| 17th Air Division | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1940–1941; 1942–1943; 1944–1946; 1959–1971; 1975 – 1976 |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Army  United States Air Force |
| Insignia | |
| 17th Air Division emblem [lower-alpha 1] [1] |  |
The 17th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Pacific Air Forces, stationed at U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield, Thailand, where it was inactivated on 1 January 1976.
The air division was first activated as the 17th Bombardment Wing on 18 December 1940, and assigned to the Southeast Air District. It was assigned the 3d and 27th Bombardment Groups as its operational units, and the 22d Pursuit Wing was attached from January to June 1942. [1] In September 1941, the wing was inactivated and its personnel used to form the 3d Air Support Command. [2]
Reactivated as part of Second Air Force in June 1942 as the 17th Bombardment Training Wing. Was the primary training command organization for USAAF heavy bombardment (Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and Consolidated B-24 Liberator) groups during World War II from June 1942 until May 1944. Initially, it controlled the third phase of training, in which each bombardment group split into tactical components and operated from squadron sized airfields under simulated combat conditions. Later, the 17th supervised the first and second phases of heavy bombardment group and crew training. [1]
In 1943 assumed mission for training Boeing B-29 Superfortress Very Heavy bombardment groups prior to their deployment to Twentieth Air Force in the Pacific Theater until April 1946 when it ceased all activity. It also exercised limited supervision over the training of the XXI and XXII Bomber Commands during 1944. [1]
The disbanded wing was reconstituted and redesignated the 17th Air Division and activated on 15 July 1959. It gained control of the 340th and the 305th Bombardment Wings at Bunker Hill Air Force Base, Indiana, and the 4040th Air Base Squadron at Richard I. Bong Air Force Base, Wisconsin in 1959. The two bombardment wings flew normal Strategic Air Command alert patrols and participated in special exercises as required. The division lost its bombardment wings and gained missile wings in 1963, assuming responsibility for Titan and Minuteman missiles in Missouri, Kansas, and later Arkansas. When joined by the 70th Bombardment Wing, on 1 July 1965 with Boeing B-52 Stratofortress and Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft, the division reverted to an earlier designation – 17th Strategic Aerospace Division. From 1965 to 1971, the division's units frequently deployed bomber and tanker resources. Operation Arc Light operations in Southeast Asia, consisting of military operations against enemy forces in Vietnam, drew most of the deployments. [1]
From 1 July 1975 to 1 January 1976 as part of Pacific Air Forces, it maintained an effective training program for United States Air Force tactical units in Thailand. Inactivated as part of the USAF phaseout of activities in Thailand after the end of the Vietnam War.
The 43rd Air Mobility Operations Group is an active duty air mobility unit at Pope Army Airfield, Fort Liberty, North Carolina and is part of the Air Mobility Command (AMC) under the USAF Expeditionary Center. The unit is composed of eight squadrons, including one of the only two active Air Force aeromedical evacuation squadrons based in the United States. The group's primary mission focuses on providing enroute operations and enabling global response and airborne support for Fort Liberty's 82nd Airborne Division.
The 5th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command, based at Sidi Slimane Air Base, Morocco. It was inactivated on 15 July 1958.
The 1st Strategic Aerospace Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command, assigned to Fifteenth Air Force, being stationed at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. It was inactivated on 1 September 1991.
The 4th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Fifteenth Air Force, stationed at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming. It was inactivated on 23 August 1988.
The 19th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force formation. Its last assignment was with Eighth Air Force at Carswell Air Force Base, Texas, where it was inactivated on 30 September 1988.
The 47th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington. It was inactivated on 27 February 1987.
The 49th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the United States Air Forces in Europe at RAF Sculthorpe, England. It was inactivated on 1 July 1956.
The 50th Troop Carrier Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. The wing was formed in 1941 as the 50th Transport Wing, a headquarters for air transport organizations of the Air Corps. In 1942, it became a training organization for troop carrier units deploying overseas. In 1943, it moved overseas, where its units participated in combat in the Mediterranean and European Theaters of Operations. Following V-E Day it remained in Europe until the fall of 1945. Its last assignment was with Third Air Force at Pope Field, North Carolina, where it was inactivated on 31 July 1946. It was redesignated the 50th Air Division in 1959, but was not activated.
The 57th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Fifteenth Air Force, based at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota. It was inactivated on 24 June 1991.
The 540th Combat Crew Replacement Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last active in 1946 at Colorado Springs, assigned to Continental Air Forces.
The 96th Air Refueling Squadron was a unit of PACAF's 15th Wing at Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, Hawaii in partnership with the 203rd Air Refueling Squadron and 154th Maintenance Group of the Hawaii Air National Guard. It was inactivated on 3 September 2015.
The V Fighter Command is a disbanded United States Air Force headquarters. It was established as the 2nd Interceptor Command in June 1941, with responsibility for air defense of the northwest United States and training fighter units in its area of responsibility. Shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Army formed Western Defense Command, with responsibility for the entire Pacific coast. All air defense functions were transferred to 4th Interceptor Command, and the command was slated for transfer to the Southwest Pacific Theater as 5th Fighter Command.
The III Reconnaissance Command is a disbanded United States Army Air Forces unit. Its last assignment was with Third Air Force stationed at Rapid City Army Air Base, South Dakota, where it was inactivated on 8 April 1946. After transferring to the United States Air Force in September 1947, it was disbanded in October 1948.
The 307th Operations Group is an Air Reserve Component of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the 307th Bomb Wing, Air Force Reserve Command, stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana.
The 15th Bombardment Training Wing is a disbanded United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Second Air Force, at Colorado Springs Army Air Base, Colorado, where it was inactivated on 9 April 1946.
The 71st Operations Group is the operational flying component of the United States Air Force 71st Flying Training Wing. It is stationed at Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma.
The I Tactical Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to Second Air Force, based at Biggs Field, Texas. It was inactivated on 22 December 1945.
The 28th Operations Group is the flying component of the United States Air Force 28th Bomb Wing, stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota.
The 53rd Electronic Warfare Group was a component of the 53rd Wing of the Air Force Warfare Center, Air Combat Command, headquartered at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
The 6th Air Defense Missile Squadron was an air defense unit of the United States Air Force. It was assigned to the New York Air Defense Sector of Aerospace Defense Command, at Suffolk County Air Force Base, New York, where it was inactivated on 15 December 1964. The squadron had its headquarters at Suffolk County Air Force Base, while the firing batteries of the squadron were at the nearby Suffolk County Air Force Base Missile Annex.
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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