The squadron left from Norfolk, Virginia on 1 February 1940 with several others bound for Puerto Rico aboard the USAT Chateau Thierry for what turned into 29 months of overseas service, taking station at Ponce (later Losey Field) on 6 January 1941.

On 28 January 1942 the squadron moved to an auxiliary aerodrome, Vega Baja Field, Puerto Rico 18°28′58″N 066°25′58″W / 18.48278°N 66.43278°W / 18.48278; -66.43278 to provide better interception coverage for the island.

When the Navy took over the antisubmarine mission, the squadron was redeployed back to the United States, moving to Morrison Field, Florida by 27 May, and it converted to the P-47 Thunderbolt in June 1943.

The squadron earned the Distinguished Unit Citation in September 1944 for missions flown from England and forward bases in France supporting the D-Day invasion and the Battle of the Bulge.

[2] After being inactivated in March 1946, the squadron was reactivated in October 1946 at Howard Field, Panama Canal Zone, flying the P-47 and the Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star.

During Operation Proven Force, squadron F-16Cs and F-4Gs flew nearly 1,000 defense suppression, combat air patrol and interdiction missions over Iraq without a single loss.

The squadron earned the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor for its part in driving the Iraqi army from Kuwait.

In September of that same year, members of the 23d took part in Operation Deliberate Force – the largest air assault in North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) history.

The squadron's efforts contributed to the peace process and the resulting Dayton Agreement, which ended more than four years of bloody conflict in the Balkans.

The squadron supported the NATO mission to degrade and damage the military and security structure that the President of Yugoslavia used to destroy the Albanian majority in Kosovo.

During Allied Force the 23d flew over 1000 combat sorties and fired 191 HARM shots to silence over 100 surface-to-air missile sites in Kosovo and Yugoslavia.

[2] In January 2003, elements of the squadron forward deployed to Southwest Asia in support of U.S. Central Command and flew combat missions during Operation Iraqi Freedom.