May 7, 1945. Download Hi-Res Luftwaffe airfields that were identified as jet and rocket bases, such as Parchim and Bad Zwischenahn, were frequently bombed, and Allied fighters patrolled over the fields to attack jets trying to land. Movement of Under ACC, the Eighth received control over active duty, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard units in the central U. S. and two overseas locations. The Air Force retired nearly all of its piston-engined B-29/B-50s and they were replaced by new Boeing B-47 Stratojet aircraft. $(".fancybox-content").css("width", newImgWth + "px"); if ($(".fancybox-caption__body").hasClass("af3-caption-body")) { To reduce the risk to its bomber fleet in the United States, Eighth Air Force aircraft stood nuclear alert, providing a deterrent against an attack on the United States by the Soviet Union. Stuttgart was at the very limit of the B-17 in 1943, and fuel was a precious commodity on this particular mission. // Fancy box miscalculates because of race conditions with new layout Initially, Eighth Air Force under SAC consisted of the following: Personnel and equipment from the inactivated 449th Bomb Group were reassigned to the 7th Bomb Group (later 7th Bomb Wing). They numbered 350,000 men and women with over 54,000 killed in combat or taken prisoner. During World War II, the group's predecessor unit, the 305th Bombardment Group was one of the first VIII Bomber Command Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress units in England, and, was one of the most-decorated USAAF heavy-bombardment groups in the European Theater. "[citation needed]. Fighting the Allies during the North African campaign of 1942-1943, German Field Marshal Erwin Rommels Afrika Korps (DAK) was resupplied by a concerted air and sea lift effort. Planes and General Information: The first Bombing Mission flown by the Eighth. In 1965, Eighth Air Force entered combat again, this time in Southeast Asia. The nuclear arms race shifted into high gear. Another 305 enlisted gunners were also recognized as aces. The USAAF now finally had an aircraft that could compete on equal terms with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 and the later models of the Messerschmitt Bf 109. As part of this game-changing strategy, especially after the bombers had hit their targets, the USAAF's fighters were then free to strafe German airfields and transport while returning to base, contributing significantly to the achievement of air superiority by Allied air forces over Europe. The first escort mission for the bombers was not flown until 5 December. The Japanese, however, surrendered before the Eighth's first combat sortie in the Pacific. function getDownloadURL(fbObj) { Jimmy Stewart and the WW2 Mission That Almost Broke Him It was famous for bringing crews home, even when three of its four engines failed. Nightmares so vivid that they caused the men to wake up screaming in the night were not uncommon. Eighth Air Force is one of two active duty numbered air forces in Air Force Global Strike Command. Eighth Air Force trains, tests, exercises and demonstrates combat-ready forces for rapid employment worldwide. '
' + ABMC honors the services of overseas U.S. Armed Forces by maintaining and promoting America's overseas commemorative cemeteries and memorials. On at least eighteen occasions, the Merseburg refineries in Leuna, where the majority of Germany's synthetic fuel for jet aircraft was refined, was hit. On 16 April, this record was broken when over 700 German aircraft were destroyed on the ground. The B-2 force consists of 20 bombers assigned to the active duty 509th Bomb Wing along with the Missouri Air National Guard's associate 131st Bomb Wing at Whiteman AFB, Missouri. The raids on the German aircraft industry comprising much of "Big Week" caused so much damage that the Germans were forced to disperse aircraft manufacturing eastward, to safer parts of the Reich. . Airmen were asked to complete a 25-mission quota at a time when the life expectancy of a crew didn't surpass six missions. Continuing with the 12 B-17s that flew Mission #1 of the 8th AF, Aug 17, 1942, target Rouen marshalling yard. During World War II, under the leadership of such generals as Ira Eaker and Jimmy Doolittle, the VIII BC (then Eighth Air Force) formed the greatest air armada in history. It was reassigned to Savannah Army Air Base, Georgia on 10 February 1942. The morale among the Eighth Air Force crews was at a low point in September, yet the worst was yet to come. In late 1943, the P-51B Mustang was introduced to the European Theater by the USAAF. Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress - The National WWII Museum $(".fancybox-content").css("transform", 350,000 Americans served in 8th AF during the war in Eighth Air Force - Wikipedia The 8th Air Force was targeted in this operation. Spaatz defined to Gen. George C. Marshall and Secretary of War Henry Stimson the strategy of tactical air forces augmenting and protecting ground forces while strategic air forces bombed industry and infrastructure. Major General James C. Dawkins Jr. assumed command of 8th Air Force on 20 August 2018, after having served as the Deputy Director for Nuclear, Homeland Defense, and Current Operations on the Joint Staff at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.[13] On 12 June 2020, he was succeeded by Major General Mark E. Weatherington, who had previously served as deputy commander of Air Education and Training Command at Joint Base San Antonio in Randolph, Texas.[14]. The German pilot only had seconds to aim, fire, and peel away before careening into the heavy bombers. An official website of the United States government, Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil. afterShow: function (instance, current) { Tested by the developer himself, Mayer found the tactic worked exceedingly well. In what became known as "Black Thursday", the 8th Air Force's 1st and 3rd Air Divisions flew from bases in East Anglia and attacked German ball bearing factories 400 miles away at Schweinfurt, Germany. Eighth Air Force has five Regular Air Force bomb wings, two Air Reserve Total Force Integration bomb wings (one in Air Force Reserve Command and one in the Air National Guard), and one detachment in the continental United States. event.stopImmediatePropagation(); Half of the U.S. Army Air Forces' casualties in World War II were suffered by Eighth Air Force (more than 47,000 casualties, with more than 26,000 dead). $(".fancybox-caption").removeClass("af3-caption-bg"); return 'July 4, 1942: The Mighty Eighth's First Bombing Raid - HistoryNet Twelve B-17s of the 8th Air Forces 97th Heavy Bombardment Group raided the Sotteville-ls-Rouen railroad yards, while six more made a diversionary strike. Americans bomb Germans for first time - History fbObj.find(".actions .download").attr("href") + For the VIII Bomber Command of 1945-1946, see, Numbered air force of the United States Air Force, Start of offensive operations against Nazi-occupied territory, Target For Today 1943 VIII Bomber Command film, Lineage, assignments, components, and stations, The Eighth Air Force's now commonly-accepted nickname, "The Mighty Eighth", derives from the title of British farmer and life-long Eighth Air Force historian, two American-crewed and one RAF-crewed Bostons against each target, Lineage & Honors, 389th Strategic Missile Wing, through 1965, USAF Historical Research Center, Learn how and when to remove this template message, World War II European-African-Middle Eastern Theater, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Combat "V" Device, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, equipping the Mustang with a Rolls-Royce Merlin, United States Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific, 58th Bombardment Wing (later Air Division), blockade of West Berlin by the Eastern bloc, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), 1st Bombardment (later, 1st Air) Division, 820th Air (later, 820 Strategic Aerospace) Division, 67th Information Operations (later, 67th Network Warfare) Wing, 509th Bombardment (later, 509th Bomb) Wing, Post-Attack Command and Control System Facility, Hadley, "Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) (ACC)", "WWII 8thAAF COMBAT CHRONOLOGY - JANUARY 1944 THROUGH JUNE 1944", "Combat Chronology of the US Army Air Forces - May 1944", "USAF Historical Research Agency Document 00219137", "Command of Eighth Air Force changes hands", "E-4Bs realign under 8th Air Force, 595th CACG stands up", "History of the 445th Bomb Group, Revised Edition", "Factsheet 100 Air Refueling Wing (USAFE)", "Factsheet 322 Air Expeditionary Group (USAFE)", "Lineage and Honors History of the 385 Air Expeditionary Group (AMC)", "Factsheet 386 Air Expeditionary Wing (ACC)", "Factsheet 479th Flying Training Group (AETC)", "Factsheet 492 Special Operations Wing (AFSOC)", "8th Air Force to become new cyber command", USAF Fact Sheets: Eighth Air Force History, Eight Air Force tactical mission report of Operation Shuttle, Establishment of the Eighth Air Force in the United Kingdom, The Ruhr one of the main target of the 8th USAAF in Europe, 19431945, Map of 8th Air Force airfields in England 19421945, A 1956 LIFE photo of every plane in the Eighth Air Force's arsenal, 4th Fighter Group Association, 65 Fighter Wing, 8th Air Force World War II, National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, House Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces, House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, Strategic Air Command in the United Kingdom, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eighth_Air_Force&oldid=1137214118, 1942 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state), Air Forces of the United States Army Air Forces, Military units and formations in Louisiana, Military units and formations of the United States in the Cold War, Numbered air forces of the United States Air Force, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles lacking in-text citations from November 2010, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles with self-published sources from September 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2017, Articles with unsourced statements from March 2014, Wikipedia articles incorporating text from public domain works of the United States Government, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, 3 June 2008 present (as Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic)), Fort Worth Army Air Field (Later Carswell Air Force Base), Texas, VIII Air Force Composite Command: 22 Feb 1944 1 Feb 1945, VIII Air Force Service Command: 22 Feb 1944 16 Jul 1945, 608th Air Operations Center (formerly 608th Air Operations Group and 608th Air and Space Operations Center), 1 Jan 1994 present, Air Force Information Operations: 1 May 2007 present, Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts, 13 Jun 1955, Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, 1 Jan 1975 present, This page was last edited on 3 February 2023, at 12:09.