The group flew P-47 Thunderbolts in the European Theater of Operations (ETO) starting with the buildup to the Invasion of Normandy ("D-Day") through the end of the war in Europe.

The group destroyed the Seine River bridge at Mantes-Gassicourt, northeast of Paris, just before the invasion, to inhibit movement of German materiel.

[6] The group was grounded during the 6 June invasion activities because Allied command was concerned that inexperienced anti-aircraft batteries would mistake P-47s for the German Focke-Wulf Fw 190.

[8] While encamped at Christchurch, the Group officers bivouacked in Bure Homage, an English manor adjacent to the airfield that was requisitioned by the British Ministry of Defence for the war.

[9] The group's most notable action was the destruction of an entire German armored division near the town of Avaranches [sic], France on 29 July 1944.

After immobilizing leading and trailing elements of the 3-mile (4.8 km) long column, the rest of the tanks and trucks were systematically destroyed with multiple sorties.

The 405th replaced the 108th Fighter-Bomber Group which had been called to active federal service for the Korean War and was returned to the New Jersey Air National Guard and assumed its mission, equipment and personnel.

The group was heavily involved with operational training of TAC Thunderstreak pilots, both in gunnery and tactical bombardment, along with providing firepower demonstrations.

The wing was committed to the TAC concept of the Composite Air Strike Force (CASF), which was, in part, to be prepared for rapid worldwide deployments.

This was followed by Operation Sharkbait, which used McGuire AFB, New Jersey as a staging base en route to RAF Wethersfield, England.

During the first phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the 405th launched 10 aircraft and struck 240 planned targets with Global Positioning System-guided JDAMS 2,000-pound bombs.