93rd Air Refueling Squadron

93rd Air Refueling Squadron
V Device
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award^[1]
93rd Air Refueling Squadron V Device; Air Force Outstanding Unit Award
Insignia
93rd Air Refueling Squadron emblem
93rd Air Refueling Squadron emblem
93rd Air Refueling Squadron emblem
493rd Bombardment Squadron emblem
Aircraft flown
Tanker	KC-135 Stratotanker

The 93rd Air Refueling Squadron is an active

air refueling

missions.

The earliest predecessor of the squadron is the 493rd Bombardment Squadron, which was activated in India in October 1942 and was equipped with

Distinguished Unit Citation in March 1945. Dring the period in which Boeing B-29 Superfortress

bombers operated from India, it also transported gasoline to forward bases in China. After the end of hostilities, it returned to the United States for inactivation in January 1946.

The 93rd Air Refueling Squadron was activated in March 1949 and equipped with Boeing KB-29 Superfortress tankers. It upgraded to the Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter in 1953, and the KC-135 in 1957. For most of its time at Castle Air Force Base, California, it served as the training unit for KC-135 aircrews, but also maintained combat readiness to execute Strategic Air Command (SAC) missions. In September 1985 the two squadrons were consolidated into a single unit. When SAC inactivated in 1992, the squadron became part of Air Mobility Command. In March 1995, the squadron moved on paper to Fairchild.

History

World War II

The squadron was first activated as the 493rd Bombardment Squadron in nonoperational status at

7th Bombardment Group on 25 Oct 1942. The squadron remained unmanned while the older squadrons of the 7th Group were converting to the Consolidated B-24 Liberator.^[4] When the group and squadron moved to Pandaveswar Airfield in early January 1943 it became operational with Liberators.^[1] It commenced combat operations on 26 Jan 1943.^{[citation needed}

]

The squadron engaged in strategic bombardment operations, attacking communications targets (roads, railroads, etc.)

Luliang Airfield, China from 17 December 1944 until 26 January 1945,^[1] hauling gasoline to Suichwan Airfield, China.^{[citation needed}

]

The squadron proper began practice with

Office of War Information.^[6]

After fighting ended in Burma the 493rd Bomb Squadron was ordered to practice Azon bombing in China,^[citation needed] but soon "alerted" for inactivation. With its parent (7th Bomb Group) the 493rd staged through Dudhkundi, Kanchrapara, and Camp Angus (near Calcutta), departing Calcutta aboard the USS General W. M. Black on 7 December 1945.^{[citation needed]} The vessel reached the U.S. on 5 January 1946 and the squadron inactivated at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, the following day^[1]

Strategic Air Command

Activated on 1 Mar 1949 as the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Medium, but was not manned until September 1950. Received

French Morocco, and Alaska

, in 1954–1956.

The 93rd ARS began training its aircrews to operate Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers in May 1957. The squadron was the first Stratotanker squadron in the Air Force.^[7] It Began receiving KC-135s on 28 Jun 1957, three days after converting to KC-135 aircrew training as primary mission. Possessed 19 tankers in December 1957 and 39 by May 1958.

Effective 1 Jul 1959, the resources of the 93rd ARS were divided with the 924th ARS, which unit assumed the SAC KC-135 aircrew training mission with 15 aircraft. The 93rd ARS, at the same time, resumed full-time air refueling with 20 KC-135s. This status lasted until 21 Aug 1963, when the 93rd ARS ceased standing alert and prepared to resume full-time KC-135 aircrew training. On 26 August the 93rd once again began KC-135 aircrew training as its primary mission. It retained Emergency War Order (EWO) commitments along with its training mission, but did not stand alert.

Modern era

The squadron's mission remained basically the same until 31 Mar 1995. Thousands of

Fairchild AFB, Washington, and became a deployable air refueling squadron under the 92nd Air Refueling Wing

(92 ARW).

Lineage

493rd Bombardment Squadron

Constituted as the 493rd Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 19 September 1942

Activated on 25 October 1942

Redesignated 493rd Bombardment Squadron, Heavy on 6 March 1944

Inactivated on 6 January 1946

Consolidated with the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron as the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron on 19 September 1985 [1]

93rd Air Refueling Squadron: Constituted as the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Medium on 2 February 1949; Activated on 1 March 1949; Redesignated 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy on 1 February 1955; Redesignated 93rd Air Refueling Squadron on 1 September 1991; Inactivated on 31 March 1995

Consolidated with the 493rd Bombardment Squadron on 19 September 1985
Activated on 31 March 1995^[1]

Assignments

7th Bombardment Group, 25 October 1942 – 6 January 1946
93rd Bombardment Wing
, 15 July 1950 – 30 January 1951 and after 10 February 1951
93rd Bombardment Wing, 16 June 1952
93rd Operations Group, 1 September 1991
398th Operations Group
, 1 June 1992 – 31 March 1995
92nd Operations Group, 31 March 1995 – present^[1]

Stations

Karachi, India, 25 October 1942
Pandaveswar Airfield, India, 7 January 1943
Tezgaon Airfield, India, 17 June 1944
Pandaveswar Airfield, India, 5 October 1944

Detachment at Luliang Airfield, China 17 December 1944 – 26 January 1945

Dudhkundi Airfield, India, 31 October 1945
Kanchrapara Airfield
, India, 19 November 1945
Camp Angus, India, 25 November – 7 December 1945
Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, 5–6 January 1946

Castle Air Force Base, California, 1 March 1949 – 31 March 1995

Deployed to RAF Upper Heyford, England, 9 December 1951 – 6 March 1952

Deployed to

Davis-Monthan Air Force Base

, Arizona 1 April – 15 May 1954

Deployed to Ernest Harmon Air Force Base, Newfoundland, 19 June – 14 August 1954

Deployed to

Thule Air Base

, Greenland, 19 January – c. 15 March 1955

Deployed to Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, 2 November 1955 – 5 January 1956, 27 September – c. 24 December 1956

Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, 31 March 1995 – present^[1]

Aircraft

Consolidated B-24 Liberator (1943–1945)
Boeing KB-29 Superfortress (1950–1953)
Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter (1953–1957)
Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker (1957–1995, 1995–present)^[1]

References

Notes

Explanatory notes

^ Approved 9 December 1994.
^ This emblem never received official approval, but was used by the squadron from the late 1950s until 1995 when it was a training unit for SAC KC-135 aircrews.
^ Approved 22 June 1955.
^ Some sources give the activation location as New Delhi.^{[citation needed]} However, its parent organization, the 7th Bombardment Group, was located at Karachi Airport on the day of the squadron's activation. Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 43-45.

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l Kane, Robert B. (18 April 2012). "Factsheet 93 Air Refueling Squadron (AMC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
^ Endicott, p. 687
^ Watkins, pp. 68-69
^ ^a ^b Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 43-45
^ Marion. "Old China Hands, Tales & Stories - The Azon Bomb". oldchinahands. Archived from the original on 6 March 2012. Retrieved 20 March 2012.
^ Maurer Combat Squadrons, p. 594
^ Shelton, A1C Taylor (31 August 2016). "Air Force celebrates 60 years of the KC-135". 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs. Retrieved 23 April 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

Bibliography

This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

Endicott, Judy G. (1998). Active Air Force Wings as of 1 October 1995 and USAF Active Flying, Space, and Missile Squadrons as of 1 October 1995 (PDF). Air Force History and Museums Program. Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History.
ASIN B000113MB2
. Retrieved 2 July 2014.

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
.

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
.

Watkins, Robert A. (2017). Insignia and Aircraft Markings of the U.S. Army Air Force In World War II. Vol. VI, China-Burma-India & The Western Pacific. Atglen,PA: Shiffer Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN 978-0-7643-5273-7
.

Further reading

Carter, Kit C.; Mueller, Robert (1972). Combat Chronology, 1941-1945 (PDF). U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II. Washington DC: Center for Air Force History.
LCCN 92115046. Archived from the original
(PDF) on 21 January 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2015.

External links

"Personnel of the 493rd Bombardment Squadron". Retrieved 6 April 2015.

[2] Approved 9 December 1994.

[3] This emblem never received official approval, but was used by the squadron from the late 1950s until 1995 when it was a training unit for SAC KC-135 aircrews.

[4] Approved 22 June 1955.

[7] Some sources give the activation location as New Delhi.^{[citation needed]} However, its parent organization, the 7th Bombardment Group, was located at Karachi Airport on the day of the squadron's activation. Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 43-45.

[93AREFSfacts-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l Kane, Robert B. (18 April 2012). "Factsheet 93 Air Refueling Squadron (AMC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved 27 August 2017.

[5] Endicott, p. 687

[6] Watkins, pp. 68-69

[Maurer7BG-8] Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 43-45

[Marion-9] Marion. "Old China Hands, Tales & Stories - The Azon Bomb". oldchinahands. Archived from the original on 6 March 2012. Retrieved 20 March 2012.

[10] Maurer Combat Squadrons, p. 594

[11] Shelton, A1C Taylor (31 August 2016). "Air Force celebrates 60 years of the KC-135". 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs. Retrieved 23 April 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

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v t e Aerial refueling units of the United States Air Force
Wings	6th 19th 22d 68th 92d 100th 101st 107th 108th 117th 121st 126th 128th 134th 141st 157th 155th 157th 161st 163d 168th 171st 184th 185th 186th 190th 301st 305th 319th 340th 380th 384th 434th 452d 459th 497th 499th 507th 916th 927th 939th 940th 4045th 4061st 4108th 4397th 4505th
Groups	19th 43d 98th 307th 931st
Squadrons	2d 6th 7th 9th 11th 19th 22d 26th 28th 32d 34th 40th 41st 42d 43d 44th 46th 54th 55th 63d 64th 68th 70th 71st 72d 74th 77th 90th 91st 92d 93d 96th 97th 98th 99th 100th 105th 106th 108th 116th 117th 126th 127th 132d 133d 136th 141st 146th 147th 150th 151st 154th 166th 168th 203d 301st 303d 305th 306th 307th 308th 310th 314th 320th 321st 336th 340th 341st 344th 349th 350th 351st 376th 380th 384th 407th 465th 509th 711th 744th 763d 900th 901st 902d 903d 904th 905th 906th 907th 908th 909th 911th 913th 915th 916th 917th 919th 920th 922d 924th