The 182d Fighter Squadron is a unit of the Texas Air National Guard 149th Fighter Wing located at Kelly Field Annex, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas. The 149th is equipped with the F-16C/D Fighting Falcon.
It was first activated in June 1943 as The 396th Fighter Squadron, assigned to the 368th Fighter Group. After training in the United States, it moved to the European Theater of Operations, where it served in combat until the spring of 1945 with Ninth Air Force, earning a Distinguished Unit Citation and a Belgian Fourragère for its actions. Following V-E Day, the squadron served in the army of occupation at AAF Station Straubing, Germany until was inactivated on 20 August 1946 and transferred its personnel and equipment to another unit, which was activated in its place.
History World War II Organization and training The squadron was first organized at Westover Field, Massachusetts in June 1943 as the 396th Fighter Squadron, one of the original squadrons of the 368th Fighter Group. The squadron drew its initial cadre from the 326th Fighter Group, an Operational Training Unit at Westover. In June 1943, the cadre of the squadron travelled to Orlando Army Air Base for training at the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics.
The 396th trained with Republic P-47 Thunderbolts, moving to Farmingdale Army Air Field, New York to complete its training. The squadron and group left Farmingdale for the Port of Embarkation, Camp Myles Standish on 20 December 1943 and boarded the to sail for Great Britain on 29 December, arriving at the Firth of Clyde on 7 January 1944.Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 254-255
Combat in Europe
The squadron arrived at RAF Greenham Common on 13 January 1944. It began operations on 14 March, when it flew a fighter sweep over the coast of France. That was to be the unit's only mission from Greenham Common, for it moved the next day to RAF Chilbolton, as the 438th Troop Carrier Group moved into Greenham Common.Maurer, Combat Groups, p. 311 It made strafing and bombing attacks on transportation targets and flak batteries in preparation for Operation Overlord, the invasion of France. The squadron also participated in Operation Crossbow, attacking launch sites for V-1 flying bombs and V-2 rockets. On D-Day, the group supported the landing forces in Normandy.
Two weeks after the landings, it moved to Cardonville Airfield, an advanced landing ground in northern France and began operations from the Continent as an element of IX Tactical Air Command.Rust, p. 98 The squadron provided close air support for forces in the Battle of Cherbourg, which secured a vital port for further operations in France. It participated in the air operations that prepared the way for Operation Cobra, the Allied breakthrough at St Lo on 25 July, and supported ground forces during their drive across France. In early August, the squadron became part of XIX Tactical Air Command, which would concentrate on air support for General George S. Patton's Third United States Army.Rust, p. 99
By early September, fuel shortages were impacting both Third Army and XIX Tactical Air Command, slowing the Allied advance, and sometimes forcing fighter-bombers to land at forward bases to refuel.Rust, p. 111 On 3 September 1944, operating from Chartres Airfield, and in the face of "withering anti-aircraft and small arms fire," the squadron destroyed numerous motor transport vehicles, horse-drawn vehicles, and uncounted troops in the vicinity of Mons (Bergen), Belgium, also attacking as targets of opportunity enemy positions that obstructed the progress of Allied ground forces. For this action, the squadron was awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation.Rust, pp. 111-112 The squadron then moved closer to the front, arriving at Laon/Athies Airfield on 11 September. It was cited in the order of the day for the first time by the Belgian Army for the period from D-Day through the end of September.
The squadron continued its support of allied ground forces, participated in the assault against the Siegfried Line, and took part in the Battle of the Bulge from December 1944 through January 1945 by attacking rail lines and trains, marshalling yards, roads and vehicles, armored columns, and gun positions. It was cited in the order of the day for a second time by the Belgian Army for this support and awarded the Belgian Fourragère. The squadron continued operations with the Allied forces that pushed across the Rhine and into Germany until the end of the war. The last combat mission flown by the 368th Group was a fighter sweep near Prague on 5 May 1945.Rust, p. 173 The squadron ended the war credited with the destruction of 40 enemy aircraft.Newton & Senning, pp. 645-646.
Army of occupation After V-E Day, the unit served with the army of occupation, at AAF Station Straubing. On 20 August 1946, the 368th Group and its elements were inactivated and replaced at Straubing by the 78th Fighter Group. The squadron transferred it personnel and equipment to the 83d Fighter Squadron, which was simultaneously activated.Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 290-291Maurer, Combat Units, p. 143
Texas Air National Guard
The next day the squadron was redesignated as the 182d Fighter Squadron, and was allotted to the National Guard. It was organized at Brooks Field and was extended federal recognition on 27 January 1947 by the National Guard Bureau. The squadron was assigned to the Texas Air National Guard 136th Fighter Group and was equipped with F-51D Mustangs.
The mission of the squadron was the air defense of Texas. During the postwar years, the 182d primarily trained the Hill Country and west Texas; the 181st Fighter Squadron, based at Love Field, Dallas, covered north Texas, and the 111th Fighter Squadron, based at Houston Municipal Airport, covered east and southeast Texas to the Mexican Border.
Korean War Activation
As a result of the Korean War, the Texas Air National Guard was federalized and placed on active-duty status on 10 October 1950, being assigned to Ninth Air Force, Tactical Air Command (TAC). TAC ordered the 136th Fighter Group to Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, where the unit was redesignated to a fighter-bomber unit, and it was assigned to the new 136th Fighter-Bomber Wing. At Langley, the 136th Fighter-Bomber Group consisted of the 111th, 182d, and 154th Fighter-Bomber Squadrons (Arkansas ANG).
At Langley, the 136th trained with their F-51D Mustangs, uUnfortunately losing two 111th Squadron pilots in a training accident on 15 December. A third pilot was killed on 27 January 1951 in another accident. In February 1951, the aged F-51Ds that the unit had been flying since its activation in 1947 were replaced by F-84E Thunderjets, and the squadron began transition training on the jet fighter-bomber. Most of the training took place at Langley, although some pilots were sent to Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. Maintenance crews, all new to jet aircraft, were trained at Langley and engine specialists were sent to the Allison plant in Indianapolis. Assigned to the Arkansas ANG 154th FBS at the time was a Navy exchange pilot, future NASA astronaut Lieutenant Walter Schirra (who happened to be the only pilot assigned to the 136th at the time who was a qualified jet pilot).
In May 1951, less than seven months later, the wing was deployed to Japan, being attached to Far East Air Forces and stationed at Itazuke Air Force Base, the first echelon of the 136th arriving on 18 May. The 136th replaced the Strategic Air Command (SAC) 27th Fighter-Escort Wing, which had deployed to Far East Air Force in the early days of the Korean War. At Itazuke, the squadrons took over the F-84Es of the 27th, which remained in place, its aircraft being reassigned from SAC to Far East Air Forces. On 2 June, the final elements of the 136th arrived in Japan, the national guardsmen officially relieved the 27th Fighter Bomber Wing and the SAC airmen departed for the United States. The 136th was the first Air National Guard wing in history to enter combat.
From Japan the wing engaged in combat operations over South Korea, however flying in the North Pacific area was a challenge to the wing, losing seven F-84Es in non-combat operations and three in combat. On 26 June, in one of the largest air-to-air battles in Korea, two 182d, Captain Harry Underwood and 1st Lt Arthur Olighter shot down an enemy MiG-15 that broke through an F-86 Sabre escort of four B-29s. Two 111th Squadron pilots, 1sts Lt John Morse and John Marlins scored probables in the same encounter. These were the first combat victories by Air National Guard pilots. On 3 July the 136th sent their aircraft to North Korea, attacking FLAK batteries in downtown Pyongyang while other aircraft attacked North Korean airfields.
However, the short-legged F-84 had limited combat time over Korea, therefore on 16 November 1951 the wing moved to Taegu Air Force Base (K-2) in South Korea for its combat operations. In 1952, the 136th was re-equipped with the F-84G Thunderjet, designed for tactical close air support of ground forces.
During its time in combat, the 136th Wing flew 15,515 combat sorties; was credited with 4 enemy aircraft destroyed; 7 probables and 72 others damaged. It was the first ANG unit to down a MiG-15; it dropped 23,749 (7,120 tons) of bombs and expended over 3 million rounds of .50 caliber ammunition; being awarded Five Korean Campaign Ribbons. The 136th Fighter-Bomber Wing was released from active duty and returned to the United States on 10 July 1952
Air Defense Command
With the 182d's return from the Korean War, the squadron was re-equipped with the very long range F-51H Mustang, which had been developed to escort B-29 Superfortress bombers in the Pacific Theater from the Mariana Islands to the Japanese Home Islands. The F-51H would allow the squadron to intercept any unidentified aircraft over any part of Texas. The squadron became part of Air Defense Command (ADC) and resumed its postwar mission of Texas air defense. On 16 January 1955, four P-51s assigned to the 182d were sold to Costa Rica and sent immediately out of country to boost that small country's air arm in fighting a five-day-old rebellion. The fighters were dispatched from Kelly Air Force Base in a fully armed state. Fernando Fournier, the undersecretary of foreign affairs for Costa Rica, said it was his understanding that the Mustangs were sold for a dollar apiece.Associated Press, "Little Republic Buys Four P51s To Fight Rebels: OAS Approves Sale; Americans Ferrying Craft to San Jose", The San Bernardino Daily Sun, San Bernardino, California, Monday 17 January 1955, Volume LXI, Number 119, page 1.
It was not until August 1956 that the 182d received first-generation F-80C Shooting Star jets, replacing some of the last F-51H Mustangs in the USAF inventory. In 1957, the squadron was selected by the Air Defense Command to man a runway alert program on full 24-hour basis – with armed jet fighters ready to "scramble" at a moment's notice. This event brought the wing into the daily combat operational program of the USAF, placing them on "the end of the runway" alongside regular USAF-Air Defense Fighter Squadrons. The obsolescent F-80 day fighters were upgraded to the all-weather/day/night F-86D Sabre Interceptor by the end of the year. In June 1959 the squadron traded their F-86Ds for the upgraded F-86L Sabre Interceptor with uprated afterburning engines and new electronics.
In July 1960 the unit became one of the first to transition to the F-102A Delta Dagger Mach 1.2 all-weather interceptor and began a 24-hour alert to guard the Texas Gulf coast. The 182d enjoyed the distinction of being the first F-102 "Deuce" squadron in the Air National Guard.