23rd Fighter Squadron
23d Fighter Squadron | |
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Insignia | |
23d Fighter Squadron emblem (approved 23 September 1943)[1] |
The 23d Fighter Squadron is an inactive
History
World War II
The 23d Fighter Squadron, the "Fighting Hawks," was constituted on 22 December 1939, at
Antisubmarine warfare
The squadron was one of several deployed to the Caribbean and stationed on bases established as part of the 1940
After the
The squadron was renamed the 23d Fighter Squadron in 1942. When the Navy took over the antisubmarine mission, the squadron was redeployed back to the United States, moving to Morrison Field, Florida by 27 May, and it converted to the
European Theater of Operations
In March 1944, the 23d deployed to
Between October 1944 and January 1945, while operating from airfields in Belgium, the squadron earned two citations in the
United States Air Forces in Europe
After being inactivated in March 1946, the squadron was reactivated in October 1946 at
In November 1952, the squadron moved to
The 23d Tactical Fighter Squadron moved to
In January 1991, at the outbreak of the
In September 1991, the squadron's remaining F-4Gs were replaced by F-16Cs. In July 1993, the 23d was the first U.S. unit to enforce the no-fly zone over Bosnia and Herzegovina for Operation Deny Flight. In January 1994, the squadron received the first F-16CJ Block 50 aircraft.[2]
The squadron completed conversion to the latest version of the F-16CJ in January 1995 and became
Pilots from the 23d were the first to employ AGM-88 High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles in combat. The squadron's efforts contributed to the peace process and the resulting Dayton Agreement, which ended more than four years of bloody conflict in the Balkans.[2]
For their outstanding contributions to the U.S. Air Forces in Europe's mission, the 23d was selected in May 1996 to receive the Commander's Trophy as the "Best Fighter Squadron in the Command," their third time to win this distinction.[2]
From February to June 1999 the squadron deployed to
From November 2000 to March 2001 the 23d deployed in support of
The squadron deployed again from April to July 2002 to Incirlik Air Base, Turkey, for Operation Northern Watch to patrol the northern no-fly zone. During the deployment the squadron was called on to provide SEAD for strikes against ground targets located in northern Iraq. Squadron pilots came under fire numerous times while providing SEAD for coalition aircraft, once firing two HARM shots suppressing an Iraqi surface radar site that targeted friendly aircraft.[2]
In January 2003, elements of the squadron forward deployed to
In April 2010 20 F-16Cs were flown from Spangdahlem to the
Lineage
- Constituted as the 23d Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor) on 22 December 1939
- Activated on 1 February 1940
- Redesignated 23d Fighter Squadron on 15 May 1942
- Redesignated 23d Fighter Squadron, Single Engine on 20 August 1943
- Inactivated on 31 March 1946
- Activated on 15 October 1946
- Redesignated 23d Fighter Squadron, Jet Propelled on 27 October 1947
- Redesignated 23d Fighter Squadron, Jet on 17 June 1948
- Redesignated 23d Fighter-Bomber Squadron on 20 January 1950
- Redesignated 23d Fighter-Day Squadron on 9 August 1954
- Redesignated 23d Tactical Fighter Squadron on 8 July 1958
- Redesignated 23d Fighter Squadron on 1 October 1991[1]
- Inactivated 13 August 2010
Assignments
- 36th Pursuit Group (later 36th Fighter Group), 1 February 1940 – 31 March 1946
- 36th Fighter Group (later 36th Fighter-Bomber Group, 36 Fighter-Day Group), 15 October 1946
- 36th Fighter-Day Wing (later 36th Tactical Fighter Wing), 8 December 1957
- 52d Tactical Fighter Wing (later 52d Fighter Wing), 31 December 1971 (attached to 7440th Composite Wing, 17 January – 15 March 1991)
- 52d Operations Group, 31 March 1992 – 13 August 2010[1]
Stations
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Aircraft
- Curtiss XP-37 (1940)
- Curtiss P-36 Hawk (1940–1942)
- Bell P-39 Airacobra (1941–1943)
- Curtiss P-40 Warhawk (1941–1943)
- Republic P-47 Thunderbolt (1943–1946)
- Lockheed P-80 (later F-80) Shooting Star (1947–1950)
- Republic F-84 Thunderjet (1950–1953)
- North American F-86 Sabre (1953–1956)
- North American F-100 Super Sabre (1956–1961)
- Republic F-105 Thunderchief (1961–1966)
- McDonnell F-4 Phantom II (1966–1991)
- General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon (1987–2010)[1]
References
- Notes
- ^ Aircraft is General Dynamics F-16C Block 50D Fighting Falcon serial 91-415.
- ^ Aircraft is Lockheed P-80B-1-LO Shooting Star serial 45-8554 at Furstenfeldbruck AB, Germany, Summer 1948. Aircraft markings appear to be those of Caribbean Air Command, with no "Buzz Number" on the fuselage nose.
- ^ Aircraft is Republic F-84E-10-RE Thunderjet serial 49-2299 in 1951, flown by the Wing Commander Col. Robert L. Scott. Note the 23d Fighter Group emblem on the nose, as Col. Scott was a "Flying Tiger" in China during World War II.
- ^ Aircraft is North American F-86F-25-NH Sabre serial 51-13426
- ^ Aircraft is McDonnell F-4D-32-MC Phantom serial 66-8758 in 1978. This plane was old to the Republic of Korea in 1987.
- Citations
- ^ a b c d e f g Robertson, Patsy (27 January 2009). "Factsheet 23 Fighter Squadron (USAFE)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Library: Fact Sheets: 23rd Fighter Squadron". 52d Fighter Wing Public Affairs. 3 April 2007. Archived from the original on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- ^ Gradishar, SRA Kali L. (26 April 2010). "F-16 drawdown to begin". 52d Fighter Wing Public Affairs. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- ^ Polesnak, 1 Lt Kathleen (24 August 2010). "480th activated as Spangdahlem's newest F-16 squadron". 52d Fighter Wing Public Affairs. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Station number in Anderson.
- ^ a b c d e f g Station number in Johnson.
Bibliography
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
- Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1983) [1961]. Air Force Combat Units of World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. LCCN 61060979. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
- Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969]. Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. OCLC 72556. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
- Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings, Lineage & Honors Histories 1947-1977. Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-12-9. Retrieved 17 December 2016.