A survivor of the Stuttgart mission recalled, We began to wonder if they were trying to kill all of us. showFBShare() + Although Eighth Air Force's strategic bomber force was not committed to combat in Korea, the Eighth deployed the 27th Fighter Escort Wing for combat action in Korea and earned numerous honors and awards for their combat record during the Korean War. if (isMobile()) On 24 February, with the weather clearing over central Germany, Eighth Air Force sent over 800 bombers, hitting Schweinfurt and attacks on the Baltic coast, with a total of 11 B-17s being lost. Most of the missions occurred The Eighth Air Force was specifically charged with the atomic mission; however, only the 509th Composite Group at Roswell AAF had B-29s that had the capability to drop nuclear weapons the 7th Bomb Group at Fort Worth AAF was modifying their aircraft to carry the atomic bomb. General Carl Spaatz returned to England to command the USSTAF. [citation needed]. For two years, the wing remained in this status until the 58th Bomb Wing was inactivated on 16 October 1948. The following day, on 9 March, H2X radar-equipped B-17s mounted a third attack on the Reich capital through clouds. VIII Bomber Command, re-designated as Eighth Air Force, and Ninth Air Force were assigned to (USSTAF). On 7 April, Eighth Air Force dispatched thirty-two B-17 and B-24 groups and fourteen Mustang groups (the sheer numbers of attacking Allied aircraft were so large in 1945 that they were now counted by the group) to targets in the small area of Germany still controlled by the Nazis, hitting the remaining airfields where the Luftwaffe jets were stationed. Eighth Air Force B-17s bomb the U-boat base at Lorient, France. }, 226 Squadron RAF) commanded by Captain Charles C. Kegelman attacked four airfields[b] in the Netherlands. } $(".fancybox-caption__body").addClass("mobile"); On July 4th, 1942 the first American bomber mission flown from England by the U.S Army Air Forces (AAF) flew towards the occupied Netherlands. However, the only reliable way of dealing with the jets, as with the even faster Me 163B Komet rocket fighters, was to attack them on the ground and during takeoff and landing. The next day proved to be an even longer day, followed by another, and another. By March 1945 the AAF would make raids with more than 500 heavy bombers, accompanied by American fighters deep into Germany. The VIII Bomber Command launched its first raid in North-western Europe on 4 July 1942, when six RAF Douglas A-20 Havocs flown by crews of the 15th Bombardment Squadron (Light) (accompanied by another six Bostons from the more experienced No. An Eighth Air Force unit, the 2d Bomb Wing, spearheaded the air campaign by dispatching B-52s from Barksdale to launch conventional air-launched cruise missiles against Iraqi targets. $(".fancybox-caption").removeClass("af3-caption-bg"); The first contingent arrived in May. winHgt / origImgHgt); Nevertheless, in March and April 1945, Allied fighter patrol patterns over Me 262 airfields resulted in numerous losses of jets and serious attrition of the force. By 1955 the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress would be entering the inventory in substantial numbers, as prop B-36s were phased out of heavy bombardment units rapidly. Losses of 30 or more aircraft300 menwere not uncommon throughout the summer. getDetailsURL($(this).parent()) + On 7 May, another 1,000 bombers hit additional targets along the English Channel coast, hitting fortifications, bridges and marshaling areas. detailSize = "full"; On the morning of March 18, 1,329 bombers and 733 fighters of the US Eighth Air Force formed up over England and set a course for northern Germany. Importantly, the Eighth's bombing effectiveness influenced the North Vietnamese to end hostilities. Then in January 1994, ACC reorganized Eighth Air Force as a general purpose Numbered Air Force (NAF) with a warfighting mission to support the U.S. Joint Forces and U.S. Strategic Commands. $(".fancybox-caption").addClass("af3-caption-bg"); The operation failed to achieve air superiority, even temporarily, and the German Army continued to be exposed to air attack. At first, the Eighth deployed its B-52 bomber and KC-135 tanker units from the U.S. to operating bases in Guam, Okinawa and Thailand. The assets of the former training units were simply assigned to Eighth Air Force. Yet, despite the opposition, the bombers continued toward the Bosch factory. While posturing itself for that mission change, the Eighth also supported Operation Enduring Freedom in which the Air Force operates against targets in Afghanistan, and Operation Noble Eagle for the defense of North American airspace. It dispersed its planes to a large number of bases across the United States so as not to have too many concentrated at a single location. Fighter-production facilities, ball-bearing plants, shipyards, and other military targets were in the crosshairs of the Eighth. At first, the Eighth deployed its B-52 bomber and KC-135 tanker units from the U.S. to operating bases in Guam, Okinawa and Thailand. Its flexible, conventional and nuclear deterrence mission provides the capability to deploy forces and engage enemy threats from home station or forward positioned, anywhere, any time. The morale among the Eighth Air Force crews was at a low point in September, yet the worst was yet to come. Six months later, after Pearl Harbor and the U.S. declaration of war, plans were started to send heavy and medium bombers, with reconnaissance and fighter aircraft to England. The 93rd Bomb Group was activated on March 1, 1942, under the command of Colonel Edward J. Timberlake at Barksdale Army Air Field in Louisiana. During the Cold War (19451991), 8 AF was one of three Numbered Air Forces of the United States Air Force's Strategic Air Command (SAC), with a three-star general headquartered at Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts commanding USAF strategic bombers and missiles on a global scale. To reduce the risk to its bomber fleet in the United States, Eighth Air Force aircraft stood nuclear alert, providing a deterrent against an attack on the United States by the Soviet Union. As a headquarters, the Eighth had another important role in victory over Iraqi forcesoperating the logistics supply and air refueling bridge between the U.S. and gulf region. The effect of the Mustangs, fully operating as an air supremacy fighter force, on the Luftwaffe defenders was arguably swift and decisive. The Luftwaffe countered by installing flak alleys along the approach lines in order to protect the Me 262s from the ground and providing top cover with conventional fighters during takeoff and landing. They were brave. In order to quickly assemble these formations, specially outfitted assembly ships were created from older bombers. The air crews hit strategic sites in Germany but also supported the movement of ground forces across Europe after D-Day. From spring 1943 until November 1943 slave labourers of the SS - Baubrigade II from the Neuengamme concentration camp were transferred to Wilhelmshaven to clear up after air raids. return '' + months in that year. Since 1994, the Eighth has participated in a string of contingency operations, such as the 1996 Operation "Desert Strike" against Iraq] the 1998 Operation "Desert Fox" (similarly named but in no way associated with Field Marshal Erwin Rommel) against Iraq, which featured the B-1 Lancer in its combat debut, and 1999 Operation "Allied Force" against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which involved the B-2A Spirit. For the Mighty Eighth, that change heralded an interesting future, one that bring further restructuring, different aircraft systems, and a new challenging mission to the NAF. Visit our 8th Air Force Honor Project with rosters of servicemen who served in the groups of the 8th. Warbirds in flight, tanks on parade, PT-305 in the water. As the bomber formation circled the target, the tight combat boxes of B-17s became easy targets for enemy fighters. Major General Mark E. Weatherington assumed command of 8th Air Force on 12 June 2020. The Eighth's brave men earned 17 Medals of Honor, 220 Distinguished Service Crosses, and 442,000 Air Medals. The exhibit opens with an examination of the rise of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany and the Battle of Britain. However, the Luftwaffe was successful in shooting down 46 bombers in a very unequal fight.[10]. var newImgHgt = (origImgHgt * ratio); if (item.type === 'image') { Luckadoo recalled that the enemy fighters attacked the bombers as soon as they crossed the border into France and continued all the way through to the target. The attack required great skill and courage, as the German and American aircraft closed at an astonishing speed. [12], Eighth Air Force's mission in the Pacific was initially to organize and train new bomber groups for combat against Japan. $(".af3-caption-body").addClass(detailSize); The "Allied Force" campaign also marked the Eighth's return to Europe and the participation of U.S. bombers in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) first combat operation. Stuttgart, Germany, and the Bosch factory located there were the targets for the Eighth on September 6. Some 230 B-24s hit the Messerschmitt Bf 110 assembly plant at Gotha with a loss of 24 aircraft. Its B-17s also penetrated to Regensburg to attack the Messerschmitt factory there. '
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'; In 1965, Eighth Air Force entered combat again, this time in Southeast Asia. The P-51 Mustang first entered squadron service in Europe with the British in early 1942; the Allison V-1710-engined P-51A (Mustang I) having much success with the RAF, although it found the aircraft's performance inadequate at higher altitudes. getDownloadURL($(this).parent()) + The Eighth's units played a key role in the 42-day Gulf War in 1991. '">DOWNLOAD'; On 21 January 1951, Lt. Col. William Bertram, commander of the 523rd Fighter-Escort Squadron, shot down the first MiG-15 for the wing and became the first F-84 pilot with a confirmed MiG kill. Eighth Air Force has five Regular Air Force bomb wings, two Air Reserve Total Force Integration bomb wings (one in Air Force Reserve Command and one in the Air National Guard), and one detachment in the continental United States. In a prelude to the invasion of France, American air attacks began in February 1944 against railroad junctions, airfields, ports and bridges in northern France and along the English Channel coastline. //initial desktop view From there you can link to each of the By December, the head-on attack was the preferred method of assailing American heavy bombers by Luftwaffe fighter pilots. However, it was believed that a strong strategic air arm equipped with B-29s would deter a possible aggressor from attacking the United States for fear of massive retaliation with nuclear weapons. $(".fancybox-caption__body").addClass("af3-caption-body"); $(this).find('figcaption').html() + That buildup limited the Eighth's Korean War involvement to the deployment of its 27th Fighter Escort Wing. By mid-1944, Eighth Air Force had reached a total strength of more than 200,000 people (it is estimated that more than 350,000 Americans served in Eighth Air Force during the war in Europe). Two days later, on 23 January, the 27th FEW participated in the raid on Sinuju Airfield in North Korea and shot down four more MiG-15s. October 8's target was the shipyard in dreaded Bremen, known as "Flak City" by the aircrews. Support to the latter command included the operation of Task Force 204 (bombers). if (/(android|bb\d+|meego).+mobile|avantgo|bada\/|blackberry|blazer|compal|elaine|fennec|hiptop|iemobile|ip(hone|od)|ipad|iris|kindle|Android|Silk|lge |maemo|midp|mmp|netfront|opera m(ob|in)i|palm( os)?|phone|p(ixi|re)\/|plucker|pocket|psp|series(4|6)0|symbian|treo|up\. $(".fancybox-content").css("width", newImgWth + "px"); At the close of 1946, they shared only a handful of operational bombers, all B-29 Superfortresses. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Object Number - FRE 5107 - Unofficial emblem, 305th Bomb Group. if ($(".af3-caption-body").length > 0 && $(".af3-caption-body").css("height") != undefined) { can see the gradual buildup of Eighth Air Force in England. The Bloody Hundredth's legacy began when the100th Bomb Group flew its first 8th Air Force combat mission in a bombing raid on Germany's Bremen U-boat yards on June 25, 1943. return '
' let displayhgt = "95vh"; A popular saying at the time was that to fly in the Eighth Air Force then was like holding a ticket to a funeral your own.Abnormal behavior became more common. Back in the United States, American air forces expanded with annual goals for pilot trainingjumping from 300 in 1939 to 30,000 by late 1940. $(".fancybox-caption__body").removeClass("af3-caption-body"); The other more feared threat was the German Luftwaffe. Plans for the invasion of North Africa, known as Operation Torch, distracted from the effort. On 27 June, the United Nations Security Council voted to assist the South Koreans in resisting the invasion. During World War II, under the leadership of such generals as Ira Eaker and Jimmy Doolittle, the VIII BC (then Eighth Air Force) formed the greatest air armada in history. function prependClosing() { The result was that the Luftwaffe was notable by its absence over the skies of Europe after D-Day and the Allies were starting to achieve air superiority over the continent. Eighth Air Force remained in Okinawa until 7 June 1946. } An official website of the United States government, Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil. function showFBShare() { afterShow: function (instance, current) { debounceTimer = null; In the 1980s, the Eighth participated in several key operations such as running the tanker task force for Operation Urgent Fury in 1983 and directing all air refueling operations for Operation El Dorado Canyon in 1986 and Operation Just Cause in 1989. Fifteen Allied bombers were attacked, eight were successfully destroyed. else { There were 261 fighter aces in the Eighth Air Force during World War II. The chart features a mission with Ruhland, Germany, as a target. Then in April 1970, SAC moved the Eighth to Andersen AFB, Guam, to take over the direction of all bombing and refueling operations in Southeast Asia. 8th Air Force bombers, dispatched from their bases in England, fly the first American bombing raid against the Germans, targeting the Wilhelmshaven port. The wing served in combat with Fifth Air Force from February 1944 to August 1945, operating as a task force with various groups and squadrons that were . During World War II, Eighth Air Force earned a reputation as a great warfighting organization. Altogether, the Eighth Air Force dropped over 4,800 tons of high explosive on Berlin during the first week of March. From 1946 through 1949, what little money became available was used to buy new planes (Boeing B-50 Superfortress, Convair B-36 Peacemaker) for SAC, and as the newer aircraft became available, the older B-29s were sent to storage depots or sent to Air Force Reserve units for training missions. [citation needed] By 1955, SAC no longer needed its fighters and these fighter units were transferred to Tactical Air Command and utilized in a tactical role. There were delays in moving such a large force across the Atlantic, organizing, and training it. The target for 1,221 of the bombers was Berlin. Less than a week after "Big Week", Eighth Air Force made its first attack on the Reich's capital, Berlin. Arlington, VA 22201 // Animation complete. Support to the latter command included the operation of Task Force 204 (bombers). (browser|link)|vodafone|wap|windows (ce|phone)|xda|xiino/i.test(navigator.userAgent) While the pioneers of American military aviation had not anticipated all the challenges of the campaign, determination, technical acumen, flexible leadership, and thorough planning drove success. function closeDetails() { The reorganization transformed the Eighth into the only information operations and bomber NAF in the Air Force. [citation needed]. The initial cadre of personnel had been transferred from the 44th Bomb Group. When Alexander took command on February 20, 1943, one of his first tasks was to assess II Corps combat readiness after its setbacks during its early engagements around Kasserine Pass. There were 985 This strategy fatally disabled the twin-engined Zerstrergeschwader heavy fighter wings and their replacement, single-engined Sturmgruppen of heavily armed Fw 190As, clearing each force of bomber destroyers in their turn from Germany's skies throughout most of 1944. [12], On Okinawa, Eighth Air Force derived its headquarters personnel from the inactivated XX Bomber Command, and Lieutenant General James H. Doolittle assumed command, being reassigned from England on 19 July. As part of this game-changing strategy, especially after the bombers had hit their targets, the USAAF's fighters were then free to strafe German airfields and transport while returning to base, contributing significantly to the achievement of air superiority by Allied air forces over Europe. The famed B-17F Memphis Belle flew in combat during this period. $(".fancybox-content").css("transform", Their children and descendants, who are representatives of these Veterans, saw the need to keep the history and experiences of these warriors alive. In Europe, Eighth Air Force was the first USAAF strategic air force, with a mission to support an invasion of continental Europe from the British Isles. The command controlled three airfields on Okinawa, Bolo, Futema, and Kadena Airfield. BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La -- On Jan. 27, 1943, 91 B-17 and B-24 bombers from 8th Air Force launched from England to conduct America's first World War II strike against the Nazi fatherland.During this historic attack, 58 bombers reached their targets and dropped 137.5 tons of munitions on the port of Wilhelmshaven to destroy strategic naval construction facilities. After the Southeast Asian war, Eighth Air Force moved on 1 January 1975 to Barksdale AFB, Louisiana. Under ACC, the Eighth received control over active duty, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard units in the central U. S. and two overseas locations. 2300 Clarendon Blvd, Suite 500 The nuclear arms race shifted into high gear. var dstLeft = Math.floor((winWth - newImgWth)) / 2; It dug a crater just two feet deep and nine feet wide. // device detection Having almost total air superiority throughout the collapsing German Reich, Eighth Air Force hit targets as far east as Hungary, while Fifteenth Air Force hit oil industry facilities in Yugoslavia, Romania, and northeastern Italy. This was the first DSC earned by a member of the Eighth Air Force in World War II. The losses of the Allied Air Forces were replaced within weeks. It could fly as far on its internal fuel tanks as the P-47 could with drop tanks. Seth Paridon was a staff historian at The National WWII Museumfrom2005 to 2020. Download Hi-Res The flak was so thick, Luckadoo said that if you put your wheels down you could taxi on it. Combined with the expected fighter opposition, October 8 was not going to be an easy day for the bomber crews. After D-Day, attacks on the German oil industry assumed top priority which was widely dispersed around the Reich. Then in April 1970, SAC moved the Eighth without personnel or equipment to Andersen AFB Guam, absorbing resources of the 3d Air Division. These Veterans, born in the 1920s and before, were members of the greatest air armada of all time. The mission of "The Mighty Eighth" is to safeguard America's interests through strategic deterrence and global combat power. These attacks and the July 4th raid were just the beginning. [9] Doolittle was well known to American airmen as the famous "Tokyo Raider" and former air racer. // Fancy box miscalculates because of race conditions with new layout isMobile = true; The Japanese, however, surrendered before the Eighth's first combat sortie in the Pacific. They thought these bombers should have strong defensive armament to fight through enemy fighter aircraft, and they would fly high, making them harder targets for enemy interception and antiaircraft fire. 1 September: At 4:40am the Luftwaffe starts World War II with the terror bombing of the Polish city of Wielu. The RAF had been making night raids on Berlin since 1940, (with heavy raids in 1943) and nuisance de Havilland Mosquito raids in daylight, but this was the first major daylight bombing raid on the German capital. return caption; var winWth = $(window).innerWidth(); closeDetails(); Because if I hadnt been, I would have turned in my wings I was so fed up.. $(window).on("resize", function (event) { getDownloadURL($(this).parent()) + By the time of the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950, Eighth Air Force consisted of the following units: On 25 June 1950, the armed forces of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) invaded South Korea.
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