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On D-Day, over 2,300 sorties were flown by Eighth Air Force heavy bombers in the Normandy and Cherbourg invasion areas, all aimed at neutralizing enemy coastal defenses and front-line troops. Compiled by Bill Varnedoe. Eighth Air Force is one of two active duty numbered air forces in Air Force Global Strike Command. Units assigned to Eighth Air Force in the Pacific were: The atomic bombings of Japan led to the Japanese surrender before Eighth Air Force saw action in the Pacific theater. The operation was a pyrrhic success for the Luftwaffe as the losses suffered by the German air arm were irreplaceable and over 300 Luftwaffe aircraft were shot down, mostly by Allied anti-aircraft guns. Commanders: Maj Gen Ira C Eaker, 23 Feb 1942; Brig Gen Newton Longfellow, 2 Dec 1942; Maj Gen Frederick L Anderson, I Jul 1943; Lt Gen James H Doolittle, 6 Jan 1944; Maj Gen William E Kepner, 10 May 1945; Maj Gen Westside T Larson, 21 Jun 1945; Lt Gen James H Doolittle, 19 Jul 1945; Maj Gen Earle E Partridge, 12 Sep 1945; Brig Gen Patrick W Timberlake, 30 Nov 1945-unkn; Col Neil B Harding, c. 16 Aug 1946; Brig Gen Roger M Ramey, I Nov 1946; Maj Gen Clements McMullen, 12 Nov 1946; Maj Gen Roger M Ramey, 16 Dec 1946; Maj Gen Archie J Old Jr, 15 Jun 1950; Lt Gen Samuel E Anderson, 14 Aug 1950; Maj Gen John B Montgomery, 8 May 1953;Maj Gen James C Selser Jr, 13 Jun 1955; Maj Gen Walter C Sweeney Jr, 6 Aug 1955-. event.stopImmediatePropagation();
We searched the National Archives Catalog and located the series Performance and Statistics Charts, 1943-1945 for the Eighth Air Force in the Records of the Army Air Forces (Record Group 18) that may contain some relevant information. On 22 March, over 800 bombers, led by H2X radar equipped bombers hit Berlin yet again, bombing targets through a thick rainy overcast causing more destruction to various industries. Download Hi-Res
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. A strategic air force was that with a mission to attack an enemy's war effort beyond his front-line forces, predominantly production and supply facilities, whereas a tactical air force supported ground campaigns, usually with objectives selected through co-operation with the armies. World War II U.S. Military Records Search. Each 8th Air Force WWII Decal is made with the highest quality 2.5mil High Gloss 5-Year Calendared vinyl. During World War II, the offensive air forces of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) came to be classified as strategic or tactical. By 6 June, Allied fighter pilots had succeeded in damaging or destroying hundreds of locomotives, thousands of motorized vehicles, and many bridges. The 398th was part of the 8th Air Force 1st Air Division during WWII and was one of many B-17 Bomb Groups stationed in England. 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. if (item.type === 'image') {
They numbered 350,000 men and women with over 54,000 killed in combat or taken prisoner. }
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.
The mission of "The Mighty Eighth" is to safeguard America's interests through strategic deterrence and global combat power. Do you have items such as papers, photos, uniforms, gear and other artifacts? This was the first B-17 to complete 25 combat missions in the 8th Air Force, on 13 May 1943. Initially, Eighth Air Force under SAC consisted of the following: Personnel and equipment from the inactivated 449th Bomb Group were reassigned to the 7th Bomb Group (later 7th Bomb Wing). The Eighth's brave men earned 17 Medals of Honor, 220 Distinguished Service Crosses, and 442,000 Air Medals. $(".closing-box, .closingx").on("touchstart", function() { captionToggle(); });
Aircraft and ground crew of Boeing B-17F-25-BO Fortress "Hell's Angels" (AAF Ser. debounceTimer = null;
Were proud to be able to present archival issues below: INSTRUCTIONSStart here! Cold and clear weather was predicted for the last week of February 1944. "VIII Bomber Command" redirects here. 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. The Me 262 was also less maneuverable than the P-51 and so trained Allied pilots could turn tighter than an Me 262A. As a result, Eighth Air Force was incorporated into the new SAC. $(".fancybox-content").css("height", newImgHgt + "px");
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Constituted as Philippine Department AF on 16 Aug 1941. [12], Eighth Air Force's mission in the Pacific was initially to organize and train new bomber groups for combat against Japan. Click here to read to learn more about the history of the 8th Air Force. The Eighth's units played a key role in the 42-day Gulf War in 1991. 8th AF 448th BG World War II. else {
The 398th was formed in the United States in 1943 and was stationed in Nuthampstead, England from April 1944 until June 1945. caption: function (instance, item) {
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On 22 February 1944, a massive reorganization of American airpower took place in Europe. The 8th Air Force Historical Society was created in 1975 to preserve the legacy of the Mighty Eighth and the part it played in World War II. Although there were many available which were returned from Twentieth Air Force in the Pacific Theater they were war-weary from the many long combat missions flown during the war. As a professional researcher and World War II historian, Bill Beigel provides research services to genealogists, historians, authors, and civilians who are looking for information found in WW2 military unit records. var caption = '';
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For the VIII Bomber Command of 1945-1946, see, Numbered air force of the United States Air Force, Start of offensive operations against Nazi-occupied territory, Target For Today 1943 VIII Bomber Command film, Lineage, assignments, components, and stations, The Eighth Air Force's now commonly-accepted nickname, "The Mighty Eighth", derives from the title of British farmer and life-long Eighth Air Force historian, two American-crewed and one RAF-crewed Bostons against each target, Lineage & Honors, 389th Strategic Missile Wing, through 1965, USAF Historical Research Center, Learn how and when to remove this template message, World War II European-African-Middle Eastern Theater, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Combat "V" Device, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, equipping the Mustang with a Rolls-Royce Merlin, United States Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific, 58th Bombardment Wing (later Air Division), blockade of West Berlin by the Eastern bloc, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), 1st Bombardment (later, 1st Air) Division, 820th Air (later, 820 Strategic Aerospace) Division, 67th Information Operations (later, 67th Network Warfare) Wing, 509th Bombardment (later, 509th Bomb) Wing, Post-Attack Command and Control System Facility, Hadley, "Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) (ACC)", "WWII 8thAAF COMBAT CHRONOLOGY - JANUARY 1944 THROUGH JUNE 1944", "Combat Chronology of the US Army Air Forces - May 1944", "USAF Historical Research Agency Document 00219137", "Command of Eighth Air Force changes hands", "E-4Bs realign under 8th Air Force, 595th CACG stands up", "History of the 445th Bomb Group, Revised Edition", "Factsheet 100 Air Refueling Wing (USAFE)", "Factsheet 322 Air Expeditionary Group (USAFE)", "Lineage and Honors History of the 385 Air Expeditionary Group (AMC)", "Factsheet 386 Air Expeditionary Wing (ACC)", "Factsheet 479th Flying Training Group (AETC)", "Factsheet 492 Special Operations Wing (AFSOC)", "8th Air Force to become new cyber command", USAF Fact Sheets: Eighth Air Force History, Eight Air Force tactical mission report of Operation Shuttle, Establishment of the Eighth Air Force in the United Kingdom, The Ruhr one of the main target of the 8th USAAF in Europe, 19431945, Map of 8th Air Force airfields in England 19421945, A 1956 LIFE photo of every plane in the Eighth Air Force's arsenal, 4th Fighter Group Association, 65 Fighter Wing, 8th Air Force World War II, National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, House Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces, House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, Strategic Air Command in the United Kingdom, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eighth_Air_Force&oldid=1137214118, 1942 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state), Air Forces of the United States Army Air Forces, Military units and formations in Louisiana, Military units and formations of the United States in the Cold War, Numbered air forces of the United States Air Force, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles lacking in-text citations from November 2010, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles with self-published sources from September 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2017, Articles with unsourced statements from March 2014, Wikipedia articles incorporating text from public domain works of the United States Government, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, 3 June 2008 present (as Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic)), Fort Worth Army Air Field (Later Carswell Air Force Base), Texas, VIII Air Force Composite Command: 22 Feb 1944 1 Feb 1945, VIII Air Force Service Command: 22 Feb 1944 16 Jul 1945, 608th Air Operations Center (formerly 608th Air Operations Group and 608th Air and Space Operations Center), 1 Jan 1994 present, Air Force Information Operations: 1 May 2007 present, Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts, 13 Jun 1955, Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, 1 Jan 1975 present, This page was last edited on 3 February 2023, at 12:09. As part of this realignment, most SAC bomber forces west of the Mississippi River were reassigned to 15th AF. Many bodies were exhumed and returned to the U.S. at the request of families and many families opted to allow their loved ones to remain in U.S. Military and other cemetaries in the United Kingdom and the Continent.
In addition, German airfields in France and Belgium were attacked. $(this).find('figcaption').html() +
Of the. We welcome members of the 388 FBW (Korea) the 388 TFW (VietNam) and the 388 FW (today). Maj. Gen. Andrew J. Gebara, commander of 8th Air Force, relieved two commanders today from their positions of leadership at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, due to a loss of confidence in their ability to complete their assigned duties."These personnel actions were necessary to maintain the very closeDetails();
Notably, the 1 June 1992 change inactivated SAC and the Tactical Air Command (TAC), and reassigned the Mighty Eighth to the new Air Combat Command (ACC). Eighth Air Force, with headquarters at Barksdale Air Force Base in the Bossier City Shreveport, Louisiana metro area, supports U.S. Strategic Command, and is designated as U.S. Strategic Command's Task Force 204, providing on-alert, combat-ready forces to the president.
Stations: Langley Field, Va, 1 Feb 1942; Savannah AB, Ga, c. 10 Feb 1942; Daws Hill, England, 23 Feb 1942; High Wycombe, England, 15 May 1942-16 Jul 1945; Okinawa, 16 Jul 19457 Jun 1946; MacDill Field, Fla, 7 Jun 1946; Ft Worth AAFld, Tex, I Nov 1946; Westover AFB, Mass, Jun 1g55-. The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). An advanced detachment of VIII Bomber Command was established at RAF Daws Hill, near RAF Bomber Command Headquarters at RAF High Wycombe, on 23 February in preparation for its units to arrive in the United Kingdom from the United States. ), Data from Air Force Combat Units of World War II By Maurer, Maurer, Published 1986. That base assignment lasted until 1 November 1946, when SAC transferred the Eighth to Fort Worth (later renamed Carswell AFB). Eighth Air Force remained in Okinawa until 7 June 1946. They did not realize that they were over Dutch territory; 850 civilians, including children on their way to school, were among the casualties. getDetailsURL($(this).parent()) +
Why pay every year? With the end of fighting in Korea, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who had taken office in January 1953, called for a "new look" at national defense. Later in Dec 1941 headquarters and some crews and planes moved to Australia . Roster, J. T. 3rd Photo Reconnaissance Squadron 914 . On this mission, he sat in the co-pilot's seat of the lead B-17, Butcher Shop[8][self-published source] The pilot in command and leader of this historic mission was Paul Tibbets, who on 6 August 1945, dropped the first Atomic Bomb, Little Boy, on Hiroshima from the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, Enola Gay. If you don't know of anyone in your family who served during the war, consider asking your family or looking at your family tree for those who would have been the right age to have registered for the draft or who may have served. About 23 February, the VIII BC moved to England, first to Daws Hill and later to High Wycombe, where it established its wartime headquarters in the Wycombe Abbey school for girls. //initial desktop view
The losses of the Allied Air Forces were replaced within weeks. $currentSlide.find(".fancy-detail-link").on("touchstart", function() { captionToggle(); });
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. During World War II, under the leadership of such Generals as Eaker and Jimmy Doolittle, the 8th AF became the greatest air armada in history. 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. isMobile = true;
Hard copies will be available for an additional $25 per year. VIDEO (silent): 8th AF mission to Muenster, Germany. (browser|link)|vodafone|wap|windows (ce|phone)|xda|xiino/i.test(navigator.userAgent)
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Flying Royal Air Force (RAF) "Boston" light bombers, six American crews of the 15th Bombardment Squadron, and six RAF crews of 226th Squadron attacked German Luftwaffe (air force) airfields. }
Seventeen Medals of Honor went to Eighth Air Force personnel during the war. Writing about our entire adventure would take a great deal more space than this article . These missions, however, carried a high price.
We are a 501C3 organization and all donations are tax-deductible. For the Mighty Eighth, that change heralded an interesting future, one that bring further restructuring, different aircraft system purchases, and a new challenging mission to the NAF. It became operational on 7 November 1942 (along with the 44th, 91st and 303rd .
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. $(window).on("resize", function (event) {
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Eighth Air Force's effort was over 1,000 B-17s and B-24s and over 800 fighters and the RAF provided sixteen squadrons of North American P-51 Mustangs and Supermarine Spitfires in addition. $(".fancybox-content").removeAttr("style");
As the new commander of the Eighth Air Force from January 1944 onwards, Major General Jimmy Doolittle's major influence on the European air war occurred early that year when he made a critical change to the policy requiring escorting fighters to remain with the bombers at all times. The Eighth's combat record also shows 566 aces (261 fighter pilots with 31 having 15 or more victories and 305 enlisted gunners), over 440,000 bomber sorties to drop 697,000 tons of bombs, and over 5,100 aircraft losses and 11,200 aerial victories. });
Unit records are useful in piecing together stories about a unit or group, as well as about individuals who served in them. Photo Details
Donations Page. 2023 Dues are due in January. At the close of 1946, they shared only a handful of operational bombers, all B-29 Superfortresses. As part of this plan, Eighth Air Force headquarters was reassigned to Sakugawa (Kadena Airfield), Okinawa, on 16 July 1945, being assigned to the United States Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific without personnel or equipment. Allied bomber escort fighters would fly high above the bombers diving from this height gave them extra speed, thus reducing the speed difference. This was largely so that the Air Force could perpetuate the names of groups that had distinguished themselves in World War II. Dear Val Burgess, Thank you for posting your request on History Hub! On 22 February 1944, the Army reorganized its Air Forces in Europe by renaming Eighth Air Force as the United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe (now known as the United States Air Forces in Europe). function showFBShare() {
Bomber wings of the 8th Air Force include: This article incorporates public domain material from Eighth Air Force. Join or renew for two years and never miss a thing! '
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See What the 8th Air Force is up to Today! 'Tooey' Spaatz (right). Based in Parham, England, the 390th Bombardment Group (H) flew 301 combat missions against German military targets. [6] Alerted to the attack, the airfield defences were prepared for the raid when it arrived. The USAAF was finally fully sold on the Mustang, and a letter contract for 2200 P-51Bs was issued. 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. 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. United States Air Force. Eighth Air Force 139. }
The 8th AF was primarily engaged in the bombardment of strategic targets in Europe. fbObj.find(".actions .details").attr("href") +
In 2000, the Air Force decided to integrate information operations into Eighth Air Force. Eighth Air Force controls long-range nuclear-capable bomber assets throughout the United States and overseas locations. An advanced detachment was established in England on 23 Feb and units began arriving from the US during the spring of 1942. USAAF. This is from where the present-day Eighth Air Force's history, lineage and honors derive. Located at Hunter Field, Colonel Asa N. Duncan was the first commander. The engine was to be the Packard V-1650-3, based on the Rolls-Royce Merlin Mk68. The effect of the Mustangs, fully operating as an air supremacy fighter force, on the Luftwaffe defenders was arguably swift and decisive. Fighters from both Eighth and Ninth Air Forces made wide sweeps over the area, mounting strafing missions at airfields and rail networks. 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. if (detailSize === "half") {
During the 17 months this unit was deployed to England, they flew 281 combat missions between 13 Dec 43 and 25 Apr 45. The 8th Air Force motto is "Peace Through Strength. getDetailsURL($(this).parent()) +
Regular combat operations by the VIII Bomber Command began on 17 August 1942, when the 97th Bombardment Group flew twelve Boeing B-17E Flying Fortresses on the first VIII Bomber Command heavy bomber mission of the war from RAF Grafton Underwood, attacking the Rouen-Sotteville marshalling yards in France.
Major General Mark E. Weatherington assumed command of 8th Air Force on 12 June 2020. Archived from the original on 4 December 2003.
