The 96th Air Refueling Squadron was a unit of

PACAF Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) is a Major Command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force and is also the air component command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). PACAF is headquartered at Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam (f ...

's 15th Wing at Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, Hawaii in partnership with the 203rd Air Refueling Squadron and 154th Maintenance Group of the Hawaii Air National Guard. It was inactivated on 3 September 2015.

History

World War II

The 96th Air Refueling Squadron was constituted as the 6th Reconnaissance Squadron (Medium) on 20 November 1940 and activated on 15 January 1941 at

March Field March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Ma ...

, California. Originally attached to the 41st Bombardment Group, it became assigned to it on 25 February 1942. The squadron was tasked with conducting antisubmarine patrols, from December 1941–August 1942 and from December 1942–February 1943. It was redesignated as the 396th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 22 April 1942 and as the 396th Bombardment Squadron, Medium, c. 9 May 1943. Trained with

North American B-25 Mitchell The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in ...

medium bombers, being assigned to

Seventh Air Force The Seventh Air Force (Air Forces Korea) (7 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Osan Air Base, South Korea. The command's mission is to plan and direct air component operations in ...

. Deployed to the

Central Pacific Area Pacific Ocean Areas was a major Allied military command in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II. It was one of four major Allied commands during the Pacific War, and one of three United States commands in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater. Admi ...

, from 19 January–23 September 1944, engaging in combat operations in the Gilbert Islands, then returning to Hawaii in October 1944. Deployed to

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

in June 1945, flying combat bombardment missions over eastern China and Formosa. Prepared for combat action as part of Operation Downfall, the planned invasion of the

Japanese Home Islands The Japanese archipelago (Japanese: 日本列島, ''Nihon rettō'') is a group of 6,852 islands that form the country of Japan, as well as the Russian island of Sakhalin. It extends over from the Sea of Okhotsk in the northeast to the East Chin ...

however the Japanese Capitulation in August cancelled those plans. Squadron demobilized on Okinawa during the fall of 1945, aircraft being sent to reclamation in the Philippines. Personnel returned to the United States and squadron inactivated on 27 January 1946.

Cold War

Activated as 96th Air Refueling Squadron, Medium in 1953. Based at

Altus Air Force Base Altus Air Force Base (Altus AFB, AAFB) is a United States Air Force base located approximately east-northeast of Altus, Oklahoma. The host unit at Altus AFB is the 97th Air Mobility Wing (97 AMW), assigned to the Nineteenth Air Force (19 AF ...

, Oklahoma; supported refueling operations primarily in

Northeast Air Command The Northeast Air Command (NEAC) was a short-lived organization in the United States Air Force tasked with the operation and defense of air bases in Greenland, Labrador and Newfoundland. It was formed in 1950 from the facilities of the United St ...

and

Alaskan Air Command Alaskan Air Command (AAC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command originally established in 1942 under the United States Army Air Forces. Its mission was to organize and administer the air defense system of Alaska, exercise dire ...

areas. Also deployed to

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

in 1956 flying

KC-97 The Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter is a four-engined, piston-powered United States strategic tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It replaced the KB-29 and was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker. Design and developme ...

F and G aircraft. The squadron was reassigned to the 11th Bombardment Wing, on 3 December 1957. Redesignated as the 96th Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy on 8 March 1958, the squadron converted that same year to the

KC-135 The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of transpo ...

A. The 96th ARS was discontinued on 1 October 1960. Organized on 15 December 1960, and assigned to 11th Bombardment (later, 11th Strategic Aerospace) Wing, at Altus AFB, OK, with the KC-135A as its aircraft, it was discontinued and inactivated, on 25 June 1965 and its mission, personnel and aircraft were transferred to the

11th Air Refueling Squadron The 11th Air Refueling Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 340th Air Refueling Wing, stationed at Altus AFB, Oklahoma. It was inactivated on 1 October 1994. History During World War II the squadro ...

, which was transferred on paper to Altus from

Dover Air Force Base Dover Air Force Base or Dover AFB is a United States Air Force base under the operational control of the Air Mobility Command (AMC), located southeast of the city of Dover, Delaware. 436th AW is the host wing and runs the busiest and largest a ...

, Delaware.''See''

Modern era

Redesignated as the 96th Air Refueling Squadron, reactivated, on 1 April 1994 with KC-135Rs, Inactivated on 31 March 2005 at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington. It was reactivated on 23 July 2010 at

Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam (JBPHH) is a United States military base on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. It is an amalgamation of the United States Air Force's Hickam Air Force Base and the United States Navy's Naval Station Pearl Harbor, ...

as part of the Total Force Integration partnership between the 15th Wing of

Pacific Air Forces Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) is a Major Command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force and is also the air component command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). PACAF is headquartered at Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam (f ...

and 154th Wing of the Hawaii Air National Guard. The squadron was again inactivated on 30 September 2015.

Lineage

396th Bombardment Squadron * Constituted as the 6th Reconnaissance Squadron (Medium) on 20 November 1940 : Activated on 15 January 1941 : Redesignated 396th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 22 April 1942 : Redesignated 396th Bombardment Squadron, Medium c. 9 May 1943 : Inactivated on 27 January 1946Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 486 * Consolidated with the 96th Air Refueling Squadron as the 96th Air Refueling Squadron on 19 September 1985 96th Air Refueling Squadron * Constituted as the 96th Air Refueling Squadron, Medium on 6 November 1953 : Activated on 18 November 1953 : Redesignated 96th Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy on 8 March 1958 : Discontinued on 1 October 1960 * Organized on 15 December 1960 : Discontinued and inactivated on 25 June 1965 * Redesignated 96th Air Refueling Squadron and activated on 1 April 1994 * Inactivated on 31 March 2005 * Activated on 23 July 2010Lineage, including assignments aircraft and stations, through May 2014 in Robertson, AFHRA Factsheet 96 Air Refueling Squadron. * Inactivated on 30 September 2015

Assignments

* 41st Bombardment Group, attached 15 January 1941, assigned 25 February 1942 – 27 January 1946 * 96th Bombardment Wing, 18 November 1953 : Attached to: Northeast Air Command, 5 October-20 November 1954, 1 August-14 September 1955, 18–31 January 1956 : Attached to: Alaskan Air Command and 303d Bomb Wing plit deployment 25 June-9 October 1956 : Attached to: 98th Air Base Group, 10 January-7 April 1957 * 11th Bombardment Wing, 3 December 1957 – 1 October 1960 * 11th Bombardment Wing (later 11th Strategic Aerospace Wing), 15 December 1960 – 25 June 1965 *

453d Operations Group The 453rd Bombardment Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit that was first organized in June 1943, during World War II, as a Consolidated B-24 Liberator heavy bomber group. After training in the United States, it deployed to Englan ...

, 1 April 1994 *

92d Operations Group The 92d Operations Group (92 OG) is the flying component of the 92d Air Refueling Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command Eighteenth Air Force. The group is stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington. During ...

, 1 July 1994 – 31 March 2005 * 15th Operations Group, 23 July 2010 - 30 September 2015

Stations

* March Field, California, 15 January 1941 * Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona, 16 May 1941 * Muroc Army Airfield, California, 8 December 1941 * Sacramento MAP, California, c. 11 January 1942 (operated from

NAS Alameda Naval Air Station Alameda (NAS Alameda) was a United States Navy Naval Air Station in Alameda, California, on San Francisco Bay. NAS Alameda had two runways: 13–31 measuring and 07-25 measuring . Two helicopter pads and a control tower were ...

, California, April-10 May 1942) : A detachment of the air echelon operated from

MCAS Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point or MCAS Cherry Point (*) is a United States Marine Corps airfield located in Havelock, North Carolina, United States, in the eastern part of the state. It was built in 1941, and was commissioned in 1942 and ...

, North Carolina, June–August 1942 *

Hammer Field Fresno Yosemite International Airport is a joint military/public airport in Fresno, California, United States. It is the primary commercial airport for the San Joaquin Valley and three national parks: Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon. It o ...

, California, 24 August 1942 : Stationed temporarily at: NAS Alameda, California, 1 December 1942-February 1943 : Stationed temporarily at: Sacramento MAP, California, 17 February-29 September 1943 *

Hickam Field Hickam may refer to: ;Surname *Homer Hickam (born 1943), American author, Vietnam veteran, and a former NASA engineer ** October Sky: The Homer Hickam Story, 1999 American biographical film * Horace Meek Hickam (1885–1934), pioneer airpower advoc ...

, Hawaii, 20 October 1943 *

Hawkins Field (Tarawa) Hawkins Field is a former World War II airfield on Betio, Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands of the Central Pacific. The airfield was named in honor of USMC 1st Lt. William Dean Hawkins who was killed in the battle to recapture Tarawa, and earned th ...

, Gilbert Islands, 24 December 1943 *

Makin Airfield Butaritari Airport is an airport on Butaritari in the Pacific Ocean island nation of Kiribati. History Butaritari Atoll Airport was built in Kiribati during World War II by the United States after seizing the island from the Japanese. Constructi ...

, Gilbert Islands, 20 April 1944 *

Wheeler Field Wheeler Army Airfield , also known as Wheeler Field and formerly as Wheeler Air Force Base, is a United States Army post located in the City & County of Honolulu and in the Wahiawa District of the Island of O'ahu, Hawaii. It is a National His ...

, Hawaii, 14 October 1944 – 20 May 1945 *

Yontan Airfield Yontan Airfield (also known as Yomitan Auxiliary Airfield) is a former military airfield located near Yomitan Village on the west coast of Okinawa. It was closed in July 1996 and turned over to the Japanese government in December 2006. Today it i ...

, 7 June 1945 * Fort William McKinley,

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

, Philippines, December 1945-27 January 1946 * Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma, 18 November 1953 – 1 October 1960 : Deployed to

Ernest Harmon Air Force Base Ernest Harmon Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located in Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador. The base was built by the United States Army Air Forces in 1941 under the Destroyers for Bases Agreement with the United Ki ...

, Newfoundland, 5 October-20 November 1954, Thule Air Force Base, Greenland, 1 August-14 September 1955 and 18–31 January 1956,

Elmendorf Air Force Base Elmendorf Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) facility in Anchorage, Alaska. Originally known as Elmendorf Field, it became Elmendorf Air Force Base after World War II. It is the home of the Headquarters, Alaskan Air Command (AL ...

, Alaska and Andersen Air Force Base, Guam plit deployment 25 June-9 October 1956) * Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma, 15 December 1960 – 25 June 1965 * Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, 1 April 1994 – 31 March 2005 * Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, Hawaii, 23 July 2010 – 30 September 2015

Aircraft

PT-17 Kaydet The Stearman (Boeing) Model 75 is a biplane formerly used as a military trainer aircraft, of which at least 10,626 were built in the United States during the 1930s and 1940s. Stearman Aircraft became a subsidiary of Boeing in 1934. Widely known ...

(1941) *

B-18 Bolo The Douglas B-18 Bolo is an American heavy bomber which served with the United States Army Air Corps and the Royal Canadian Air Force (as the Digby) during the late 1930s and early 1940s. The Bolo was developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company f ...

(1941–1942) * LB-30 (1941–1942) *

A-29 Hudson The Lockheed Hudson is a light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built by the American Lockheed Aircraft Corporation. It was initially put into service by the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and prim ...

(1941–1942) * B-25 Mitchell (1942–1945) *

KC-97 Stratofreighter The Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter is a four-engined, piston-powered United States strategic tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It replaced the KB-29 and was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker. Design and developm ...

(1954–1958) *

KC-135 Stratotanker The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of trans ...

(1958–1960, 1960–1965, 1994–2005, 2010-2015

References

; Notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * {{Strategic Air Command 096 Military units and formations in Washington (state) Military units and formations established in 1953 Units and formations of Strategic Air Command