The 315th Troop Carrier Squadron is an inactive

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

unit. It was last active with

Tenth Air Force The Tenth Air Force (10 AF) is a unit of the U.S. Air Force, specifically a numbered air force of the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC). 10 AF is headquartered at Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base/Carswell Field (formerly Carswel ...

, based at Kent County Airport, Michigan, where it was inactivated on 27 June 1949.

History

The squadron was activated in January 1944 in the

China Burma India Theater China Burma India Theater (CBI) was the United States military designation during World War II for the China and Southeast Asian or India–Burma (IBT) theaters. Operational command of Allied forces (including U.S. forces) in the CBI was ...

. It was equipped with

Douglas C-47 Skytrain The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II. During the war the C-47 was used for tro ...

transports, and engaged in combat

airlift An airlift is the organized delivery of Materiel, supplies or personnel primarily via military transport aircraft. Airlifting consists of two distinct types: strategic and tactical. Typically, strategic airlifting involves moving material lo ...

operations in India and Burma. In 1945 it also flew

Curtiss C-46 Commando The Curtiss C-46 Commando is a low-wing, twin-engine aircraft derived from the Curtiss CW-20 pressurized high-altitude airliner design. Early press reports used the name "Condor III" but the Commando name was in use by early 1942 in company p ...

s. It flew combat cargo resupply missions, troop carrier missions, parachute drops and other missions as necessary.Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 384 The unit participated in the airborne assault of

Myitkyina Myitkyina (, ; Jingpho language, Jinghpaw: ''Myitkyina'', ; , ''Sèna'') is the capital city of Kachin State in Myanmar (Burma), located from Yangon, and from Mandalay. In Burmese language, Burmese it means "near the big river", and Myitkyina i ...

, Burma on 17 May 1944. As part of the 443d Troop Carrier Group, it also performed airlift of an entire Chinese army from Chihkiang to

Nanking Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yan ...

between 5 and 20 September 1945. During its year and one half in combat, the squadron was twice awarded the

Distinguished Unit Citation The Presidential Unit Citation (PUC), originally called the Distinguished Unit Citation, is awarded to units of the uniformed services of the United States, and those of allied countries, for extraordinary heroism in action against an armed e ...

. The squadron returned to the United States in December 1945, and was inactivated at the port of embarkation. The 315th Troop Carrier Squadron was reactivated as a reserve unit under

Air Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command (military formation), command of the United States Air Force, responsible for air defense of the continental United States. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air De ...

(ADC) at Kent County Airport, Michigan in June 1948 and assigned to

Second Air Force The Second Air Force (2 AF; ''2d Air Force'' in 1942) is a USAF numbered air force responsible for conducting basic military and technical training for Air Force enlisted members and non-flying officers. In World War II the CONUS unit defended ...

. In 1948

Continental Air Command Continental Air Command (ConAC) (1948–1968) was a Major Command of the United States Air Force (USAF) responsible primarily for administering the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve. During the Korean War, ConAC provided the necessary aug ...

assumed responsibility for managing reserve and

Air National Guard The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia (United States), militia of each U.S. ...

units from ADC. The unit does not appear to have been fully manned or equipped while in the reserves. President Truman’s reduced 1949 defense budget required reductions in the number of units in the Air Force.Knaack, p. 25 and the 315th was inactivated and not replaced as reserve flying operations at Kent County ceased in 1949.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 315th Troop Carrier Squadron on 8 December 1943 : Activated on 1 January 1944 : Inactivated on 28 December 1945 * Activated in the reserve on 11 June 1948 : Inactivated on 27 June 1949

Assignments

, 1 January 1944 (attached to Troop Carrier Command, Eastern Air Command) * 443d Troop Carrier Group, 6 March 1944 – 26 December 1945 * Second Air Force, 11 June 1948 *

, 1 July 1948 *

First Air Force The First Air Force (Air Forces Northern & Air Forces Space; 1 AF-AFNORTH & AFSPACE) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Its primary mission i ...

, 15 August 1948 * 433d Troop Carrier Group, 28 October 1948 * Tenth Air Force, 28 March 1949 – 27 June 1949

Stations

Dinjan Airfield Dinjan Airfield, also known as Dinjan Air Force Station, is an air base of Indian Air Force. Established as an air field in World War II, it is located in Dinjan, approximately seven miles northeast of Chabua, in the state of Assam, India. The f ...

, India, 1 January 1944 * Sylhet Airfield, India, 10 January 1944 *

Sookerating Airfield Air Force Station Sookerating is an Indian Air Force base located at Sookerating in the state of Assam, India. It is a secondary airport for the Indian Air Force, which operates much more actively from other air bases in the region.. During W ...

, India, 10 June 1944 * Moran Airfield, India, 20 June 1944 * Sookerating Airfield, India, 14 July 1944 : Detachment operated from Shingbwiyang Airfield, Burma, 13 July 1944 – 8 August 1944 : Detachment operated from

Ledo Airfield Ledo Airfield is a former wartime United States Army Air Forces airfield in India used during the Burma campaign (1944–45), Burma Campaign 1944–1945. It is now abandoned, having been destroyed by the 1950 Assam–Tibet earthquake. History Th ...

, India, 14 July 1944 – 2 August 1944 *

, India, 2 August 1944 *

, India, 10 May 1945 *

Chihkiang Airfield Huaihua Zhijiang Airport is an airport serving the city of Huaihua in Hunan Province, China. It is located in Zhijiang Dong Autonomous County, 31 kilometers from the city center. The airport was built in 1942 and was the second largest military ...

, China, 2 September 1945 * Hankow Airfield, China, 25 September 1945 * Shanghai Airport, China, c. October 1945 – 5 December 1945 * Ft. Lawton, Washington, 27–28 December 1945 * Kent County Airport, Michigan, 11 Jun 1948-27 Jun 1949

Aircraft

* Douglas C-47 Skytrain, 1944–1945 * Curtiss C-46 Commando, 1945

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * Further reading * {{USAAF 10th Air Force World War II Military units and formations of the United States Air Force Reserves Military units and formations established in 1943 Troop carrier squadrons of the United States Air Force Troop carrier squadrons of the United States Army Air Forces