554th Fighter-Bomber Squadron

554th Fighter-Bomber Squadron
Emblem of the 554th Fighter-Bomber Squadron
Active	1942-1945; 1955-1957
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Fighter-Bomber

: B-26B-35-MA Marauder 41-31984 "Good Buddie" 554th Bombardment Squadron, 1943

Martin B-26B-25-MA Marauder 41-31812 at Beaumont-sur-Oise Airfield (A-60) France on January 14, 1945.

The 554th Fighter-Bomber Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last was assigned to the 386th Fighter-Bomber Group, stationed at Bunker Hill Air Force Base, Indiana. It was inactivated on 8 July 1957.

History

Activated as a B-26 Marauder Medium Bomber squadron in late 1942; trained under Third Air Force in southeastern United States. Reassigned to European Theater of Operations in June 1943, first being assigned to VIII Air Support Command; then to IX Bomber Command in 1944. Engaged in tactical bombardment of enemy targets in Occupied Europe initially from stations in England, then after D-Day, moved to Advanced Landing Grounds in France and Belgium; advancing eastward as Allied ground forces advanced. Supported Eighth Air Force strategic bombardment missions over Nazi Germany and Occupied Europe; striking enemy airfields to obtain maximum interference in Luftwaffe day interceptor attacks on heavy bomber formations returning to England. Also participated in Western Allied Invasion of Germany, March–April 1945, combat ending with German Capitation in May 1945.

Squadron demobilized personnel in Europe during Summer of 1945; squadron returned to the United States for re-equipping with A-26 Invader and prepared for tactical operations over Japan as part of planned invasion force. Inactivated in November 1945 after Japanese Capitulation and end of World War II.

Reactivated in 1955 as a Tactical Air Command F-100 Super Sabre squadron; inactivated in 1957 due to budget reductions.

Lineage

Constituted 554th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 25 November 1942

Activated on 1 December 1942

Redesignated 554th Bombardment Squadron (Light) on 23 June 1945

Inactivated on 7 November 1945

Redesignated 554th Fighter-Bomber Squadron on 31 October 1955

Activated on 8 April 1956

Inactivated on 8 July 1957

Assignments

386th Bombardment Group, 1 December 1942 – 7 November 1945
386th Fighter-Bomber Group, 8 April 1956 – 8 July 1957

Stations

MacDill Field, Florida, 1 December 1942
Lake Charles AAB, Louisiana, 9 February-8 May 1943
RAF Snetterton Heath (AAF-138), England, 3 June 1943
RAF Boxted (AAF-150), England, 10 June 1943
RAF Great Dunmow (AAF-164), England, 24 September 1943

Beaumont-sur-Oise Airfield (A-60), France 2 October 1944
Sint-Truiden Airfield (A-92), Belgium, 9 April – 27 July 1945
Seymour Johnson Field, North Carolina, 7 August 1945
Westover Field, Massachusetts, 30 September – 7 November 1945
Bunker Hill AFB, Indiana, 8 April 1956 – 8 July 1957

Aircraft

References

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.

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