The 4028th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron was a component of the 4080th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing,

Strategic Air Command Strategic Air Command (SAC) was a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile compon ...

, that operated

Lockheed U-2 The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed the "''Dragon Lady''", is an American single-engine, high–altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) since the 1950s. Designed for all- ...

spy planes out of Laughlin AFB, Texas, and Davis–Monthan AFB, Arizona, in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The unit is also sometimes referred to as the 4028th Strategic Reconnaissance Weather Squadron. It was from this unit that the pilots involved in overflights of

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

during the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis () in Cuba, or the Caribbean Crisis (), was a 13-day confrontation between the governments of the United States and the Soviet Union, when American deployments of Nuclear weapons d ...

were drawn. Detachments of the 4028th were deployed to

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; , VNCH), was a country in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975. It first garnered Diplomatic recognition, international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam within the ...

History

The 4080th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing was activated at Turner AFB, Georgia, on 1 April 1956. The first mission was to operate RB-57Ds of Project BLACK KNIGHT, for which purpose the 4025th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron was assigned to the wing in May 1956. The second mission was to operate the U-2s ordered by SAC under Project Dragon Lady, and the 4028th was created for this purpose. Prior to receiving the U-2s, the 4080th wing moved to Laughlin AFB, TX during February–April 1957. "A second U-2 squadron, the 4029th SRS, was assigned in expectation that the CIA Project Aquatone would end, and the aircraft be turned over to SAC. This never happened, and the 4029th SRS was never equipped. The wing moved to Davis–Monthan AFB in 1963.Pocock, Chris, "50 Years of the U-2: The Complete Illustrated History of the 'Dragon Lady' ", Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., Atglen, Pennsylvania, Library of Congress card number 2005927577, , page 404. "The 100th SRW was created at Davis–Monthan AFB, Arizona in June 1966 by a renumbering of the 4080th SRW. The U-2 squadron was renumbered from 4028th SRS to the 349th SRS. The 100th Wing also controlled the 350th SRS which operated the Ryan RPVs and the associated DC-130 launch and CH-3 recovery aircraft."Pocock, Chris, "50 Years of the U-2: The Complete Illustrated History of the 'Dragon Lady' ", Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., Atglen, Pennsylvania, Library of Congress card number 2005927577, , page 405.

References

{{reflist Military units and formations established in 1956 Units and formations of Strategic Air Command 1956 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Reconnaissance squadrons of the United States Air Force MAJCOM squadrons of the United States Air Force