410th Test and Evaluation Squadron

410th Flight Test Squadron
Rockwell B-1B Lancer 85-0075 410th Flight Test Squadron - F-117 Formation, 2007
Active	10 March 1989-1 August 2008
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Squadron
Role	Flight Testing
Garrison/HQ	Edwards Air Force Base, California
Nickname(s)	"Baja Scorpions"
Tail Code	"ED"
Insignia
410th Flight Test Squadron emblem
Aircraft flown
Bomber	B-1B Lancer
Fighter	F-117 Nighthawk

The 410th Flight Test Squadron (410 FTS) is an inactive United States Air Force squadron. It was last assigned to the 412th Operations Group, stationed at Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale Regional Airport, California. It was inactivated on 1 August 2008.

Overview

The squadron's primary mission throughout its lifetime was flight and acceptance testing of the F-117A Nighthawk stealth fighter and the B-1B Lancer bomber. Officially activated in March 1989 for B-1B flight testing, the mission of the unit was changed in 1993 when the B-1 testing was transferred to the 419th Flight Test Squadron and the squadron became the F-117A test squadron, assuming the mission of an inactivated classified unit formed in 1980 at Groom Lake, Nevada (Detachment 3, Air Force Flight Test Center)

History

B-1B Lancer testing

On 2 October 1981, President Ronald Reagan announced a Strategic Modernization Program (SMP), a key feature of which would be the procurement of 100 Long-Range Combat Aircraft (LRCA). The LRCA would later be designated as the B-1B Lancer.

The first B-1B (82-0001) was assembled largely by hand and incorporated several sub-assemblies of the No 5 B-1A, which has been under construction when the B-1A program was cancelled in 1979 by President Carter. It was rolled out from the Rockwell assembly plant at Palmdale, California on 4 September 1984. It flew for the first time on 31 October 1984, crewed by Rockwell test pilots. It was a 3 hour 20 minute flight which ended with a landing at Edwards AFB, California. The second aircraft was delivered on 7 July 1985. The B-1B was declared ready for delivery to the Strategic Air Command barely eight months after its first flight.

The initial B-1B assignment was to the 4018th Combat Crew Training Squadron at Dyess AFB, Texas, which was activated on March 15, 1985. The first operational squadron was the the 337th Bombardment Squadron. The 100th and last production aircraft was delivered to the Air Force on 2 May 1988. At Edwards AFB, Air Force Systems Command formed and activated the 6510th Test Squadron on 10 March 1989 to provide operational testing of the B-1B weapons systems, software and components.

Lineage

"Baja Scorpions" unofficial emblem

Unofficial

• "Baja Scorpions", 1980-1 March 1993

Personnel and equipment merged into 410th Test Squadron, 1 March 1993-

Official

• Designated 6510th Test Squadron, and activated, on 10 March 1989

Re-designated: 410th Test Squadron on 2 October 1992

Re-designated: 410th Flight Test Squadron on 1 March 1994

Inactivated 1 October 2008

Assignments

Unofficial

• SENIOR TREND Joint (later Combined) Test Force. (Detachment 2, R unit, 4450th Tactical Group), 1980
• Detachment 5, 2874th Test Squadron, February 1992
• Detachment 5, 337th Test Squadron, 1992-1 March 1993

Official

• 6510th (later, 412th Test) Wing, 10 March 1989
• 412th Operations Group, 1 October 1993-1 October 2008

Stations

Unofficial

• Detachment 3, Air Force Flight Test Center, 1980
• Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale Regional Airport, California, 27 March 1992-1 March 1993

Official

• Edwards Air Force Base, California, 10 March 1989
• Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale Regional Airport, California, 1 March 1993-1 October 2008

Aircraft

• YF-117A, F-117A Nighthawk, 1981-2008

F-117 aircraft not officially assigned to unit until 1 March 1993

• B-1B Lancer, 1989-1992

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

• USAF 410th Flight Test Squadron History
• F-117A.com 410th Flight Test Squadron