| 490th Bombardment Group | |
|---|---|
 490th Bombardment Group B-17G Flying Fortresses in formation during a mission | |
| Active | 1943–1945 |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch | United States Army Air Forces |
| Role | Bombardment |
| Part of | Eighth Air Force |
| Engagements | European Theater of Operations |
| Insignia | |
| Tail Code[1][note 1] | Square T |
The490th Bombardment Group is a formerUnited States Army Air Forces unit. Thegroup was activated in October 1943. After training in the United States, it deployed to theEuropean Theater of Operations and participated in thestrategic bombing campaign against Germany from 31 May 1944 to 20 April 1945, losing 22 aircraft while flying more than 5,000 sorties. FollowingV-E Day, the group returned to the United States, where it was inactivated in November 1945.
The490th Bombardment Group was activated atSalt Lake City Army Air Base, Utah on 1 October 1943, with four squadrons, the848th,849th,850th and851st Bombardment Squadrons assigned. The 848th through 850th Squadrons were activated with the group at Salt Lake City, while the 851st, a former antisubmarine squadron that provided the group'scadre, was located atMountain Home Army Air Field, Idaho.[2][3][4][5][6]
In December, groupheadquarters and the three squadrons at Salt Lake City moved to Mountain Home, where they began training withConsolidated B-24 Liberators. The squadrons left their training base on 9 April 1944 for theEuropean Theater of Operations. The group's ground echelon departed the port of embarkation atCamp Shanks, New York, sailing on theSSNieuw Amsterdam on 11 April and arriving in the United Kingdom on 25 April. The air echelon flew its planes along the southern ferry route beginning on 12 April.[7]
The group arrived atRAF Eye, its combat station, on 28 April.[2] However, before the group could fly its first combat mission, the 850th Squadron was reassigned toVIII Air Force Composite Command to flyOperation Carpetbagger missions with the801st Bombardment Group (Provisional).[8] The remaining three squadrons of the group began combat operations on 31 May 1944. The group's initial missions were flown to prepare forOperation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy, as the squadron concentrated on targets in France. It supported the landings onD-Day and attackedcoastal defenses, airfields, rail lines and vehicles near the landings. It flewclose air support missions to assist British forces nearCaen in July and American forces nearBrest in September. It was withdrawn from combat on 6 August 1944, to convert to theBoeing B-17 Flying Fortress as the93d Combat Bombardment Wing transitioned to make the3d Bombardment Division an all B-17 unit.[2][7] While the group was transitioning aircraft, the492d Bombardment Group replaced the 801st Group in the Carpetbagger mission on 12 August. The 850th Squadron transferred its crews and B-24s to the 492d Group, and returned to the 490th on paper to be included in the change to the group's new bomber.[2][9]
Once transition to the B-17 was completed on 24 August, the squadron concentrated onstrategic bombing, attackingoil refineries,airfields,marshalling yards, and factories manufacturing aircraft and armored vehicles.[2] It participated in raids againstBerlin,Cologne,Hamburg,Hanover,Kassel,Merseburg andMünster.[2] The 490th flew its first mission with the B-17 on 27 August to Genshagen, Germany to attack theBMW engine factory although the mission was aborted due to weather.[10] On occasion, the squadron was diverted from the strategic bombing campaign. It attacked enemylines of communication during theBattle of the Bulge from December 1944 through January 1945. In the last month of the war in Europe, it carried outinterdiction missions to support advancing ground forces.[2] The squadron's last combat mission was flown on 20 April 1945.[7]
FollowingV-E Day, the squadron carried food to flooded areas of the Netherlands and transportedprisoners of war toAllied repatriation centers.[2] The air echelon began flying its planes back to the United States on 6 July 1945. The ground echelon sailed fromSouthampton on theRMS Queen Elizabeth on 26 August 1945.[7] The unit regrouped atDrew Field, Florida in September. It was inactivated there on 7 November 1945.[2]
A permanent memorial, situated near the old fuel dump on RAF Eye, was dedicated to the 490th Bombardment Group on 29 May 2016, in front of families of 490th veterans, current serving USAF personnel, and guest of honor, 490th veteran,Si Spiegel.[11] Also present at the unveiling were the family’s of 490th veterans, the local parish priest who blessed the memorial andNiles Schilder who read the poemHigh flight byJohn Gillespie Magee Jr.
| Campaign Streamer | Campaign | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Air Offensive, Europe | 28 April 1944 – 5 June 1944 | 490th Bombardment Group[2] |
| Air Combat, EAME Theater | 28 April 1944 – 11 May 1945 | 490th Bombardment Group[2] |
| Normandy | 6 June 1944 – 24 July 1944 | 490th Bombardment Group[2] |
| Northern France | 25 July 1944 – 14 September 1944 | 490th Bombardment Group[2] |
| Rhineland | 15 September 1944 – 21 March 1945 | 490th Bombardment Group[2] |
| Ardennes-Alsace | 16 December 1944 – 25 January 1945 | 490th Bombardment Group[2] |
| Central Europe | 22 March 1944 – 21 May 1945 | 490th Bombardment Group[2] |
Media related to490th Bombardment Group (United States Army Air Forces) at Wikimedia Commons
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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