16th Air Expeditionary Wing: Difference between revisions
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After the war the group dropped food and supplies to Allied prisoners gf war in |
After the war the group dropped food and supplies to Allied prisoners gf war in |
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[[Japan]], [[Manchuria]], and [[Korea]], and participated in several show-of-force missions over Japan. |
[[Japan]], [[Manchuria]], and [[Korea]], and participated in several show-of-force missions over Japan. The problem of dropping supplies to Prisoners of War was difficult. In the first place, most of the camps were small and hard to locate. And |
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even more important was the great distance that had to be flown on some of |
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the missions. Accurate information was lacking on several of the camps, especially |
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those located in Manchuria and Korea. The Japanese had apparently shifted |
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many of the prisoners around and closed down some of the concentration cen- |
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ters. Most of the supplies were dropped with the aid of a parachute but |
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certain types of packages were permitted to fall free. The bombardier on |
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each B-29 had quite a problem in determining the exact moment of release. |
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On 2 September the 16th Group participated in the "Show of Force" |
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mission over Tokyo which took place while the surrender terms were being |
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signed on the battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The mission was careful- |
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ly planned as it represented the first attempt at formation flying that |
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the organization had made since its arrival overseas. The aircraft flew over Tokyo Bay just as the surrender terms were signed and the men could watch the Missouri at the same time that they heard the broadcast of the ceremony over the radio. The B-29s flew at approximately 3,000 feet and could see clearly through a scattered undercast.<ref>[http://www.315bw.org/16bg.html Official History of the 16th Bomb Group for 1 August 1945 through VJ Day, transcribed from AFHRA microfilm B0082]</ref> |
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The 16th Bombardment Group was inactivated on Guam on 15 April 1946. |
The 16th Bombardment Group was inactivated on Guam on 15 April 1946. |
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Revision as of 16:37, 10 June 2008
| 16th Air Expeditionary Wing | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1944-1946 2001-Present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Part of | United States Air Forces in Europe |
| Garrison/HQ | Aviano AB, Italy |
The United States Air Force's 16th Air Expeditionary Wing is an Air Expeditionary unit of the United States Air Forces in Europe as part of the Global War on Terrorism.
The current status of the 16th AEW is not disclosed by the USAF. The task of developing a comprehensive listing of Air Expeditionary units present in Southwest Asia and other combat areas is particularly difficult as the events of 11 September 2001 and the Global War on Terrorism has made such an effort significantly difficult. The USAF seeks to improve operational security (OPSEC) and to deceive potential enemies as to the extent of American operations, therefore a listing of which units deploying where and when is unavailable
Mission
The 16th AEW was activated under temporary orders for a specific purpose or mission. Once the subject mission is completed, the 16th AEW will be inactivated.
Units
It is believed that the unit is located at Aviano AB, Italy. It may operate expeditionary sites at Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo; Camp Able Sentry, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia; Sarajevo and Tuzla AB, Bosnia-Herzegovina; Taszar AB, Hungary; Zagreb, Croatia and Naval Air Station Sigonella and San Vito Air Station, Italy; in addition to a contingency processing center at Rhein-Main AB, Germany.
- 16th Expeditionary Operations Group, Istres AB
- 401st Expeditionary Air Base Group, Tuzla AB
- 406th Expeditionary Air Base Group, Taszar AB
- 620th Expeditionary Air Base Group, Camp Able Sentry
- 2nd Expeditionary Air Support Operations Squadron, Camp Bondsteel
- 16th Expeditionary Air Support Operations Group, Sarajevo
- 16th Expeditionary Support Squadron, Rhein-Main AB
- 99th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron, NAS Sigonella
- 775th Expeditionary Support Squadron, San Vito AS
Weapons Systems Operated[1]
- Boeing KC-135E/R Stratotanker
- General Atomics MQ-1A Predator UAV
- Lockheed U-2R
- General Dynamics F-16 Flying Falcon
History
World War II
16th Fighter Group
The unit was authorized as the 16th Pursuit Group on 24 Mar 1923, and was activated in the Panama Canal Zone on 1 December 1932 at Albrook Field.
The 16th served as part of the defense force of the Panama Canal as part of 26th Fighter Command, Sixth Air Force.
The group flew various types of aircraft, including Boeing P-12s, Curtiss P-36 Hawks, Curtiss P-36 Hawks; Bell P-39 Airacobras, and lastly Curtiss P-40 Warhawks beginning in 1941. Operational squadrons of the group were the 24th and 29th (1932-1943); 43d (1940-1943); 44th (1938-1939); 74th (1934-1938), and 78th (1932-1937).
The unit was redesignated as the 16th Fighter Group in 1942 and moved to Howard Field. It was disbanded on 1 November 1943.
16th Bombardment Group
The unit was reconsituted as the 16th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy) on 28 March 1944, and was activated on 1 April 1944 at Dalhart AAF, Texas. Equipped with Boeing B-29 Superfortresses, the operational bomb squadrons were the 15th, 16th, 17th and 21st. The unit trained for combat initially at Dalhart, then moving to Fairmont AAF, Nebraska on 15 August 1944.
The 16th was assigned to Twentieth Air Force on 7 March 1945 and was deployed to Northwest Field, Guam as part of the 315th Bombardment Wing. It's B-29s were marked with a Diamond-B tail code. The group entered combat on 16 June 1945 with a bombing raid against an airfield on Moen. Flew first mission against the Japanese home islands on 26 June 1945 and afterwards operated principally against the enemy's petroleum industry.
Flying unescorted in the face of severe enemy attack, the 16th bombed the oil refinery at Shimotsu, the Mitsubishi refinery and oil installations at Kawasaki, and the coal liquefaction plants at Ube, Jul-Aug 1945,and was awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation for the missions.
After the war the group dropped food and supplies to Allied prisoners gf war in Japan, Manchuria, and Korea, and participated in several show-of-force missions over Japan. The problem of dropping supplies to Prisoners of War was difficult. In the first place, most of the camps were small and hard to locate. And even more important was the great distance that had to be flown on some of the missions. Accurate information was lacking on several of the camps, especially those located in Manchuria and Korea. The Japanese had apparently shifted many of the prisoners around and closed down some of the concentration cen- ters. Most of the supplies were dropped with the aid of a parachute but certain types of packages were permitted to fall free. The bombardier on each B-29 had quite a problem in determining the exact moment of release.
On 2 September the 16th Group participated in the "Show of Force" mission over Tokyo which took place while the surrender terms were being signed on the battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The mission was careful- ly planned as it represented the first attempt at formation flying that the organization had made since its arrival overseas. The aircraft flew over Tokyo Bay just as the surrender terms were signed and the men could watch the Missouri at the same time that they heard the broadcast of the ceremony over the radio. The B-29s flew at approximately 3,000 feet and could see clearly through a scattered undercast.[3]
The 16th Bombardment Group was inactivated on Guam on 15 April 1946.
References
- ^ Airman Magazine Jan 2001
- ^ Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0892010924.
- ^ Official History of the 16th Bomb Group for 1 August 1945 through VJ Day, transcribed from AFHRA microfilm B0082