Initial activation to the 1st Pursuit Group at Selfridge Field, Michigan on 1 January 1941 was definite evidence of America's impending direct involvement in World War II.

On 9 December 1941, just two days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the squadron reported to NAS San Diego in defense of the important Southern California coast.

Capt John D. Eiland was credited with the squadron's first-ever combat kill after downing a German Focke-Wulf Fw 190 on 4 December 1942.

The 71st Squadron flew under the "Cragmore" callsign during World War II, and its original patch included a skull with lightning bolts in the shape of 71.

The squadron was presented another Distinguished Unit Citation by General Nathan Twining in May 1944 for an escort of B-17s against oil installations at Ploieşti, Romania.

The following year, as Air Defense Command(ADC) began to deploy its fighter force the squadron was detached from the group and moved twice, finally locating at Greater Pittsburgh Airport, Pennsylvania in October.

In the summer of 1955 ADC implemented Project Arrow, which was designed to bring back on the active list the fighter units which had compiled memorable records in the two world wars.

During the time the squadron was at MacDill AFB it trained combat fighter crews in the complex F-4 weapon system for deployment to tactical units stationed worldwide.

Graduates of the 71st bore the brunt of the battle and participated in the final operations against North Vietnam which terminated the war in Southeast Asia.

While graduating over 370 fighter crew members from a complex and demanding combat training environment involving day, night, and all-weather operation, the 71st maintained the high standards of its heritage, receiving three consecutive Tactical Air Command Unit Achievement Awards for a record 4 years of accident-free flying through October 1974.

On 7 August 1990, the 71st deployed to Saudi Arabia with 24 F-15C air-superiority fighter aircraft as the first US combat force to land in support of Operation Desert Shield.

In the early morning hours of 17 January 1991, while sweeping the skies near Baghdad, the 71st achieved one of the first aerial victories of Operation Desert Storm and helped pave the way for one of the most significant events in the history of the USAF: complete and total air domination of an adversary, the 71st having flown 1091 missions and 5881 hours in six short weeks.

Minutes after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States, the 71st launched its F-15s to patrol the skies of the US east coast, intercepting and escorting dozens of airliners to safe landings at airports around the country.

The 71st also had aircraft deployed to Nellis AFB, Nevada at the time of the attacks, and were the first fighters to take to the skies to patrol Las Vegas and southern California.