Country United States Engagements World War II
Vietnam | Type Bombardment | |
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Active 1942-1946; 1947-1948; 1951-1970; 1972-1975 Branch United States Air Force | ||
The 364th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 307th Strategic Wing, stationed at U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield, Thailand.
Contents
It was inactivated on 30 June 1975.
History
The squadron was established in June 1942 as a B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombardment unit; it trained as part of the Second Air Force. It was deployed to the European Theater of Operations (ETO) in September 1942, being assigned to VIII Bomber Command in England. The unit began flying long-range strategic bombardment missions on 17 November 1942 and attacked such targets as submarine pens, docks, harbours, shipyards, motor works and marshalling yards in France, Germany and the Low Countries. The squadron continued its attacks on enemy cities, manufacturing centers, transportation links and other targets until the German Capitulation in May 1945.
After combat missions ended, it moved to St Trond Air Base in Belgium in July 1945 where it conducted photo-mapping and intelligence-gathering flights called Project 'Casey Jones' over Europe and North Africa. On 15 December 1945 the squadron moved to Lechfeld Airfield, Germany which it had bombed on 18 March 1944 and now used as an occupation base.
The 364th Bomb Squadron was inactivated on December 1946 in Germany.
Reactivated under Strategic Air Command (SAC) in 1951 with B-47A (later B) Stratojet medium jet bombers, it began flying operational strategic bombardment and refueling missions from MacDill AFB, Florida. In 1955, SAC upgraded the squadron to the B-47E, the major production version of the Stratojet. The squadron, with B-47s, was reassigned to Bunker Hill AFB, Indiana in May 1959 and in September 1960, it was upgraded to the B-58 Hustler supersonic medium bomber; it was declared operationally ready in August 1962. The squadron began phasing down B-58 operations in 1969, before being inactivated in 1970.
Reactivated in 1972 as a provisional B-52D Stratofortress squadron at U-Tapao Air Base, Thailand, AS A administrative units to manage TDY (Temporary Duty) Combat Crews assigned to the "ARC LIGHT Task Force", where it flew combat missions over Indochina until 15 August 1973 when combat missions ended. It continued training operations until stand down 30 Jun 1975. The Squadron did not maintain Strategic Alert Operations at U-Tapao.