The group engaged in combat with Lightnings, and later with Republic P-47 Thunderbolts, in the European Theater of Operations until VE Day, earning two Distinguished Unit Citations and the Belgian Fourragere for its actions.

The group commands units that support federal and state requirements for the airlift of troops, cargo, and medical patients anywhere in the world.

[6] After building up its strength, the group moved in October to Santa Rosa Army Air Field, California.

[note 3] The squadrons moved temporarily in sequence to Tonopah Army Air Field, Nevada, where they performed dive bombing and gunnery training.

[8] The "Drunken Duchess"[note 4] docked at Greenock, Scotland on 3 April and the group was transported by train to its airfield at RAF Stoney Cross, England.

[7] Having trained on single engine aircraft, the group's pilots were surprised to find Lockheed P-38 Lightnings sitting on Stoney Cross's dispersal pads.

[11] However, the lack of instrument training in the P-38 took its toll on the group as weather, not enemy action, caused the loss of pilots and airplanes.

[13] For the remainder of the month, the group flew fighter sweeps, bomber escort and dive bombing, missions and suffered its first combat losses.

[14] On D-Day and the next three days the group flew nine missions maintaining air cover over shipping carrying invasion troops.

The 367th and other P-38 groups stationed in England were selected for these missions with the expectation that the distinctive silhouette of the Lightning would prevent potential friendly fire incidents by anti-aircraft gunners mistaking them for enemy fighters.

[15] Shortly after the Normandy invasion, on 12 June, the group was selected to test the ability of the P-38 to carry a 2,000 lb bomb under each wing.

[16] By mid June German ground forces had withdrawn to defend a perimeter around Cherbourg, a major port whose capture had become more important to the allies with the destruction of Mulberry A, one of the artificial harbors constructed near the Normandy beachhead.

Briefed by intelligence to expect a "milk run" The 367th flew at low altitude through what turned out to be a heavily defended area.

[18] From Ibsley the group struck railroads, marshaling yards, and trains to prevent enemy reinforcements from reaching the front during the Allied breakthrough at Saint Lo in July 1944.

[note 6] After the breakout of ground forces in the Saint-Lô area, the group concentrated on close air support of General Patton's Third Army.

In late August, the group attacked German Seventh Army convoys which, to prevent being surrounded, were withdrawing eastward from the Falaise pocket.

The 392d Squadron dive bombed and destroyed two hangars on one airfield but were jumped by twelve Focke-Wulf Fw 190s as they completed their attack.

In the afternoon the 367th destroyed sixteen Junkers Ju 52s while on a long range fighter sweep of more than 800 miles to airfields in the Dijon-Bordeaux area.

[9] In late October, as Ninth Air Force brought its medium bombers to bases in France, the 367th was bumped from its station for the second time by the 387th Bombardment Group, when it moved to Juvincourt Airfield (A-68), north of Reims.

During the Battle of the Bulge, the 367th, after escorting C-47s on a resupply drop to encircled troops at Bastogne, conducted an armed reconnaissance of the Trier area.

[9] Early in 1945 a desire to standardize the fighter-bombers in Ninth Air Force, the group transitioned into Republic P-47 Thunderbolts.

The group's target was the headquarters of Field Marshal Kesselring, the German Commander-ln-Chief, West,[note 8] at Ziegenburg near Bad Nauheim, Germany.

[24] Although senior German officers reached the underground bunkers and survived the attack, the group reduced the military complex to ruins, disrupting communications and the flow of intelligence at a critical time.

[9] The group struck tanks, trucks, flak positions, and other objectives in support of the assault across the Rhine late in March and the final allied operations in Germany.

When Japan surrendered, the Morton was diverted to Newport News, Virginia while the Ericcson sailed for Staten Island, New York.

The group and its squadrons were called to active duty in March 1951 due to the growth of the Air Force during the Korean War.