24 hour alert at Presque Isle.
On 12 November 1954, the 57th FIS was moved to Keflavik Airport, Iceland, replacing the 82d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron which was temporarily assigned from Larson AFB, Washington. At Keflavik, ADC was a tenant unit under the Military Air Transport Service
Iceland Air Defense Force (IADF).
The mission of the 57th FIS at Keflavik was a interceptor squadron charged with the monitoring of the Greenland
, Iceland
, United Kingdom
(GIUK gap
) in the North Atlantic that formed a naval warfare choke point during the Cold War
. The 57th would respond alerts from ADC Ground-Control Intercept (GCI) and warning stations established on Iceland; the GCI stations guiding its interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the radar scopes. Over 1,000 intercepts of Soviet aircraft took place inside Iceland's Military Air Defense Identification Zone
(ADIZ).
On 18 December 1955 the IADF was re-designated as the MATS 1400th Operations Group as the mission at Keflavik was expanded to accommodate Tactical Air Command
and Strategic Air Command
transient aircraft. In 1959, a retrenchment of USAF operations began, including the reduction of F-89 interceptors by ADC and SAC (tenant) activities.
Air Force activities at the airport were reorganized and placed under the ADC Air Forces Iceland, which functioned at a Wing level on 1 July 1960. Shortly afterwards, the USAF transferred jurisdiction of Keflavik Airport to the to the United States Navy
on 1 July 1961 which named it Naval Air Station Keflavik
(NASKEF). The Air Force units at Keflavik operated in a tenant status with the 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron and two Radar Aircraft Control and Warning Squadrons on 1 Jul 1961. The USAF facilities remained designated Keflavik Airport.
In 1962 ADC replaced the F-89s with newer F-102 Delta Daggers supersonic interceptors, the F-89s generally being worn-out after nearly a decade of continual interceptions. Challenges by the 57th FIS to Soviet aircraft on flights over the North Atlantic and along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States to bases in Cuba
continued throughout the 1960s.
The first F-4C Phantom II aircraft was assigned to the squadron on 16 April 1973, as TAC was replacing the C's with F-4E models at the end of the Vietnam War
. By 30 June, the squadron. had six F-4Cs and additional F-4s were received in the third quarter of 1974. The last of the F-102s were replaced in early 1975 when additional F-4Cs were received from TAC squadrons at Luke AFB and George AFB; the last F-4C arriving in March, 1976.
In early 1978 preparations for the exchange of the F-4C for F-4Es were underway with the first two aircraft landing on 21 March. These aircraft were better equipped than the C models, with solid state radios and tactical navigation equipment, lead computing optical gunsight and ILS. Twelve aircraft arrived between April and July, and the last F-4Cs left on 14 June.
Some F-106 Delta Dart
s were received by the 57th FIS by Aerospace Defense Command in 1977 from ADC units inactivating in the United States. because of increased activity around the Kola Peninsula
in the USSR, but in all probability it was extra capacity added to assist while the 57th began converting to the F-4E. The Delta Darts did stand alert, but not in the Alert Hangar itself, but from the flight line beside it.
(TAC) absorbed ADC's assets, and the F-4E Phantom II
aircraft of the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (57 FIS). In 1982 the construction of hardened aircraft shelters was planned on the west end of the airfield and this construction started in 1983. The shelters were of a Norwegian design, with the doors opening inwards and fitting into a recess in the foundation, thus making the floor for the aircraft to taxi over. Thirteen shelters were constructed.
In 1984 it was announced that the 57th FIS was programmed to receive the F-15 Eagle
. Initially, it was believed that the squadron would get the F-15A model, as that was the version going into the ANG units at that time, and the 57th had never been equipped with the most modern front-line aircraft in the USAF. It therefore came as a surprise that July 1985, that modern F-15Cs
and F-15Ds replaced the aging F-4s, and the tail code "IS" was assigned to Air Forces Iceland (AFI).
On 1 June 1992, Air Combat Command
(ACC) assumed command and control of AFI and the 57th FIS. Air Forces Iceland was inactivated on 31 May 1993. Activated in its place, assuming the mission previously carried out by AFI, was the 35th Fighter Wing
(35 WG) that was transferred from the closing George AFB, California
. The change was part of the Air Force's "objective wing" plan that was to carry on the history of World War II flying units. On 1 October 1993, an ACC realignment transferred administrative control of the 35th Fighter Wing from First Air Force
to Eighth Air Force
. However, the 35th would go through another major change less than two years after it was activated at Keflavik.
Because the 35th garnered the majority of its history in the Pacific theater during World War II, and in California since 1971 until its move to Iceland, it was decided to relocate the unit back to that area. Consequently, the 35th Fighter Wing was relieved of its assignment to ACC and transferred to Misawa Air Base
(AB), Japan, on 1 October 1994. To assume the mission at Keflavik, the 85th Wing was activated on the same day.
The 85th Wing was a combination of the lineages and histories of the 85th Fighter-Bomber Group and the former Air Forces Iceland (AFI). This allowed the Air Force contingent in Iceland to keep alive its distinguished history in the foreign nation, while also retaining the history of a World War II flying unit.
Air Force reductions and a new agreement with the Government of Iceland continued to affect Keflavik organizations. On 1 March 1995, the 57th FS was deactivated and the interceptor force was replaced by Regular Air Force and Air National Guard
F-15 Eagle
fighter aircraft rotating every 90 days to Iceland until the USAF deactivated the 85th Group in 2002.
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. The 57 FIS was last stationed at Naval Air Station Keflavik
Naval Air Station Keflavik
United 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...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , 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...
. It was inactivated on 1 March, 1995.
World War II
The 57th Pursuit Squadron was established on January 1, 1941 at Hamilton FieldHamilton Field
Hamilton Field may refer to:* Hamilton Air Force Base, a former U.S. Air Force Base located on San Francisco Bay, California, United States.* Hamilton Field , an airport located in Derby, Kansas, United States....
, California. Along with the 42nd and 56th squadrons it was a part of the 54th Pursuit Group. It was formed with a cadre from the 35th Pursuit Group.
The squadron operated both Bell P-39 Aircobras and Curtiss P-40 Warhawks alongside each other which was rather unusual, and in June 1942 it was sent 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...
. It was first based at Elmendorf Field, Anchorage and according to the official records, it would seem that it did not in itself take any part in the action against the Japanese in the Aleutians, but a detachment of eleven of the pilots saw service with the 42d which was based at Kodiak
Kodiak
Kodiak may refer to:In media and literary works:*Kodiak , a television program that aired Fridays on ABC during the 1974-75 television season in the United States...
NAS, Adak
Adak Island
Adak Island is an island near the western extent of the Andreanof Islands group of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Alaska's southernmost town, Adak, is located on the island...
and between them got three confirmed victories and two probables. On August 4, 1942, the 57th was moved to Kodiak NAS, Adak and there replaced the 42d. All its pilots were rotated to Adak to gain combat experience.
The assignment of the 57th to Alaska came to end on November 26, 1942 and the P-39s were to be flown to Duncan Army Airfield
Kelly Air Force Base
Kelly Field Annex and is a former United States Air Force facility located in San Antonio, Texas. In 2001, the runway and land west of the runway became "Kelly Field Annex" and control of it was transferred to the adjacent Lackland Air Force Base, part of Joint Base San Antonio...
, San Antonio, Texas for depot-level overhaul. With the squadron back at Harding Army Airfield, Baton Rouge, it was reequipped with the North American P-51A Mustang, thereby becoming the first P-51 unit in the AAF. On May 12, 1943 the 54th Group with the 57th and 56th squadrons was transferred to Bartow Army Airfield, Florida. There it became a replacement training group, training P-51 pilots for overseas duty. It reequipped with P-51Bs at Bartow. The 57th squadron was disbanded on April 30, 1944, being replaced by an Army Air Force Base Unit as part of a re-orgazation of training units.
The unit was reactivated under Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
on 24 March 1947 as an Air Force Reserve fighter-escort squadron under the reserve 459th Bombardment Group at Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona. It is unclear whether or nor the unit was manned or equipped as the 459th was located at Long Beach Army Air Field, California with 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...
es. It was inactivated in June 1959 due to budget reductions.
Air Defense Command
The 57th was reactivated as an active squadron at Presque Isle AFB, Maine, on March 20, 1953 under Air Defense Command and designated the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron. It was equipped with Northrop F-89C Scorpion interceptor, and assigned to the 528th Air Defense Group528th Air Defense Group
The 528th Air Defense Group is a disbanded United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 4711th Air Defense Wing, being stationed at Presque Isle Air Force Base, Maine...
. It maintained a 24 hour alert at Presque Isle.
On 12 November 1954, the 57th FIS was moved to Keflavik Airport, Iceland, replacing the 82d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron which was temporarily assigned from Larson AFB, Washington. At Keflavik, ADC was a tenant unit under the Military Air Transport Service
Military Air Transport Service
The Military Air Transport Service is an inactive Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy Naval Air Transport Service and the United States Air Force Air Transport Command into a single, joint, unified command...
Iceland Air Defense Force (IADF).
The mission of the 57th FIS at Keflavik was a interceptor squadron charged with the monitoring of the Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , 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...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
(GIUK gap
GIUK gap
The GIUK gap is an area in the northern Atlantic Ocean that forms a naval warfare chokepoint. Its name is an acronym for Greenland, Iceland, and the United Kingdom, the gap being the open ocean between these three landmasses...
) in the North Atlantic that formed a naval warfare choke point 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...
. The 57th would respond alerts from ADC Ground-Control Intercept (GCI) and warning stations established on Iceland; the GCI stations guiding its interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the radar scopes. Over 1,000 intercepts of Soviet aircraft took place inside Iceland's Military Air Defense Identification Zone
Air Defense Identification Zone
An Air Defense Identification Zone has existed since February 10, 2003, around the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area to restrict air traffic near Washington, D.C....
(ADIZ).
On 18 December 1955 the IADF was re-designated as the MATS 1400th Operations Group as the mission at Keflavik was expanded to accommodate Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 being headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia...
and Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
transient aircraft. In 1959, a retrenchment of USAF operations began, including the reduction of F-89 interceptors by ADC and SAC (tenant) activities.
Air Force activities at the airport were reorganized and placed under the ADC Air Forces Iceland, which functioned at a Wing level on 1 July 1960. Shortly afterwards, the USAF transferred jurisdiction of Keflavik Airport to the to the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
on 1 July 1961 which named it Naval Air Station Keflavik
Naval Air Station Keflavik
United 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...
(NASKEF). The Air Force units at Keflavik operated in a tenant status with the 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron and two Radar Aircraft Control and Warning Squadrons on 1 Jul 1961. The USAF facilities remained designated Keflavik Airport.
In 1962 ADC replaced the F-89s with newer F-102 Delta Daggers supersonic interceptors, the F-89s generally being worn-out after nearly a decade of continual interceptions. Challenges by the 57th FIS to Soviet aircraft on flights over the North Atlantic and along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States to bases in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
continued throughout the 1960s.
The first F-4C Phantom II aircraft was assigned to the squadron on 16 April 1973, as TAC was replacing the C's with F-4E models at the end of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. By 30 June, the squadron. had six F-4Cs and additional F-4s were received in the third quarter of 1974. The last of the F-102s were replaced in early 1975 when additional F-4Cs were received from TAC squadrons at Luke AFB and George AFB; the last F-4C arriving in March, 1976.
In early 1978 preparations for the exchange of the F-4C for F-4Es were underway with the first two aircraft landing on 21 March. These aircraft were better equipped than the C models, with solid state radios and tactical navigation equipment, lead computing optical gunsight and ILS. Twelve aircraft arrived between April and July, and the last F-4Cs left on 14 June.
Some F-106 Delta Dart
F-106 Delta Dart
The 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...
s were received by the 57th FIS by Aerospace Defense Command in 1977 from ADC units inactivating in the United States. because of increased activity around the Kola Peninsula
Kola Peninsula
The Kola Peninsula is a peninsula in the far northwest of Russia. Constituting the bulk of the territory of Murmansk Oblast, it lies almost completely to the north of the Arctic Circle and is washed by the Barents Sea in the north and the White Sea in the east and southeast...
in the USSR, but in all probability it was extra capacity added to assist while the 57th began converting to the F-4E. The Delta Darts did stand alert, but not in the Alert Hangar itself, but from the flight line beside it.
Tactical/Air Combat Command
On 1 October 1979 Tactical Air CommandTactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 being headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia...
(TAC) absorbed ADC's assets, and the F-4E Phantom II
F-4 Phantom II
The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is a tandem two-seat, twin-engined, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor fighter/fighter-bomber originally developed for the United States Navy by McDonnell Aircraft. It first entered service in 1960 with the U.S. Navy. Proving highly adaptable,...
aircraft of the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (57 FIS). In 1982 the construction of hardened aircraft shelters was planned on the west end of the airfield and this construction started in 1983. The shelters were of a Norwegian design, with the doors opening inwards and fitting into a recess in the foundation, thus making the floor for the aircraft to taxi over. Thirteen shelters were constructed.
In 1984 it was announced that the 57th FIS was programmed to receive the F-15 Eagle
F-15 Eagle
The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed by McDonnell Douglas to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It is considered among the most successful modern fighters with over 100 aerial combat victories with no losses in dogfights...
. Initially, it was believed that the squadron would get the F-15A model, as that was the version going into the ANG units at that time, and the 57th had never been equipped with the most modern front-line aircraft in the USAF. It therefore came as a surprise that July 1985, that modern F-15Cs
F-15 Eagle
The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed by McDonnell Douglas to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It is considered among the most successful modern fighters with over 100 aerial combat victories with no losses in dogfights...
and F-15Ds replaced the aging F-4s, and the tail code "IS" was assigned to Air Forces Iceland (AFI).
On 1 June 1992, Air Combat Command
Air Combat Command
Air Combat Command is a major command of the United States Air Force. ACC is one of ten major commands , reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force ....
(ACC) assumed command and control of AFI and the 57th FIS. Air Forces Iceland was inactivated on 31 May 1993. Activated in its place, assuming the mission previously carried out by AFI, was the 35th Fighter Wing
35th Fighter Wing
The 35th Fighter Wing is an air combat unit of the United States Air Force and the host unit at Misawa Air Base, Japan. The 35 FW is part of Pacific Air Forces Fifth Air Force.-Mission:...
(35 WG) that was transferred from the closing George AFB, 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...
. The change was part of the Air Force's "objective wing" plan that was to carry on the history of World War II flying units. On 1 October 1993, an ACC realignment transferred administrative control of the 35th Fighter Wing from First Air Force
First 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....
to Eighth Air Force
Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana....
. However, the 35th would go through another major change less than two years after it was activated at Keflavik.
Because the 35th garnered the majority of its history in the Pacific theater during World War II, and in California since 1971 until its move to Iceland, it was decided to relocate the unit back to that area. Consequently, the 35th Fighter Wing was relieved of its assignment to ACC and transferred to Misawa Air Base
Misawa Air Base
right|thumb|A US Navy C-2 at Misawa is a United States military facility located northeast of the railway station in Misawa, west of the Pacific Ocean, northeast of Towada, northwest of Hachinohe, and north of Tokyo, in Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region in the northern part of the...
(AB), Japan, on 1 October 1994. To assume the mission at Keflavik, the 85th Wing was activated on the same day.
The 85th Wing was a combination of the lineages and histories of the 85th Fighter-Bomber Group and the former Air Forces Iceland (AFI). This allowed the Air Force contingent in Iceland to keep alive its distinguished history in the foreign nation, while also retaining the history of a World War II flying unit.
Air Force reductions and a new agreement with the Government of Iceland continued to affect Keflavik organizations. On 1 March 1995, the 57th FS was deactivated and the interceptor force was replaced by Regular Air Force and Air National Guard
Air National Guard
The Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia of the United States. Established under Title 10 and...
F-15 Eagle
F-15 Eagle
The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed by McDonnell Douglas to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It is considered among the most successful modern fighters with over 100 aerial combat victories with no losses in dogfights...
fighter aircraft rotating every 90 days to Iceland until the USAF deactivated the 85th Group in 2002.
Lineage
- Constituted 57th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor) on November 20, 1940.
- Activated on January 15, 1941.
- Re-designated 57th Fighter Squadron on May 15, 1942
- Disbanded on May 1, 1944.
- Re-constituted on March 24, 1947.
- Activated in the reserve on May 15, 1947.
- Inactivated on June 27, 1949.
- Re-designated 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron on February 11, 1953.
- Activated on March 27, 1953
- Re-designated 57th Fighter Squadron on 1 January 1993
- Inactivated on March 1, 1995
Assignments
- 54th Pursuit (later Fighter) Group54th Fighter-Interceptor GroupThe 54th Fighter-Interceptor Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit, last assigned to the Air Defense Command, being stationed at Greater Pittsburgh Airport, Pennsylvania...
, 15 Jan 1941-1 May 1944 - 459th Bombardment Group, 15 May 1947-27 Jun 1949
- 528th Air Defense Group528th Air Defense GroupThe 528th Air Defense Group is a disbanded United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 4711th Air Defense Wing, being stationed at Presque Isle Air Force Base, Maine...
, 27 Mar 1953 - Iceland Air Defense Force, 13 Nov 1954
- 1400th Operations Group, 18 Dec 1955
- Air Forces Iceland, 1 Jul 1960
- 35th Wing35th Fighter WingThe 35th Fighter Wing is an air combat unit of the United States Air Force and the host unit at Misawa Air Base, Japan. The 35 FW is part of Pacific Air Forces Fifth Air Force.-Mission:...
, June 4, 1992 – 1 Oct 1994 - 85th Group85th GroupThe 85th Group is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with United States Air Forces in Europe, assigned to Third Air Force, being stationed at Naval Air Station Keflavik, Iceland. It was inactivated on 28 June 2006....
, 1 Oct 1994 - 1 Mar 1995
Stations
- Hamilton Field, 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...
, January 15, 1941 - EverettPaine FieldPaine Field, also known as Snohomish County Airport is a public airport located in unincorporated Snohomish County, between Mukilteo and Everett, Washington...
, Washington, June 26, 1941 - Harding Field, LouisianaLouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, January 31, 1942
- Detachment operated from: San Diego 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...
, May 28 – June 12, 1942 - Detachment operated from: Elmendorf Airfield, AlaskaAlaskaAlaska 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...
, June 20 – September 30, 1942 - Detachment operated from: Kodiak, AlaskaKodiak, AlaskaKodiak is one of 7 communities and the main city on Kodiak Island, Kodiak Island Borough, in the U.S. state of Alaska. All commercial transportation between the entire island and the outside world goes through this city either via ferryboat or airline...
, September 29 – December 1, 1942- Bartow AAFBartow Municipal AirportBartow Municipal Airport is a public use airport located four miles northeast of the central business district of Bartow, a city in Polk County, Florida, United States...
, FloridaFloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, May 12, 1943 – May 1, 1944 - Davis Monthan AFB, 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...
, May 15, 1947 – June 27, 1949 - Presque Isle AFB, MaineMaineMaine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, March 27, 1953 - Keflavik Airport (later NAS Keflavik), 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...
, November 12, 1954 – March 1, 1995
- Bartow AAF
Aircraft
- P-39 Airacobra, 1941–1943
- P-51 MustangP-51 MustangThe North American Aviation P-51 Mustang was an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II, the Korean War and in several other conflicts...
, 1943–1944 - F-89C Scorpion, 1953–1962
- 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...
, 1962–1973 - F-4C Phantom II, 1973–1978
- 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...
, 1977-1978 - F-4E Phantom II, 1978-1985
- F-15 EagleF-15 EagleThe McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed by McDonnell Douglas to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It is considered among the most successful modern fighters with over 100 aerial combat victories with no losses in dogfights...
, 1985–1995