7th Air Refueling Squadron
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The 7th Air Refueling 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 assigned to the
19th Operations Group The 19th Operations Group (19 OG) is the operational flying component of the United States Air Force 19th Airlift Wing, stationed at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas. Equipped with the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, the group provides part of Ai ...
, stationed at
Robins Air Force Base Robins Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force installation located in Houston County, Georgia, Houston County, Georgia, United States. The base is located just east of the city of Warner Robins, Georgia, Warner Robins, south-southea ...
, Georgia, where it was inactivated on 1 January 1993.


History

World War II Established in 1943 by
Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies a ...
in India, the squadron 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 ...
transports from the Assam Valley in India over the 'Hump' to bases in China, flying supplies, personnel and equipment to support
Fourteenth Air Force The Fourteenth Air Force (14 AF; Air Forces Strategic) was a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Space Command (AFSPC). It was headquartered at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The command was responsible for the organizatio ...
combat units 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 ...
(CBI).


MATS airlift

Reactivated as part of
Military Air Transport Service The Military Air Transport Service (MATS) is an inactive United States Department of Defense, Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy's Naval Air Transport Service (NA ...
(MATS) in 1952, it flew
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 ...
s from
McChord Air Force Base McChord Field (formerly and still commonly known as McChord Air Force Base) is a United States Air Force base in the northwest United States, in Pierce County, Washington. South of Tacoma, McChord AFB is the home of the 62nd Airlift Wing, ...
, Washington to Elmendorf and
Ladd Air Force Base Ladd Army Airfield is the military airfield located at Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks, Alaska. It was originally called Fairbanks Air Base, but was renamed Ladd Field on 1 December 1939, in honor of Major Arthur K. Ladd, a pilot in the U.S. ...
s, Alaska. It moved to
Travis Air Force Base Travis Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base under the operational control of Air Mobility Command (AMC), located three miles (5 Kilometre, km) east of the central business district of the city of Fairfield, California, Fairfield, i ...
, California in 1953, where it was re-equipped with
Douglas C-124 Globemaster II The Douglas C-124 Globemaster II, nicknamed "Old Shaky", is a retired American heavy-lift cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, California. The C-124 was the primary heavy-lift transport for United States Air Forc ...
intercontinental strategic transport aircraft. The unit flew very long range strategic airlift missions within the MATS Western Transport Air Force area from California to Japan, the Philippines, Indochina and
Karachi Airport Jinnah International Airport () , formerly Drigh Road Airport or Karachi International Airport, is Pakistan's busiest international and domestic airport, and handled 7,267,582 passengers in 2017–2018. Located in Karachi, the largest city an ...
in West Pakistan during the 1950s. It was inactivated in July 1955 due to budget reductions.


Air refueling

It was re-activated at
Carswell Air Force Base Carswell Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force (USAF) base, located northwest of Fort Worth, Texas. For most of its operational lifetime, the base's mission was to train and support heavy strategic bombing groups and wings. Carswe ...
, Texas on 1 April 1958 when its parent unit, the
7th Bombardment Wing The 7th Bomb Wing (7 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Global Strike Command Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, where it is also the host unit. The 7 BW is one of only two B-1B Lancer strat ...
received
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic aircraft, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the ...
es. The unit provided
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 ...
on a worldwide basis for over 30 years with
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 ...
s. The squadron was not operational 6 May – 1 December 1965 and 10 December 1969 – 31 March 1970Ravenstein, pp. 19-20 due to operations in
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
. All aircrews and aircraft were deployed or on loan to provisional units at
Kadena Air Base (International Air Transport Association airport code, IATA: DNA, International Civil Aviation Organization airport code, ICAO: RODN) is a United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena, Okinawa, Kadena and Chatan, Okinawa, Chatan and the ...
,
Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...
,
Andersen Air Force Base Andersen Air Force Base (Andersen AFB, AAFB) is a United States Air Force base located primarily within the village of Yigo in the United States territory of Guam. The host unit at Andersen AFB is the 36th Wing (36 WG), assigned to the Pacif ...
,
Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...
or U-Tapao Royal Thai Naval Airfield, Thailand. On 19 September 1985 the 7th Air Refueling Squadron was consolidated with the 77th Air Transport Squadron. It remained assigned to the 7th Wing at Carswell until 1 June 1992. Reassigned to the
19th Operations Group The 19th Operations Group (19 OG) is the operational flying component of the United States Air Force 19th Airlift Wing, stationed at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas. Equipped with the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, the group provides part of Ai ...
at Robins AFB, the squadron was inactivated in 1993 as part of the post
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
drawdown of the USAF.


Lineage

; 77th Air Transport Squadron * Constituted as the 77th Air Corps Ferrying Squadron on 30 January 1943 : Activated on 22 February 1943 : Redesignated 77th Transport Squadron on 1 July 1943 : Disbanded on 1 December 1943 * Reconstituted on 16 September 1952 as the 77th Air Transport Squadron, Heavy : Activated on 24 September 1952 : Inactivated on 1 July 1955 * Consolidated on 19 September 1985 with the 7th Air Refueling Squadron as the 7th Air Refueling SquadronDepartment of the Air Force/MPM Letter 662q, 19 September 85, Subject: Reconstitution, Redesignation, and Consolidation of Selected Air Force Tactical Squadrons ; 7th Air Refueling Squadron * Constituted as the 7th Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy on 28 January 1958 : Activated on 1 April 1958 * Consolidated on 19 September 1985 with the 77th Air Transport Squadron : Redesignated 7th Air Refueling Squadron on 1 September 1991 * Activated on 1 June 1992 : Inactivated on 1 January 1993


Assignments

* 22d Ferrying Group (later 22d Transport Group), 22 February 1943 – 1 December 1943 * 1705th Air Transport Group, 24 September 1952 * 1501st Air Transport Group, 20 November 1953 – 1 July 1955 * 7th Bombardment Wing, 1 April 1958 * 19th Operations Group, 1 June 1992 – 1 January 1993


Stations

*
Chabua Airfield Chabua Air Force Station is an Indian Air Force base located at Chabua of Dibrugarh district in the state of Assam, India. History US Air Force This Base was built in 1939. During World War II it was a major supply point for the ferrying of ...
, Assam, India, 22 February 1943 * Jorhat Airfield, Assam, India, April – December 1943 *
McChord Air Force Base McChord Field (formerly and still commonly known as McChord Air Force Base) is a United States Air Force base in the northwest United States, in Pierce County, Washington. South of Tacoma, McChord AFB is the home of the 62nd Airlift Wing, ...
, Washington, 24 September 1952 *
Travis Air Force Base Travis Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base under the operational control of Air Mobility Command (AMC), located three miles (5 Kilometre, km) east of the central business district of the city of Fairfield, California, Fairfield, i ...
, California 20 November 1953 – 1 July 1955 *
Carswell Air Force Base Carswell Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force (USAF) base, located northwest of Fort Worth, Texas. For most of its operational lifetime, the base's mission was to train and support heavy strategic bombing groups and wings. Carswe ...
, Texas, 1 April 1958Mueller, p. 68 *
Robins Air Force Base Robins Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force installation located in Houston County, Georgia, Houston County, Georgia, United States. The base is located just east of the city of Warner Robins, Georgia, Warner Robins, south-southea ...
, Georgia, 1 June 1992 – 1 January 1993


Aircraft

* Curtiss C-46 Commando 1943 * C-54 Skymaster, 1952–1953 *
Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter The Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter is a long-range heavy military cargo aircraft developed from the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, B-29 and Boeing B-50 Superfortress, B-50 bombers. Design work began in 1942, the first of three prototype XC-97s flew on ...
, 1953–1955 * KC-135 Stratotanker, 1958–1992, 1992–1993


References

; Notes


Bibliography

* * {{Strategic Air Command
007 The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...
1943 establishments in India 1993 disestablishments in Georgia (U.S. state)