These new aircraft arrived not a moment too soon, because as of April and May 1941 not fewer than 17 of the Groups P-36As were either unserviceable or awaiting deposition due to either a lack of parts or as a result of the hard use they had endured during the intense training program then ongoing.
2 to attempt to get the men assigned at Group back into the midst of "field" operations that were being endured by the subordinate squadrons.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt, amidst the Quebec Conference in August 1943, was impressed by Brigadier Orde Wingate's account of what could be accomplished in Burma with proper air support.
[4] Alison was a veteran flight instructor of P-40 aircraft, and gained renown as a pilot with Major David Lee "Tex" Hill's 75th Fighter Squadron, part of Col Robert Lee Scott, Jr.'s 23d Fighter Group, the USAAF successor of the AVG's famed Flying Tigers in the China-Burma-India Theater.
Cochran was a decorated P-40 veteran pilot from the North African Campaign noted for his unconventional aerial tactics.
[6] The group tested the United States' first use of a helicopter in combat, six Sikorsky R-4s led by Lt. Col. Clinton B. Gaty, in May 1944.
[7] A tragic accident occurred where 2 CG-4 gliders towed by one of the unit's Skytrains collided killing several American and British Chindits.
It provided fighter cover, bomb striking power, and air transport services for the Chindits (Wingate's Raiders), fighting behind enemy lines in Burma.
Operations included airdrop and landing of troops, food, and equipment; evacuation of casualties; and attacks against enemy airfields and lines of communication.
It also attacked bridges, railroads, airfields, barges, oil wells, and troop positions in Burma; and escorted bombers to Burmese targets, including Rangoon.
On 15 March 1945, 40 P-51D Mustangs armed with drop tanks attacked Don Muang airfield, which harbored little more than 100 Japanese aircraft.
During their brief (less than two-year) combat operations in the China Burma India Theater, the 1ACG accomplished a number of "firsts."
[11] In April 1961 General Curtis Lemay directed HQ Tactical Air Command to organize and equip a unit to train USAF personnel in World War II–type aircraft and equipment; ready surplus World War II-era aircraft for transfer, as required, to friendly governments provide to foreign air force personnel in the operation and maintenance of these planes develop/improve: weapons, tactics, and techniques.
In response to Lemay's directive, on 14 April 1961 Tactical Air Command activated the 4400th Combat Crew Training Squadron (CCTS) at Hurlburt Field, Florida.
As the military conditions in South Vietnam continued to deteriorate, United States Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara actively began to consider dispatching United States military forces to test the utility of counterinsurgency techniques in Southeast Asia.
Elements of the wing participated in the Operation Eagle Claw attempt in April 1980 to rescue U.S. hostages held in Tehran, Iran.
Conducted numerous disaster relief; search and rescue; medical evacuation; and humanitarian support missions.
Part of the unit was participating in the yearly Exercise Red Flag at Nellis AFB when the call came from local authorities that several hundred people were trapped on the roof of the enflamed MGM.
Beginning in August 1990, the wing deployed personnel and equipment to Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Shield/Storm.
Deployed personnel and equipment worldwide, performing combat search and rescue, and supporting contingencies, humanitarian relief, and exercises that included Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iraq, Kuwait, and Central America.
The continued high operations tempo of the 1st SOW truly put the Air Commandos assigned here at the "tip of the spear."