The squadron flew Consolidated B-24 Liberators in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, earning two Distinguished Unit Citations for its actions.

The air echelon trained for a few weeks in Tunisia before joining the remainder of the group in Italy and entering combat in April.

[6] The group engaged in long range strategic bombing missions to enemy military, industrial and transportation targets in Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania, and Yugoslavia, bombing railroad marshaling yards, oil refineries, airdrome installations, heavy industry, and other strategic objectives.

It bombed enemy supply lines to assist Operation Grapeshot, the advance of the US Fifth and British Eighth Army in northern Italy in April 1945.

[6] After V-E Day, the squadron was assigned to the Green Project, the movement of troops from Europe to the United States via the South Atlantic Transport Route.

B-24s were modified with sealed bomb bays, removal of all defensive armament and internal fuselage equipped with seating to carry approximately 30 personnel.

It provided air transport until the end of July when the unit was inactivated[1][6] and its personnel assigned to elements of the South Atlantic and Caribbean Wings of ATC.

In September 1954, the squadron moved to Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina where it was colocated with the Army's 82d Airborne Division at Fort Bragg.

The Wing's commitment increased to 14 aircraft with the development of an expanded rescue plan called Operation Dragon Rouge.

[11] The wing dropped Belgian paratroops into Stanleyville, and after the runways were cleared, landed additional troops at Simi-Simi Airport.

[c] An additional 500–1000 were evacuated from Paulis in a follow-on operation,[d] although not all hostages could be rescued and a number were executed by the Simba rebels.

[1][13] In April 1965, the United States decided to deploy troops to the Dominican Republic following the start of a civil war there.

[14] The 46 aircraft dispatched to San Isidro so overcrowded the field that many were unable to unload and some had to be diverted to Ramey Air Force Base, Puerto Rico.

[1] The squadron conducted combat airlift into Vietnam, transporting troops, equipment, and supplies to various bases in Southeast Asia.

Squadron crews rotated to Cam Ranh Bay Air Base and Tan Son Nhut Airport to fly missions.

[citation needed] In 1968 the squadron supported the Siege of Khe Sahn, and Operation Delaware, the A Shau Valley Campaign.

This departing flight was the last fixed wing aircraft to leave carrying refugees out of Tan Son Nhut as Saigon was being overrun by the North Vietnamese.