| 394th Combat Training Squadron | |
|---|---|
 B-2 and T-38 aircraft of the 394th Combat Training Squadron flanked by an A-10 of the Air Force Reserve's 442nd Fighter Wing and an AH-1 of the Missouri Army National Guard | |
| Active | 1917–1919; 1919–1946; 1996–2018 |
| Country | United States of America |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Role | Training |
| Part of | 509th Operations Group |
| Garrison/HQ | Whiteman AFB |
| Engagements | World War II: Central Pacific; Guadalcanal; New Guinea; Northern Solomons; Eastern Mandates; Bismarck Archipelago; Western Pacific; Leyte; Luzon; Southern Philippines; China Offensive; Air Combat, Asiatic-Pacific |
| Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation |
| Insignia | |
| 394th Combat Training Squadron emblem |  |
The394th Combat Training Squadron was aUnited States Air Force unit assigned to the509th Operations Group until inactivated on 13 April 2018. It was stationed atWhiteman Air Force Base, Missouri. The mission of the squadron was to trainNorthrop Grumman B-2 Spirit aircrews, a mission now executed by the13th Bomb Squadron. The 394th is the fourth oldest squadron in the United States Air Force. Its history dated to 5 May 1917 as the 4th Aero Squadron.
The 394th Combat Training Squadron provided the 509th Bomb Wing with qualified, mission-ready B-2 andNorthrop T-38 Talon pilots to support worldwide Joint Chiefs of Staff taskings until its inactivation in 2018. The 394th was also responsible for implementing all B-2 and T-38 formal training courses. The unit supervised and oversaw all T-38 operations and performed quality assurance for all maintenance and aircrew training devices, including weapon system trainers. Upon the 394th Combat Training Squadron's inactivation in 2018, its mission and responsibilities were transferred to the 13th Bomb Squadron.
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The squadron was originally activated as the4th Aero Squadron on 5 May 1917 duringWorld War I atDodd Field Texas. but within a month was transferred toKelly Field. The unit remained there until 24 September 1917 when it transferred toPost Field, onFort Sill, Oklahoma. During World War I, the 4th operated as an observer training unit for the Army field artillery training school at Fort Sill.[1] The squadron's pilots began flying the Curtiss R-4 (an Air Service racer), theCurtiss JN-4, andCurtiss JN-6(multi-purpose aircraft that were outfitted for a variety of duties). The unit remained in Oklahoma until 2 January 1919 the unit was demobilized[2] when all flying squadrons at Post were consolidated into the Flying School Detachment, Post Field.
After World War I the second predecessor of the unit, also named the4th Aero Squadron was activated atHazelhurst Field, New York, on 23 June 1919 and after reorganization moved to its permanent station in Hawaii on 8 January 1920 The squadron stayed there throughout the 1920s and 1930s as part of theHawaiian Department.
On 14 March 1921, the unit became known as the4th Squadron (Observation). Less than two years later, on 25 January 1923, the Army Air Service renamed the unit the 4th Observations Squadron. During this period, the squadron took to building airfields. A lieutenant and twenty enlisted persons from the 4th began construction ofWheeler Field. Within a month, the group had completed the landing strip. The Hawaiian era also found the 4th moving several times. The squadron transferred toSchofield Barracks (6 February 1922), back to Luke Field (onFord Island) (11 January 1927), and toHickam Field (1 January 1939). The squadron originally reported directly to the Hawaiian Department, but was assigned to the5th Composite Group (later, 5th Bombardment Group). During its Hawaiian days, the squadron was involved in an unusual mission. In 1926 it sowed seeds from the air for the U.S. Forestry Division.[2]
In the late 1930s and early 1940s, the squadron received three more name changes as well as new aircraft. On 25 January 1935 long range observation units that were part ofGeneral Headquarters Air Force became reconnaissance squadrons, and the Army Air Corps renamed the unit the4th Reconnaissance Squadron. Later, on 6 December 1939, the unit became the4th Reconnaissance Squadron (Medium Range) and, on 20 November 1940, the organization became the4th Reconnaissance Squadron (Heavy). The squadron also received new aircraft to accompany its new name. In 1938, the squadron began operating with theDouglas B-18 Bolo medium bomber.[2] In 1938, the 5th Composite Group became the 5th Bombardment Group, and the squadron was relieved from assignment to the group, However, followingGeneral Headquarters Air Force policy that each bombardment group would be assigned a long range reconnaissance squadron, the 4th was attached to the group.[3]
The squadron suffered devastating casualties and equipment damage during theJapanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hickam Field and other targets on the island of Oahu on 7 December 1941. For weeks after the attack, the squadron responded by patrolling the area around Hawaii to prevent another attack. The 4th also began gearing up for combat when it received its firstBoeing B-17 Flying Fortress. The unit also had severalLB-30 Liberators assigned at this time and was redesignated the394th Bombardment Squadron.[2]
The squadron left Hawaii in November 1942 and operated in theSouth Pacific Theater with a mix of B-17C/D Flying Fortresses and early LB-30 aircraft. It converted to very long-range Liberators in 1943 when the B-17s were withdrawn from combat in the Pacific and sent to Egypt for use in theWestern Desert Campaign. It served in combat during the Allied drive from the Solomons to thePhilippines. The unit flew long patrol and photographic missions over the Solomon Islands and theCoral Sea, attacked Japanese shipping offGuadalcanal, and raided airfields in the northern Solomons until August 1943. It then struck enemy bases and installations onBougainville,New Britain, andNew Ireland.
The squadron raided the heavily defended Japanese base onWoleai during April and May 1944 and received aDistinguished Unit Citation for the action. It helped to neutralize enemy bases onYap and in theTruk andPalau Islands in June through August 1944, preparatory to the invasion ofPeleliu andLeyte. The 394th flew missions to theNetherlands Indies. Completed a variety of missions from October 1944 until the end of the war, these operations including raids on enemy bases and installations onLuzon,Ceram,Halmahera, andFormosa; support for ground forces in thePhilippines andBorneo; and patrols off theChina coast. Moved toClark Field, Philippines where it was inactivated on 29 April 1946.
For the next 41 years, the 394th waited for the chance to serve again. That opportunity arose in 1996 when the Air Force redesignated the squadron as the394th Combat Training Squadron and turned it over toAir Combat Command for activation. On 7 November 1996, the squadron was activated atWhiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, as part of the 509th Operations Group of the509th Bomb Wing.[2]
Since then, the 394th has supported the 509th in a myriad of ways includingOperation Allied Force. From 23 March through 22 May 1999, the squadron sent its aircrews and aircraft almost nightly into harm’s way attempting to end the strife in theKosovo region.[2]
Members of the 394th participated inOperation Enduring Freedom by flying the first of a series of long duration missions. Two B-2s, theSpirit of Georgia and theSpirit of America, departed Whiteman on 7 October 2001, bombed targets in Afghanistan, and then went on to land at a forward location following missions lasting 40.3 and 44.3 hours, respectively. Following engine running crew changes, the B-2s and crews returned to Whiteman on 9 October after sorties lasting 29 hours each for the two bombers. Total engine run time for the two B-2s was 69.3 and 73.3 hours, respectively. The sortie accomplished in theSpirit of America (73.3 hours) was the longest combat sortie in the history of the Air Force to date.[2]
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This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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