314th Fighter Squadron

314th Fighter Squadron
314th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron F-16C^{[note 1]}
Active	1942-1945; 1986-1994: 2015-
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Decorations	Distinguished Unit Citation Air Force Outstanding Unit Award
Insignia
314th Fighter Squadron emblem (Approved 8 July 1944)^[1]

The 314th Fighter Squadron is an active United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 54th Fighter Group at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, where it was activated on 14 July 2015.

History

World War II

The squadron was established as a Curtiss P-40 Warhawk fighter squadron under I Fighter Command in the summer of 1942. It trained in the Northeastern United States until October, then deployed to serve with Ninth Air Force in Egypt, where it took part in the Western Desert Campaign. The unit trained for several weeks Royal Air Force units, then began operating with other organizations against the enemy in Tunisia. The squadron engaged primarily in escort and patrol missions between Tunisia and Sicily until July 1943.

The 314th trained from July to October 1943 for operations with Twelfth Air Force. It resumed combat on 30 October 1943 and directed most of its attacks against roads, bridges, motor transport, supply areas, rolling stock, gun positions, troop concentrations, and rail facilities in Italy until August 1944. The squadron patrolled the beach and protected convoys during the assault on Anzio in January 1944. It aided the Allied offensive in Italy during May 1944, receiving a Distinguished Unit Citation for action from 12 to 14 May when the squadron bombed an enemy position on Monastery Hill 9 (Monte Cassino), attacked troops massing on the hill for counterattack, and hit a nearby stronghold to force the surrender of an enemy garrison.

The squadron continued to give close support to ground forces until the fall of Rome in June 1944. It then converted to Republic P-47 Thunderbolts in July and supported the assault on southern France in August by dive-bombing gun positions, bridges, and radar facilities, and by patrolling the combat zone. It gave tactical support to Allied forces advancing through France. The squadron aided the reduction of the Colmar bridgehead in January and February 1945, and supported Seventh Army's drive through the Siegfried Line defenses in March 1945.

The 314th became part of the occupation forces in Germany after war in Europe ended in May. It returned to the United States and was inactivated 07 November 1945 with its group at Camp Shanks, New York.^[1]

Second era

The squadron was reactivated by Tactical Air Command as the 314th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron in 1986 as the second F-16C/D replacement training unit. This made the 314th the fourth and last flying squadron under the 58th Tactical Training Wing. It was initially equipped with new "Block 25" Falcons, but converted to new "Block 42"s in 1990. Its aircraft carried the "LF" tail code, with a yellow tail stripe outlined in red. On 1 October 1991 the squadron was redesignated the 314th Fighter Squadron and was assigned to the 58th Operations Group. On 1 April 1994 the 314th was inactivated and its personnel and equipment were transferred to the 61st Fighter Squadron, which moved on paper to Luke from MacDill Air Force Base.

Modern era

The 314th Fighter Squadron was reactivated by the Air Education and Training Command. A unique setup, detached from Luke Air Force Base, 56th Fighter Wing, it is the second Block 42 F-16C formal training unit in the 54th Fighter Group at Holloman Air Force Base officially in 2015.

On 25 November 2015, a 314th Fighter Squadron F-16 crashed near Salinas Peak near Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. The pilot was in good condition when he was found.^[2]

Lineage

Constituted as the 314th Fighter Squadron on 24 June 1942

Activated on 6 July 1942

Redesignated 314th Fighter Squadron, Single Engine c. 1 May 1944^[3]

Inactivated on 7 November 1945^[4]

Redesignated 314th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron and activated on 1 October 1986

Redesignated 314th Fighter Squadron on 1 November 1991

Inactivated on 1 April 1994

Activated on 6 July 2015^[3]

Assignments

324th Fighter Group, 6 July 1942 – 7 November 1945 (attached to 57th Fighter Group, 8 March – 23 May 1943)^[4]
58th Tactical Training Wing, 1 October 1986
58th Operations Group, 1 October 1991 – 1 April 1994
54th Fighter Group, 6 July 2015^[3]

Stations

Mitchel Field, New York, 6 July 1942
Baltimore Airport, Maryland, 6 July – 28 October 1942
RAF El Amiriya, Egypt, 23 December 1942
RAF Kabrit, Egypt, 2 February 1943
Darragh Airfield, Libya, 8 March 1943
Ben Gardane Airfield, Tunisia, 14 April 1943
El Haouaria Airfield, Tunisia, c. 18 June 1943
Menzel Heurr Airfield, Tunisia, 3 October 1943
Cercola Airfield, Italy, 25 October 1943
Pignataro Maggiore Airfield, Italy, 6 May 1944
Le Banca Airfield, Italy, 6 June 1944

Montalto Di Castro Airfield, Italy, 13 June 1944
Ghisonaccia Airfield, Corsica, 15 July 1944
Le Luc Airfield, France, 23 August 1944
Istres Airfield (Y-17), France, 1 September 1944
Amberieu Airfield (Y-5), France, 5 September 1944
Dôle-Tavaux Airfield (Y-7), France, 17 September 1944
Luneville Airfield (Y-2), France, 2 January 1945
AAF Station Stuttgart/Echterdingen, Germany, 3 May – 20 October 1945
Camp Shanks, NY, 6 - 7 November 1945^[4]
Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, 1 October 1986 – 1 April 1994
Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, 14 July 2015 - present^[3]

Aircraft

Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, 1942-1944
Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, 1944-1945^[4]
Lockheed F-16C Fighting Falcon, 1986-1994, 2015

References

Notes

↑ Aircraft is General Dynamics F-16C Fighting Falcon Block 25 serial 85-1425

Citations

1 2 Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 382
↑ Bailey, Carl E. (November 25, 2015). U.S. military fighter jet crashes in New Mexico. Reuters. Retrieved from Reuters. 26 November, 2016
1 2 3 4 Bailey, Carl E. (August 12, 2015). "Factsheet 314 Fighter Squadron (AETC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
1 2 3 4 Lineage, including assignments, stations and aircraft through 1945 in Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 382, except as noted

Bibliography

This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969]. Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-405-12194-6. LCCN 70605402. OCLC 72556.
Martin, Patrick. Tail Code: The Complete History of USAF Tactical Aircraft Tail Code Markings. Schiffer Publishing, 1994. ISBN 0-88740-513-4.
Rogers, Brian. (2005). United States Air Force Unit Designations Since 1978. Hinkley, UK: Midland Publications. ISBN 1-85780-197-0.

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