 | ||
Active 1942–1944; 1953–1957; 1977–1980; 1984-unknown Role Airborne forward air control | ||
The 27th Tactical Air Support Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last active as part of the 602d Tactical Air Control Wing at George Air Force Base, California. In 1985, the squadron was consolidated with the World War II-era 27th Ferrying Squadron and the Cold War-era 27th Air Refueling Squadron.
Contents
World War II
The 27th Ferrying Squadron was first activated in July 1942 at Presque Isle Army Air Field, Maine, but moved within a week to New Castle Army Air Base, Delaware, where it was assigned to the 2d Ferrying Group. It served primarily to deliver aircraft from manufacturers to operational or training units. However, by 1944 the Army Air Forces was finding that organizations using rigid tables of organization were proving inefficient in performing logistic support and training missions. Accordingly, it adopted a more functional organization in which each base was grouped into a single organization. At the end of March 1944, the 2d Ferrying Group, its squadrons (including the 27th) and all support organizations at New Castle were combined into the 552d Army Air Forces Base Unit, which absorbed their personnel and equipment and continued the ferrying mission.
Strategic Air Command
The 27th Air Refueling Squadron was activated at Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas, in October 1953 and assigned to the 27th Strategic Fighter Wing. The mission of the unit was to provide global refueling for the Strategic Air Command (SAC) 27th and 12th Strategic Fighter Wings at Bergstrom and other USAF units as directed. The unit was inactivated in 1957 shortly after SAC transferred its fighters to Tactical Air Command and a SAC refueling unit was no longer required to support them.
Tactical Air Support
The 27th Tactical Air Support Squadron was activated at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona in July 1977, but inactivated three years later when the 23d Tactical Air Support Squadron moved from Bergstrom to Davis-Monthan along with the 602d Tactical Air Control Wing and assumed the 27th's mission, personnel and equipment.
It was activated again in May 1984 at George Air Force Base, California. In September 1985, the 27th Air Refueling Squadron and 27th Ferrying Squadron were consolidated with 27th Tactical Air Support Squadron.