| 917th Air Refueling Squadron | |
|---|---|
%2c_USA_-_Air_Force_AN1142854.jpg) | |
| Active | 1943; 1944–1947; 1958–1994 |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Role | Air Refueling |
| Motto | Ante Optimas (Latin for 'Before the Best')[b] (After 1958) |
| Decorations | Air Force Outstanding Unit Award |
| Insignia | |
| 617th Bombardment Squadron emblem[c][1] |  |
| 917th Air Refueling Squadron emblem |  |
The917th Air Refueling Squadron is an inactiveUnited States Air Force unit. It was last active as a Geographically Separated Unit atDyess Air Force Base, Texas, while assigned to the43d Operations Group atMalmstrom Air Force Base, Montana, where it was inactivated on 1 July 1994.
The squadron was first activated in 1943 as the617th Bombardment Squadron, one of the four squadrons of the477th Bombardment Group, but the squadron was soon inactivated. In 1944 the group was again activated as the first (and only)bombardment group in theUnited States Army Air Forces to include black pilots. Members of the squadron participated in theFreeman Field Mutiny, protestingracial segregation in the military. The squadron was inactivated in 1945 after the 477th became a composite group that includedbombardment andfighter squadrons.
In May 1959, the917th Air Refueling Squadron was activated atBiggs Air Force Base, Texas. Beginning in 1960, the squadron began to standalert with itsBoeing KC-135A Stratotankers. It continued to maintain an alert commitment at Biggs, and later atDyess Air Force Base, Texas until the end of theCold War.
On 19 September 1985, The 917th Air Refueling Squadron was consolidated with the 617th Bombardment Squadron. With the inactivation ofStrategic Air Command in 1992, the squadron transferred toAir Mobility Command, but two years later it was inactivated.
The617th Bombardment Squadron was activated in June 1943 atMacDill Field, Florida.[1] as one of the four originalsquadrons of the477th Bombardment Group,[2] but was never fully manned[3] and was inactivated in August.[1]
The 477th group was reactivated in January 1944 atSelfridge Field, Michigan as the "first colored bombardment group in theArmy Air Forces" with personnel drawn from Selfridge and fromTuskegee Army Air Field, Alabama.[4] It was the second combat group to be activated with African American personnel and would be the only African-American bombardment group.[5] The group moved toGodman Field, Kentucky, just after 617th was activated in April.[1] The unit encountered problems attributed to the lack of experienced personnel, which required even basic training in military occupational specialties to be conducted within the unit, rather than at technical training schools.[6]
Although designated a "colored" squadron, some officers, including the squadron leadership were white. The initial commander of the 477th group enforced racial segregation on the posts where the squadron was stationed. The squadron's members were involved in the civil rights action referred to as theFreeman Field Mutiny; the "mutiny" came about when African-American aviators became outraged enough byracial segregation in the military that they resorted to mass insistence that military regulations prohibiting discrimination be enforced. The Freeman Field Mutiny was a crucial event in the African-American struggle for equal civil rights.[7]
In 1945 after the 477th became a composite group formed of the99th Fighter Squadron and the 617th Bombardment Squadron,[8] ColonelBenjamin O. Davis, Jr., a black officer, assumed command of the group. The squadron was inactivated in 1947 when the 477th was replaced by the332d Fighter Group.[2][9]
The917th Air Refueling Squadron was activated on 1 May 1959 byStrategic Air Command (SAC) atBiggs Air Force Base, Texas and equipped withKC-135 Stratotankers. This was part of SAC's program to disperse itsBoeing B-52 Stratofortress bombers over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike.[10] When the squadron was activated, the 95th wing was in the process of converting from theConvair B-36 Peacemaker to the B-52 and the 917th's tankers were briefly the only operational aircraft assigned to the wing.[11] Starting in 1960, one third of the squadron's aircraft were maintained on fifteen-minutealert, fully fueled and ready for combat to reduce vulnerability to a Soviet missile strike. This was increased to half the squadron's aircraft in 1962.[12] The 917th continued to maintain an alert commitment when not deployed until the end of theCold War.[13]
The squadron mission was to provide air refueling to theB-52 Stratofortress strategic bombers of its parent95th Bombardment Wing and other USAF units as directed. This included support forOperation Chrome Dome missions.[14] The squadron was also tasked from time to time to perform other missions, including emergencyaeromedical evacuation flights.[15] In its first year of operation, the squadron was named the best refueling unit in SAC at the annual bombing/navigation competition.[16] The squadron supported reflex deployments to forward Tanker Task Forces beginning in 1960,[17] including deployments toEielson Air Force Base, Alaska and the Alaskan Task Force.[18] The squadron also supported the European and Pacific Tanker Task Forces.[19] During theVietnam War, the squadron deployed to the Pacific to supportOperation Arc Light and the Young Tiger Task Force.[20]
In 1965, the431st Air Refueling Squadron, aTactical Air Command unit stationed at Biggs and flyingBoeing KB-50J Superfortress aircraft was inactivated. To accommodate the loss of refueling capability caused by the inactivation of the 421st, the 917th's strength was increased by five additional KC-135As.[14]
SAC had planned to move the squadron from Biggs almost as soon as it was activated. In 1960, plans were made to move the unit toGrand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, then toGlasgow Air Force Base, Montana.[17][21] In 1961, it was to be moved toMarch Air Force Base, California.[22] But each move was cancelled and the unit remained at Biggs. Finally, at the beginning of 1965, the 917th moved toDyess Air Force Base, Texas[23] and fifteen days later was reassigned to the96th Strategic Aerospace Wing.[24] The squadron remained at Dyess until 1994 when the squadron's KC-135As were retired.[25]
In 1985, the 96th wing converted from the B-52 to theB-1B Lancer and the unit focused on training on techniques for refueling the new bomber.[26] Later that year, the917th Air Refueling Squadron and the617th Bombardment Squadron were consolidated.[27]
Six of the squadron's aircraft and associated crews deployed to Southwest Asia in the fall of 1990 to supportOperation Desert Shield.[28]
In September 1991 SAC implemented the Objective Wing reorganization and the wing's operational squadrons, including the 917th, were assigned to the96th Operations Group.[13] The assignment lasted only until June 1992, whenAir Mobility Command took over the air refueling mission from SAC, and the squadron was reassigned to the43d Operations Group, which was located atMalmstrom Air Force Base, Montana,[29] although the squadron remained at Dyess until 1994, when it was inactivated.[30]
617th Bombardment Squadron
917th Air Refueling Squadron
| Award streamer | Award | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 July 1974 – 30 June 1975 | 917th Air Refueling Squadron[33] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 June 1987 – 30 June 1988 | 917th Air Refueling Squadron[34] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 30 May 1990 – 29 May 1992 | 917th Air Refueling Squadron[34] |
| Campaign Streamer | Campaign | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
.png) | American Theater without inscription | 1 June 1943 – 25 August 1943, 15 May 1944 – 2 March 1946 | 617th Bombardment Squadron[1] |
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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