The 370th Fighter Squadron is an inactive

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

unit. The squadron was activated in early 1943 and assigned to the

359th Fighter Group The 359th Fighter Group was a United States Army Air Force fighter unit that was active during World War II. Following organization and training in the United States, the group (military aviation unit), group deployed to the European Theater of ...

. After training in the United States, it deployed to England and participated in combat in the

European Theater of Operations The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a Theater (warfare), theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It command ...

, earning a

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 ...

for its action. Following

V-E Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945; it marked the official surrender of all German military operations ...

, the squadron returned to at

Camp Kilmer Camp Kilmer is a former United States Army camp in Central New Jersey that was activated in June 1942 as a staging area and part of an installation of the New York Port of Embarkation. The camp was organized as part of the Army Service Forces Tra ...

, New Jersey, where it was inactivated on 10 November 1945.

History

The 370th Fighter Squadron was activated in early 1943 as one of the original three squadrons of the

. The squadron trained in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

during 1943. 359th Fighter Group P-47 Thunderbolts

The squadron moved to England in October 1943, where it became part of

VIII Fighter Command The VIII Fighter Command was a United States Army Air Forces unit of command above the wings and below the numbered air force. Its primary mission was command of fighter operations within the Eighth Air Force. In the World War II European Thea ...

. It entered combat in mid-December 1943, using the callsign "Wheeler" supported the

invasion of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 ( D-Day) with the ...

during June 1944 by patrolling the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

, escorting bombardment formations to the French coast, and dive-bombing and strafing bridges, locomotives, and rail lines near the battle area. After D-Day, engaged chiefly in escorting bombers to oil refineries, marshalling yards, and other targets in such cities as

Ludwigshafen Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning "Ludwig I of Bavaria, Ludwig's Port upon the Rhine"; Palatine German dialects, Palatine German: ''Ludwichshafe''), is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in the German state of Rh ...

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, Berlin,

Merseburg Merseburg () is a town in central Germany in southern Saxony-Anhalt, situated on the river Saale, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese ...

, and Brux. Continued combat operations until the German capitulation in May 1945. The unit returned to the United States and was inactivated in November 1945.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 370th Fighter Squadron (Single Engine) on 20 December 1942 : Activated on 15 January 1943 : Inactivated on 10 November 1945

Assignments

, 15 January 1943 – 10 November 1945

Stations

* Westover Field, Massachusetts, 15 January 1943 * Bedford Army Air Field, Massachusetts, 5 April 1943 *

Mitchel Field Mitchell may refer to: People and fictional characters *Mitchell (surname), including lists of both people and fictional characters *Mitchell (given name), lists of people and fictional characters Places Australia * Mitchell, Australian Ca ...

, New York, 24 May 1943 * Westover Field, Massachusetts, 22 August 1943 – 2 October 1943 * RAF East Wretham (Station 133),Station number in Anderson. England, ''ca''. 18 October 1943 – ''ca''. 4 November 1945 *

, New Jersey, 9 November 1945 – 10 November 1945

Aircraft

Republic P-47 Thunderbolt The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II-era fighter aircraft produced by the American company Republic Aviation from 1941 through 1945. It was a successful high-altitude fighter, and it also served as the foremost American fighter-bombe ...

, 1943–1944 *

North American P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 by a team headed by James H. Kin ...

, 1944–1945

Awards and campaigns

Manual campaign table

References

Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * * {{cite book, last=Watkins, first=Robert, title=Battle Colors: Insignia and Markings of the Eighth Air Force in World War II , volume=II (VIII) Fighter Command, year=2008, publisher=Shiffer Publishing Ltd., location=Atglen, PA, isbn=978-0-7643-2535-9 Fighter squadrons of the United States Army Air Forces Military units and formations established in 1942