The right propeller of Kegelman's Boston was shot away by flak while over the target at De Kooy Airfield[7][self-published source?] 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. For this reason, Eighth Air Force is commonly known as the "Mighty Eighth." $currentSlide.find(".fancy-detail-link").on("touchstart", function() { captionToggle(); }); (left) took the Eighth Air Force Bomber Command Headquarters to England the next month and located at High Wycombe, about 40 miles west of London and on the road to Oxford. '">DETAILS'; On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. $(".closing-box, .closingx").on("touchstart", function() { captionToggle(); }); A handful remained in service performing non-combat duties through the mid-1950s as air-sea rescue aircraft (SB-17, SB-24); photo-reconnaissance aircraft (RB-17, RB-24), and as unmanned target drones (QB-17) and their controllers (DB-17). By mid-1944, the unit had a total strength of more than 200,000 people, and it could send more than 2,000 four-engine bombers and 1,000 fighters on a single mission against enemy targets in Europe. Donations Page. 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. During World War II, Eighth Air Force earned a reputation as a great warfighting organization. These data were taken from the Loading Lists of the 385th BG combat missions missions, preserved in the U. S. National Archives in College Park, MD. From May 1942 to July 1945, the Eighth planned and precisely executed America's daylight strategic bombing campaign against Nazi-occupied Europe, and in doing so the organization compiled an impressive war record. Altogether, the Eighth's bombers flew 325 sorties to drop over 7 million pounds of ordnance on a nation slightly smaller than the state of Colorado. Communist victories in the Chinese Civil War in 1949 and the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950 meant that the United States would have to expand SAC to address these potential threats both in Europe as well as Asia. Dear Val Burgess, Thank you for posting your request on History Hub! function captionToggle() { Hard copies will be available for an additional $25 per year. debounceTimer = null; SAC was founded by the men who fought in World War II, who knew the importance of fighter escorts. Major General Mark E. Weatherington assumed command of 8th Air Force on 12 June 2020. This was the first DSC earned by a member of the Eighth Air Force in World War II. 548 Bomb Squadron. $(".fancybox-content").removeAttr("style"); The first combat group of VIII Bomber Command to arrive in the United Kingdom was the ground echelon of the 97th Bombardment Group, which arrived at RAF Polebrook and RAF Grafton Underwood on 9 June 1942. Eighth Air Force trains, tests, exercises and demonstrates combat-ready forces for rapid employment worldwide. clearTimeout(debounceTimer); The Mighty Eighth's B-52 force consists of 76 bombers assigned to two active duty wings, the 2d Bomb Wing at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana and the 5th Bomb Wing at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, and one reserve wing, the 307th Bomb Wing at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. 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. The following day, on 9 March, H2X radar-equipped B-17s mounted a third attack on the Reich capital through clouds. Join Our Newsletter. Photo Details if (item.type === 'image') { Fifteen months after Operation DESERT STORM, the Air Force reorganized. 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. Later in Dec 1941 headquarters and some crews and planes moved to Australia . 8th Air Force (ETO) Operational Units. Eighth Air Force remained in Okinawa until 7 June 1946. It also . 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. } }, An advanced detachment was established in England on 23 Feb and units began arriving from the US during the spring of 1942. The 305th was activated in the United States in March 1942 and moved to England in August-October. Azure, in the lower lobe of the winged Arabic numeral 8 or a mullet throughout argent charged with a torteaux. INSIGNE. U.S. Military Personnel that Served in WWII. Fifteen Allied bombers were attacked, eight were successfully destroyed. return isMobile; On 6 March 1944, over 700 heavy bombers along with 800 escort fighters of the Eighth Air Force hit numerous targets within Berlin, dropping the first American bombs on the capital of the Third Reich. [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. Eighth Air Force did not strike at oil industry targets until 13 May 1944 when 749 bombers, escorted by almost 740 fighters, pounded oil targets in the Leipzig area and at Brx in Czechoslovakia. 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. Activated in the Philippines on 20 Sep 1941. The losses of the Allied Air Forces were replaced within weeks. The 27th was relieved of its duties supporting U.N. forces in Korea and returned to Bergstrom AFB on 31 July 1951, but was redeployed to Misawa AB, Japan during 6 October 1952 13 February 1953 to provide air defense. In the planned invasion of Japan, the mission of Eighth Air Force would be to conduct B-29 Superfortress raids from Okinawa in coordination with Twentieth Air Force operating from airfields in the Mariana Islands.[12]. Components: 1st Bombardment Wing: 1942-1943. $(".fancybox-button").css("display", "none"); Also after the deployment of forces to Far East Air Force to engage in combat over Korea, the history of Eighth Air Force becomes indistinguishable from that of SAC. isMobile = true; Kegelman's aircraft lost altitude and even bounced off the ground, but he was able to bring the damaged bomber home and received the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) from General Spaatz on 11 July. 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. The organization reported administratively to the Fifteenth Air Force at Colorado Springs, Colorado. This air force lost most of its men and equipment in the defense of the Philippines after 7 Dec 1941. } There is an entry for each credited mission which that individual flew. Seventeen Medals of Honor went to Eighth Air Force personnel during the war. 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. 8 th AirForce.com. The other American-flown Boston had been shot down over De Kooy[6]. Join or renew for two years and never miss a thing! Get detailed instructios o how to register for the Reunion. / VIII Bomber Command, after redesignation as Eighth Air Force, was assigned VIII Fighter and VIII Air Support Commands under its command. On 7 June 1946, Headquarters Eighth Air Force was reassigned without personnel or equipment from Okinawa to MacDill Field, Florida, becoming SAC's second numbered air force. One notable Eighth Air Force casualty was Brigadier General Arthur W. Vanaman, Chief of Intelligence, who was captured by the Germans in northern France on 27 June 1944, becoming the highest-ranked American POW captured in Europe during the war.[11]. 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. In addition, German airfields in France and Belgium were attacked. By the end of 1944, only three out of ninety-one refineries in the Reich were still working normally, twenty-nine were partially functional, and the remainder were completely destroyed. 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. }, '