| 335th Bombardment Group (later 335th Air Refueling Wing) | |
|---|---|
 B-26 Marauder as flown by the group | |
| Active | 1942-1944 |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Role | medium bomber training |
| Mottos | Fidus et FortisLatin Faithful and Strong |
| Insignia | |
| 335th Bombardment Group emblem[note 1][1] |  |
The335th Air Refueling Wing is an inactiveUnited States Air Force unit. The group was active atBarksdale Field, Louisiana from July 1942 as a training unit formedium bomberaircrews. It was disbanded in May 1944, when theArmy Air Forces reorganized its training and support units in the United States. The group was reconstituted in 1985 as the335th Air Refueling Wing, but has not been active since then.
The335th Bombardment Group was activated on 17 July 1942 atBarksdale Field, Louisiana. Its original components were the474th, 475th,476th and477th Bombardment Squadrons, and thegroup was equipped withMartin B-26 Marauders. It became part ofThird Air Force, which was responsible for the majority ofmedium bomber training for theArmy Air Forces (AAF).[1][2][3][4][5] The group drew itscadre from the17th Bombardment Group,[6] which was in the process of converting to the B-26 from theNorth American B-25 Mitchell.[7]
The 355th acted as aReplacement Training Unit (RTU) for the B-26. The RTU was an oversized unit which trained individualpilots andaircrews, after which they would be assigned to operational units.[5] However, the AAF found that standard military units, whose manning was based on relatively inflexibletables of organization were not well adapted to the training mission. Accordingly, it adopted a more functional system in which each base was organized into a separate numbered unit, manned according to the base's specific needs.[8] As this reorganization was implemented in the spring of 1944, he 335th Group, its components and supporting units at Barksdale, were disbanded on 1 May and replaced by the 331st AAF Base Unit (Medium, Bombardment). Groupheadquarters became Section N of the new base unit, while the four squadrons became Sections O, P, T and U. The reorganization also resulted in the addition of Section F, which trainedFree French aviators on the Marauder.[1][6][9]
The group was reconstituted in inactive status on 31 July 1985 and designated the335th Air Refueling Wing.[10] In addition, three of the group's four squadrons were consolidated with post-warfighter squadrons.[11]
| Service Streamer | Campaign | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
.png) | American Theater without inscription | 17 July 1942 – 1 May 1944 | 335th Bombardment Group[1] |
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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