87th Flying Training Squadron | |
---|---|
Active | 1917-1918; 1935-1936; 1942-1947; 1952-1955; 1956-1985; 1990 – present |
Country | United States |
Branch | United States Air Force |
Role | Pilot Training |
Part of | Air Education and Training Command 19th Air Force 47th Flying Training Wing 47th Operations Group |
Garrison/HQ | Laughlin Air Force Base |
Nickname(s) | Skeeters (World War II) [1] |
Motto(s) | Vigilantia est Pax Latin Vigilance is Peace |
Engagements | World War II *North African Campaign *Operation Husky * Operation Avalanche *Italian Campaign *Operation Dragoon [2] |
Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation Air Force Outstanding Unit Award [2] |
Commanders | |
Current commander | Lt Col Johnathan Radtke |
Insignia | |
87th Flying Training Squadron emblem (approved 12 February 1969) [2] | |
87th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron emblem (approved 16 July 1956 [3] | |
87th Fighter Squadron emblem [1] |
The 87th Flying Training Squadron is part of the United States Air Force 47th Flying Training Wing based at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas. It operates T-38 Talon aircraft conducting flight training.
The squadron is one of the oldest in the United States Air Force, its origins dating to 18 August 1917 when it was organized at Selfridge Field, Mount Clemens, Michigan as a pilot training Squadron during World War I. The squadron saw combat during World War II, and became part of Air Defense Command, later Aerospace Defense Command and finally Tactical Air Command during the Cold War.
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (July 2015) |
It was activated as the 87th Aero Squadron. the 87th saw brief service in the 1910s and again in the 1930s.
It was reactivated in 1942 when it was transferred to North Africa to fight against Germany's Afrika Korps. Following the German defeat and withdrawal from North Africa the 87th participated in the Allied Invasion of Sicily and Invasion of Italy and subsequent drive up the Italian Peninsula. During the Allied offensive in Italy the squadron was briefly dispatched to support the invasion of Southern France in 1944. Following the war the 87th was stationed in Austria for a short time before its return to the United States and inactivation. [4]
The 87th was again activated at Sioux City Municipal Airport, Iowa in 1952 to provide air defense of the central United States. Equipped with the North American F-51D Mustang, it was later equipped with the North American F-86D Sabre in 1953 prior to being reassigned to USAFE, stationed at RAF Bentwaters, England in 1954 assisting in the air defense of the United Kingdom. [4]
It was returned to CONUS in 1956 at Lockbourne Air Force Base, Ohio with an air defense mission over the Ohio Valley. It was uas upgraded to the North American F-86L Sabre in 1957, an improved version of the F-86D which incorporated the Semi Automatic Ground Environment, or SAGE computer-controlled direction system for intercepts; upgraded again in 1960 to the supersonic Convair F-102 Delta Dagger interceptor. [4]
The 87th was re-equipped with new McDonnell F-101B Voodoo supersonic interceptor, and the F-101F operational and conversion trainer in 1960. The two-seat trainer version was equipped with dual controls, but carried the same armament as the F-101B and were fully combat-capable. On 22 October 1962, before President John F. Kennedy told Americans that missiles were in place in Cuba, the squadron dispersed one-third of its force, equipped with nuclear tipped missiles to Clinton County Air Force Base at the start of the Cuban Missile Crisis. [5] [6] These planes returned to Lockbourne after the crisis.
The F-101Bs were transferred to the Air National Guard in 1968 and the squadron moved to Duluth International Airport, Minnesota. At Duluth, was upgraded to the Convair F-106 Delta Darts. During this period the squadron became known for its ability to perform cold weather operations.
The squadron was again moved to K. I. Sawyer Air Force Base, Michigan in 1971. Inactivated in 1985 after budget cuts forced the cancellation of its scheduled conversion to the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. [4]
The squadron was reactivated in 1990 and its mission changed to providing flight training. Today the squadron operates Northrop T-38 Talon aircraft providing training to pilot students on track to operate fighters or bombers. [4]
87th Aero Squadron
87th Pursuit Squadron
87th Flying Training Squadron
The 27th Fighter Squadron is a unit of the United States Air Force 1st Operations Group located at Joint Base Langley–Eustis, Virginia. The 27th is equipped with the F-22 Raptor.
The 319th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron is a provisional United States Air Force unit stationed at Kadena Air Base, Japan, operating General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper unmanned reconnaissance vehicles.
The 2nd Fighter Training Squadron, sometimes written as 2d Fighter Training Squadron, is an active United States Air Force unit, assigned to the 325th Operations Group at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.
The 58th Fighter Squadron is part of the 33d Fighter Wing, a joint graduate flying and maintenance training wing for the F-35A, B, and C, organized under Air Education and Training Command's 19th Air Force, at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. Its mission is to train US Air Force operators and maintainers on employment and maintenance of the F-35A Lightning II, as part of the overall 33d FW mission of training American and international aircrews and maintainers of US Air Force, US Navy, US Marine Corps, and international Air Forces.
The 95th Fighter Squadron, nicknamed the Boneheads, is an active squadron of the United States Air Force. Last activated on 15 June 2023 as a Lockheed Martin F-35 squadron stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Previously the 95 FS was an F-22 equipped squadron, but in 2019 the squadron's aircraft and personnel were distributed across other bases in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael in 2018 and its destruction of large parts of Tyndall Air Force Base. It was subsequently disbanded in 2019. In August 2023, the unit received its first Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II aircraft.
The 78th Attack Squadron is an Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) unit under the 926th Wing, Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada and Tenth Air Force at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas. The 78 ATKS conducts operations from Creech Air Force Base, Nevada in conjunction with their active-duty associates in the 432d Wing.
The 5th Flying Training Squadron is part of the United States Air Force's Air Force Reserve Command serving as a reserve associate squadron operating with the 71st Flying Training Wing at Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma. It operates the Raytheon T-1 Jayhawk, Northrop T-38C Talon, and Beechcraft T-6A Texan II aircraft conducting flight training in support of the 71st Operations Group.
The 37th Flying Training Squadron is part of the 14th Flying Training Wing based at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi. It operates Beechcraft T-6 Texan II aircraft conducting flight training.
The 39th Flying Training Squadron is part of the 340th Flying Training Group and is the reserve associate to the 12th Flying Training Wing based at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.
The 48th Flying Training Squadron is part of the 14th Flying Training Wing based at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi. It operates T-1 Jayhawk aircraft conducting flight training. The squadron is one of the oldest in the Air Force, being formed during World War I as the 48th Aero Squadron on 4 August 1917.
The 49th Fighter Training Squadron is part of the 14th Flying Training Wing based at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi. It operates T-38 Talon aircraft conducting flight training.
The 84th Flying Training Squadron was part of the United States Air Force 47th Flying Training Wing based at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas. It operated Beechcraft T-6 Texan II aircraft conducting flight training.
The 31st Combat Training Squadron is an active United States Air Force unit. It is currently assigned to the Nevada Test and Training Range at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.
The 59th Test and Evaluation Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the Air Combat Command 53d Wing, 53d Test Management Group at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.
The 15th Test and Evaluation Squadron is a United States Air Force unit, stationed at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida and assigned to the 753rd Test and Evaluation Group. It was first activated in the expansion of the United States military forces prior to World War II as the 15th Pursuit Squadron. It moved to Panama in 1942, where it participated in the defense of the Panama Canal. It returned to the United States, where it was a Replacement Training Unit for fighter pilots until 1944, when it was disbanded as the 15th Fighter Squadron in a reorganization of Army Air Forces training units in 1944
The 16th Weapons Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the USAF Weapons School, based at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.
The 29th Test and Evaluation Squadron is an active United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 753d Test and Evaluation Group, at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
The 325th Operations Group is the flying component of the 325th Fighter Wing, assigned to Air Combat Command of the United States Air Force. The group is stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. It conducts training on the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor and commands one operational Raptor squadron. It directs the flying and support operations of two F-22 squadrons, a fighter training squadron, an operations support squadron and a training support squadron.
The 57th Operations Group is the operational component of the 57th Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command. The group is stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.
The 87th Troop Carrier Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 87th Troop Carrier Wing at Atterbury Air Force Base, Indiana where it was inactivated on 1 February 1953.
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency