| 57th Fighter Squadron | |
|---|---|
 57th Fighter-Interceptor SquadronF-15 Eagles over Iceland in 1986 | |
| Active | 1940–1944; 1947–1949; 1953–1995; 2024–Present |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Type | Fighter-Interceptor |
| Role | Air Defense |
| Part of | Air Combat Command |
| Nickname | Black Knights[1] |
| Equipment | F-35A Lightning II |
| Engagements | Asiatic-Pacific Theater American Theater of World War II |
| Decorations | Distinguished Unit CitationAir Force Outstanding Unit Award |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Lt. Col. Jonathan Hassell[2] |
| Insignia | |
| Patch with the 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron Emblem |  |
The57th Fighter Squadron (57 FS), also known as "The Black Knights", is an activeUnited States Air Force unit that is assigned to the85th Fighter Group. The squadron was reactivated atEbbing Air National Guard Base, Arkansas, on 2 July 2024 as anF-35A Lightning II training unit focused on NATO and Allied pilots.[3] Although located on anArkansas Air National Guard installation at a joint civil-military airport, the 57 FS is an active duty USAF command that functions as a geographically separated unit (GSU) of theAir Education and Training Command's (AETC)33rd Fighter Wing (33 FW) atEglin AFB, Florida.[4] The57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron (57 FIS) was previously stationed atNaval Air Station Keflavik,Iceland, between 1954 and 1995, from where it policed theGIUK gap.
Thesquadron was activated atHamilton Field, California as the57th Pursuit Squadron on 15 January 1941[5] as one of the three original squadrons of the54th Pursuit Group.[6] It trained withCurtiss P-36 Hawks andCurtiss P-40 Warhawks, then moved toEverett Army Air Field, Washington where it served as a part of theair defense force for the Pacific coast during the first few months ofWorld War II. It was formed with acadre from the35th Pursuit Group. The squadron was redesignated as afighter unit in May 1942.
On 20 June 1942, the air echelon of the 54th PG (now FG) took its P-40s and newly assignedBell P-39 Airacobras toElmendorf Field, Alaska, where it served in combat against the Japanese forces that invaded the Aleutian Islands during the summer of 1942.[7] The unit did not in itself take any part in the action against the Japanese in theAleutians, but a detachment of eleven of the pilots saw service with the 42d which was based atAdak Army Air Field, Alaska and between them got three confirmed victories and two probables.[citation needed] On 4 August 1942, the 57th was moved to Kodiak Adak AAF and there replaced the 42d. All its pilots were rotated to Adak to gain combat experience.[citation needed] Squadron pilots were credited with the destruction of three enemy aircraft while deployed to Alaska.[8]
The air echelon returned to the United States in December 1942 and rejoined the group, which had been assigned toThird Air Force in Louisiana, and became a replacement training unit (RTU) forNorth American P-51 Mustang pilots.[7] RTUs were oversized units training individualpilots oraircrews.[9] The unit's P-39s were to be flown toDuncan Field, Texas for depot-level overhaul.[citation needed] It was reequipped with the North AmericanP-51A Mustang, thereby becoming the first P-51 unit in the AAF.[citation needed]
In early May 1943, the 54th Fighter Group began a split operation, with headquarters and the56th and57th Fighter Squadrons relocating toBartow Army Air Field, Florida,[7][10][11] while the group's other squadron was atHillsborough Army Air Field.[12] However, theArmy Air Forces (AAF) was finding that standard military units, based on relatively inflexible tables of organization, were proving less well adapted to the training mission. Accordingly, a more functional system was adopted in which each base was organized into a separate numbered unit.[13] As a result, in 1944 the squadron was disbanded as the AAF converted to the AAF Base Unit system.[7] The units at Bartow were replaced by the 340th AAF Base Unit (Replacement Training Unit, Fighter),[14]
The unit was reactivated underAir Defense Command (ADC) on 24 March 1947 as anAir Force Reserve fighter squadron atDavis-Monthan Field, Arizona.[7] The unit was not fully manned or equipped. It was inactivated in June 1949[7] whenContinental Air Command reorganized its reserve units under theWing Base Organization system.
In March 1953, the squadron was reactivated as the57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, flyingNorthrop F-89 Scorpions.[15] It was activated atPresque Isle Air Force Base, Maine as the528th Air Defense Group's second operational squadron.[7] A second swap of units began when the82d Fighter Interceptor Squadron arrived from Iceland.[16][17] The 57th FIS then moved to Iceland and was reassigned away from the group in November of the same year.[7]
The 57th was reactivated as a regular squadron at Presque Isle AFB, Maine, on 20 March 1953 underAir Defense Command and designated the 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron.[7] It was equipped with NorthropF-89C Scorpion interceptors, and assigned to the528th Air Defense Group. It maintained a 24-hour alert at Presque Isle. The squadron was known as "Black Knights of Aroostook". While at Presque Isle, the unit was awarded two Presidential Unit Citations. The unit suffered several air crashes of F-89C aircraft resulting in loss of life. The unit later moved to Iceland.
On 12 November 1954, the 57th FIS moved toKeflavik Airport, Iceland, replacing the82d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron which was temporarily assigned fromLarson AFB, Washington. At Keflavik, the squadron was assigned toIceland Air Defense Force (IADF), a component ofMilitary Air Transport Service.
The 57th FIS at Keflavik was an interceptor squadron charged with the monitoring of theGreenland, Iceland, United Kingdom gap in the North Atlantic that formed a naval warfare choke point during theCold War. The 57th would respond alerts from Ground-Control Intercept (GCI) and warning stations established on Iceland; the GCI stations guiding its interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the radar scopes. Over 1,000 intercepts of Soviet aircraft took place inside Iceland's militaryair defense identification zone (ADIZ).
On 18 December 1955 MATS activated the 1400th Operations Group as the mission at Keflavik was expanded to accommodateTactical Air Command (TAC) andStrategic Air Command transient aircraft. In 1959, a retrenchment of USAF operations began, including the reduction of F-89 interceptors and ADC and SAC (tenant) activities.
Air Force activities at the airport were reorganized and IADF was redesignated Air Forces Iceland, which functioned at a Wing level on 1 July 1960. Shortly afterwards, the USAF transferred jurisdiction of Keflavik Airport to theUnited States Navy on 1 July 1961 which named itNaval Air Station Keflavik. The Air Force units at Keflavik operated in a tenant status with the 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron and two Aircraft Control and Warning Squadrons on 1 July 1961. The USAF facilities remained designated Keflavik Airport.
In 1962 ADC replaced the squadron's F-89s with newerConvair F-102 Delta Dagger supersonic interceptors, the F-89s generally being worn-out after nearly a decade of continual interceptions. Challenges by the 57th FIS to Soviet aircraft on flights over the North Atlantic and along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States to bases inCuba continued throughout the 1960s.
The firstMcDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II aircraft was assigned to the squadron on 16 April 1973, as TAC was replacing its F-102 Delta Dagger with F-4C models at the end of theVietnam War. By 30 June, the squadron had six F-4Cs and additional F-4s were received in the third quarter of 1974. The last of the F-102s were replaced in early 1975 when additional F-4Cs were received from TAC squadrons at Luke AFB and George AFB; the last F-4C arriving in March 1976.
In early 1978 preparations for the exchange of the F-4C for F-4Es were underway with the first two aircraft landing on 21 March. These aircraft were better equipped than the C models, with solid state radios and tactical navigation equipment, lead computing optical gunsight and ILS. Twelve aircraft arrived between April and July, and the last F-4Cs left on 14 June. On 1 August, one of the squadron's F-4Es[18] was taking off for a training mission to practice interceptions for the William Tell interceptor weapons meet as the number two ship in a formation. After a very long takeoff roll followed by difficulty in controlling pitch, the crew found the plane's outer wing panels were in the folded position. After the crew safely landed,[note 1] it was discovered that the wing fold locking lugs were retracted and as the Phantom's nose was lifted on takeoff, the outer wing panels had "gently lifted to their folded position and stayed there." The wing panels had apparently been unlocked when the plane was repainted fromTactical Air Command camouflage to ADC gray and had not been locked when the job was through,[19]
Four F-106 Delta Darts of the 87th FIS from K.I. Sawyer AFB, MI deployed to Keflavik in April 1978 to augment the 57th's alert capabilities during the "Black Knights" transition from F-4Cs to F-4Es. They occupied the open air flight line beside the alert shelters, and operated from this location for approximately a month, during which they made several successful intercepts against the Soviet "Bear" fleet.
On 1 October 1979 TAC absorbed ADC's assets, and theF-4E Phantom II aircraft of the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron. In 1982 the construction of hardened aircraft shelters was planned on the west end of the airfield and this construction started in 1983. The shelters were of a Norwegian design, with the doors opening inwards and fitting into a recess in the foundation, thus making the floor for the aircraft to taxi over. Thirteen shelters were constructed.
In 1984 it was announced that the 57th FIS was programmed to receive theMcDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. Initially, it was believed that the squadron would get the F-15A model, as that was the version going into the ANG units at that time, and the 57th had never been equipped with the most modern front-line aircraft in the USAF. It therefore came as a surprise that July 1985, that modern F-15Cs and F-15Ds replaced the aging F-4s, and the tail code "IS" was assigned to Air Forces Iceland (AFI).
On 1 June 1992,Air Combat Command (ACC) assumed command and control of AFI and the 57th FIS. Air Forces Iceland was inactivated on 31 May 1993. Activated in its place, assuming the mission previously carried out by AFI, was the35th Wing that was transferred from the closingGeorge Air Force Base, California. The change was part of the Air Force's "objective wing" plan. On 1 October 1993, an ACC realignment transferred administrative control of the 35th Fighter Wing fromFirst Air Force toEighth Air Force. However, the 35th would go through another major change less than two years after it was activated at Keflavik.
Because the 35th garnered the majority of its history in the Pacific theater during World War II, and in California since 1971 until its move to Iceland, it was decided to relocate the unit back to that area. Consequently, the 35th Fighter Wing was relieved of its assignment to ACC and transferred toMisawa Air Base, Japan, on 1 October 1994. To assume the mission at Keflavik, the85th Wing was activated on the same day.
The 85th Wing was a combination of the lineages and histories of the 85th Fighter-Bomber Group and the former Air Forces Iceland. This allowed the Air Force contingent in Iceland to keep alive its distinguished history in the foreign nation, while also retaining the history of a World War II flying unit.
Air Force reductions and a new agreement with the Government of Iceland continued to affect Keflavik organizations. On 1 March 1995, the 57th FS was inactivated and the interceptor force was replaced by Regular Air Force andAir National Guard F-15 Eagle fighter aircraft rotating every 90 days to Iceland until the USAF inactivated the 85th Group in 2002.
The 57th Fighter Squadron was reactivated, along with the 85th Fighter Group (85 FG), atEbbing Air National Guard Base, Arkansas, on 2 July 2024. As GSUs of the33rd Fighter Wing atEglin AFB, Florida, the 85 FG and 57 FS are tasked with training international pilots on theLockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II, starting with members of thePolish Air Force in September 2024.[20]
| Award streamer | Award | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Distinguished Unit Citation Alaska | (20 June) 1942-4 November 1942 | 57th Fighter Squadron[7] |
 | Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 April 1964-31 March 1966 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[21] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 April 1966-31 May 1967 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[21] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 June 1967-31 December 1968 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[21] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 January 1969-31 December 1969 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[22] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 January 1970-31 August 1970 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[22] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 July 1973-30 June 1975 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[22] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 July 1975-30 June 1976 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[23] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 July 1976-30 June 1978 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[23] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 1 July 1981-30 June 1982 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[23] |
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award | 31 October 1985-31 March 1987 | 57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron[23] |
| Campaign Streamer | Campaign | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Air Combat Asiatic-Pacific | 20 June 1942 – 21 December 1943 | 57th Fighter Squadron[7] |
.png) | American Theater | 7 December 1941 – 1 May 1944 | 57th Fighter Squadron[7] |
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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