The 63rd Air Refueling Squadron, sometimes written as 63d Air Refueling Squadron, is a

United States Air Force Reserve The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commis ...

squadron, assigned to the 927th Operations Group at

MacDill Air Force Base MacDill Air Force Base (MacDill AFB) is an active United States Air Force installation located 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida. The "host wing" for MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW), assig ...

, Florida. It is a reserve associate of the active duty

91st Air Refueling Squadron The 91st Air Refueling Squadron is part of the 6th Air Mobility Wing at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. It operates the Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker aircraft conducting air refueling missions. The squadron was first activated in January 1941 as ...

. The squadron operates the

KC-135 Stratotanker The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling tanker aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It has a narrower fuselage and is shorter than the 707. Boeing gave ...

aircraft conducting

air refueling Aerial refueling (American English, en-us), or aerial refuelling (British English, en-gb), also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from ...

missions. The squadron was activated during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as the 63d Troop Carrier Squadron. After Training in the United States, it deployed to the

Southwest Pacific Theater The South West Pacific theatre, during World War II, was a major theatre of the war between the Allies and the Axis. It included the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies (except for Sumatra), Borneo, Australia, its mandate Territory of New Guin ...

, where it flew

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 ...

missions, 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 ...

Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or ...

, and

Philippine Presidential Unit Citation The Philippine Presidential Unit citation BadgeThe AFP Adjutant General, ''Awards and Decorations Handbook'', 1997, OTAG, p. 65. is a unit decoration of the Republic of the Philippines. It has been awarded to certain units of the United States ...

for its actions. After

V-J Day Victory over Japan Day (also known as V-J Day, Victory in the Pacific Day, or V-P Day) is the day on which Imperial Japan surrendered in World War II, in effect bringing the war to an end. The term has been applied to both of the days on wh ...

, the squadron remained in the Philippines until inactivating in May 1946. The squadron was again activated in the reserve in 1947. In April 1951, the squadron was called to active duty for the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

. It moved to Japan, and again flew combat airlift missions, earning a

Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation The Presidential Unit Citation () is a military unit award of the government of Republic of Korea that may be presented to South Korean and foreign military units for outstanding performance in defense of the Republic of Korea. In recognition of a ...

. In January 1953, the squadron was relieved from active duty, transferring its planes and personnel to a regular unit. It was activated the same day in the reserve. The squadron continued to fly airlift missions, and was again called to active service for 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 ...

in 1962. Except for a short period, when it was nominally a

special operations Special operations or special ops are military activities conducted, according to NATO, by "specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment." Special operations ma ...

unit, it flew airlift missions until 1992, when it converted to the air refueling role.

History

World War II

The 63d flew aerial transportation and casualty evacuation in the South and Southwest Pacific from, 6 August 1943-August 1945, and between Japan and Korea from 19 May-31 December 1952. The squadron received a

Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy and United States Coast Guard unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. History Navy A navy, naval force, military m ...

for its service at part of the

South Pacific Combat Air Transport Command South Pacific Combat Air Transport Command (SCAT) was a joint command of U.S. military logistics units in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II. It contributed notably to the success of U.S. forces in the campaigns on Guadalcanal (1942–194 ...

(SCAT) from October 1943 to July 1944.Armstrong

Air reserve operations

The squadron conducted tactical

operations from 1953 to 1969 and 1971 to 1992 and trained for tactical air support missions from 1969 to 1971. It deployed personnel to

Southwest Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenia ...

in 1990 and 1991 during

Operations Desert Shield , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

and

Desert Storm , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

. It has flown air refueling missions since 1992.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 63rd Troop Carrier Squadron on 7 December 1942 : Activated on 12 December 1942 : Inactivated on 15 May 1946 * Activated in the reserve on 21 June 1947 : Redesignated 63rd Troop Carrier Squadron, Medium, on 27 June 1949 : Ordered to active service on 1 April 1951 : Inactivated on 1 January 1953 * Activated in the reserve on 1 January 1953 : Ordered to active service on 28 October 1962 : Relieved from active service on 28 November 1962 * Redesignated 63d Tactical Airlift Squadron on 1 July 1967 * Redesignated 63d Tactical Air Support Squadron on 26 June 1969 * Redesignated 63d Tactical Airlift Squadron on 29 June 1971 * Redesignated 63d Airlift Squadron on 1 February 1992 * Redesignated 63d Air Refueling Squadron on 1 Oct 1992

Assignments

403d Troop Carrier Group 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is a square number, the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. Evolution of the H ...

, 12 December 1942 – 15 May 1946 (attached to

10 October 1943 – 3 July 1944) * 419th Troop Carrier Group, 21 June 1947 * 403d Troop Carrier Group, 27 June 1949 – 1 January 1953 * 403d Troop Carrier Group, 1 January 1953 *

403d Troop Carrier Wing 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is a square number, the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. Evolution of the Hi ...

, 14 April 1959 * 927th Troop Carrier Group (later 927th Tactical Air Support Group, 927th Tactical Airlift Group, 927th Airlift Group, 927th Air Refueling Group), 11 Feb 1963 * 927th Operations Group, 1 Aug 1992 – present

Stations

* Bowman Field, Kentucky, 12 December 1942 *

Alliance Army Air Field An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

, Nebraska, 18 December 1942 *

Pope Field Pope Field is a U.S. military facility located northwest of the central business district of Fayetteville, North Carolina, Fayetteville, in Spring Lake, North Carolina, Spring Lake, Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States.. Federal A ...

, North Carolina, 3 May 1943 *

Baer Field Baer (or Bär, from ) or Van Baer is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: Baer * Alan Baer, American tuba player * Arthur "Bugs" Baer (1886–1969), American journalist and humorist * Buddy Baer (1915–1986), American boxer * ...

, Indiana, 20 June – 18 July 1943 *

Espiritu Santo Espiritu Santo (, ; ) is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of and a population of around 40,000 according to the 2009 census. Geography The island belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region ...

, 6 August 1943 *

Los Negros Island Los Negros Island is the third largest of the Admiralty Islands. It is significant because it contains the main airport of Manus Province on its eastern coastline, at Momote. It is connected to Lorengau, the capital of the province, on Manus ...

, 13 August 1944 *

Biak Biak is the main island of Biak Archipelago located in Cenderawasih Bay near the northern coast of Papua (province), Papua, an Indonesian province, and is just northwest of New Guinea. Biak has many atolls, reefs, and corals. The largest popula ...

, 1 October 1944 (air echelon operated from Wakde, 4–19 October 1944, and from Noemfoor, 29 October - 29 December 1944) *

Dulag Airfield Dulag Airfield is a World War II airfield located near Dulag in the Philippine province, province of Leyte province, Leyte, Philippines. It was closed after the war. History The airfield was built by the Japanese during the Occupation of the Ph ...

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has been ...

, 3 May 1945 *

Clark Field Clark is an English language surname with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland, ultimately derived from the Latin ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educated ...

Luzon Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...

, 23 January – 15 May 1946 * Andrews Field (later Andrews Air Force Base), Maryland, 21 June 1947 * Portland Municipal Airport, Oregon, 27 June 1949 – 29 March 1952 *

Ashiya Air Base is a military airdrome of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force . It is located north of Ashiya in the Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. History Ashiya Airfield was established as a Japanese Army Air Force facility in 1944 and was used primarily as a de ...

, Japan, 14 April 1952 – 1 January 1953 * Portland International Airport, Oregon, 1 January 1953 *

Selfridge Air Force Base Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located in Harrison Township, Michigan, near Mount Clemens. Selfridge Field was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the Un ...

(later Selfridge Air National Guard Base), Michigan, 16 November 1957 *

, Florida, 1 May 2008 – present

Aircraft

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 ...

(1943–1946) *

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 ...

(1945–1946, 1951–1952, 1953–1957) *

Douglas C-54 Skymaster The Douglas C-54 Skymaster is a four-engined transport aircraft used by the United States Army Air Forces in World War II and the Korean War. Like the Douglas C-47 Skytrain derived from the DC-3, the C-54 Skymaster was derived from a civilia ...

(1946) *

Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar The Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar (Navy and Marine Corps designation R4Q) is an American military transport aircraft developed from the World War II-era Fairchild C-82 Packet, designed to carry cargo, personnel, Litter (rescue basket), litte ...

(1952, 1953–1954, 1957–1969) * Cessna U-3 Blue Canoe (1969–1971) *

Lockheed C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...

(1971–1992) *

Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling tanker aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It has a narrower fuselage and is shorter than the 707. Boeing gave ...

(1992 – present)

References

Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * * * *