The 340th Flying Training Group is a reserve component of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the Twenty-Second Air Force of Air Force Reserve Command, at Randolph Air Force Base, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas. The group is the headquarters for reserve flying training squadrons that are associate squadrons of Air Education and Training Command flying training squadrons.
The group's first predecessor is the 340th Bombardment Group. After training in the United States, the group deployed to the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, where it flew North American B-25 Mitchell medium bombers, primarily on air support and air interdiction missions, earning two Distinguished Unit Citations for its actions. After V-E Day, the group returned to the United States, where it was inactivated in November 1945.
The group was again active in the reserve from 1947 to 1949, but does not appear to have been fully manned or equipped with operational aircraft during this period. It was again organized in July 1968 at Carswell Air Force Base, Texas, where it conducted crew training on the General Dynamics FB-111 until inactivating in December 1971 as the bomber version of the "Aardvark" was deployed to other operational squadrons. In June 1977, the group was redesignated the 340th Air Refueling Group and activated with Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers.
The second predecessor of the group was activated in October 1952 as the 340th Bombardment Wing as the Air Force reopened Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri. It flew Boeing B-47 Stratojets at Whiteman until September 1963, as the B-47 began to be withdrawn from Strategic Air Command operations. It was not inactivated with the withdrawal of its Stratojets. but moved on paper to Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas, where it absorbed the Boeing B-52 Stratofortresses of the 4130th Strategic Wing, which was discontinued. The wing operated the B-52 until 1966, when it was inactivated as older model B-52s were withdrawn from service. It remained inactive until 1982, when it was consolidated with the 340th Air Refueling Group. The consolidated unit was expanded to become the 340th Air Refueling Wing in 1984 and continued the air refueling mission until it was inactivated in 1992, as Air Mobility Command reorganized its refueling force. It was activated in its current role in 1998.
Mission The 340th administers and executes the Air Education and Training Command and Air Force Reserve Command Associate Instructor Pilot Program and provides Active Guard Reserve and Traditional Reserve instructor pilots to augment the cadre of active duty pilots conducting pilot training.
Units The Group consists of a headquarters element at Randolph Air Force Base and five Associate Reserve Flying Training Squadrons flying the T-38/AT-38, T-1, and T-6. 5th Flying Training Squadron at Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma 39th Flying Training Squadron at Joint Base San Antonio, Texas 43rd Flying Training Squadron at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi 70th Flying Training Squadron at United States Air Force Academy, Colorado 96th Flying Training Squadron at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas 97th Flying Training Squadron at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas 487th Training Squadron at Joint Base San Antonio, Texas
History World War II
The 340th Bombardment Group was a World War II United States Army Air Forces combat organization. It served primarily in the Mediterranean Theater of World War II. From August 1942 to November 1945 it controlled 4 operational squadrons: the 486th, 487th, 488th, & 489th Bombardment Squadrons utilizing the North American North American B-25 Mitchell medium bomber.
The unit was constituted as 340th Bombardment Group (Medium) on 10 August 1942 and was activated on 20 August. It trained with B-25 Mitchell bombers for duty overseas. It arrived in the Mediterranean theater in March 1943. It was assigned first to Ninth Air Force, and in August 1943 to Twelfth Air Force when the Ninth moved to England.
The 340th served in combat from April 1943 to April 1945. Engaged chiefly in air support and air interdiction missions, but sometimes bombed strategic objectives. Targets included airfields, railroads, bridges, road junctions, supply depots, gun emplacements, troop concentrations, marshalling yards, and factories in Tunisia, Sicily, Italy, France, Austria, Bulgaria, Albania, Yugoslavia, and Greece.
it also dropped propaganda leaflets behind enemy lines. Participated in the reduction of Pantelleria and Lampedusa in June 1943, the bombing of German evacuation beaches near Messina in July, the establishment of the Salerno beachhead in September, the drive for Rome during January to June 1944, Operation Dragoon, the invasion of Southern France in August, and attacks on the Brenner Pass and other German lines of communication in northern Italy from September 1944 to April 1945.
In January 1944, Colonel Charles D. Jones was the commanding officer of the 340th Bombardment Group. On 10 March 1944, while participating in a bombing mission with the 486th Bombardment Squadron, he was shot down and became a prisoner of war for the remainder of the war. Colonel Jones later received the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for this mission.Casper, Jack and Ver Keljik, Eds., 489th Bomb Squadron Book, 1947.
The 340th Group probably suffered the loss of more aircraft than any other medium bomber group during World War II primarily because of two devastating events that occurred in addition to their combat losses. The first of these events was the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in March 1944 when the 340th was based at Pompeii Airfield near Terzigno, Italy, just a few kilometers from the base of the mountain. The second event was a surprise German air raid of their base at Alesani Airfield, Corsica on 13 May 1944. Estimated losses were 75–88 B-25 Mitchells from Vesuvius and approximately 60 aircraft from the German air raid.
The 340th Received a Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC) for the period April–August 1943 when, although handicapped by difficult living conditions and unfavorable weather, the group supported the British Eighth Army in Tunisia and Allied forces in Sicily. A second DUC was received for the destruction of the Italian cruiser Taranto in the heavily defended harbor of La Spezia on 23 September 1944 before the ship could be used by the enemy to block the harbor's entrance.
With the end of the war in Europe, the 340th returned to the United States during July–August 1945. It was inactivated on 7 November 1945 at Columbia Army Air Base, South Carolina.
Air reserve service The unit was reactivated and trained in the reserves from October 1947 to August 1949 at Tulsa Municipal Airport, Oklahoma. It was inactivated in 1949 as the reduced defense budget required the reduction of the number of groups in the United States Air Force
Strategic Air Command B-47 Stratojet era The United States Air Force established the 340th Bombardment Wing, and activated it on 20 October 1952 at Sedalia Air Force Base, Missouri. Three of the 320th Bombardment Group's was squadrons, the 486th, 487th and 488th Bombardment Squadrons were assigned. The 320th was assigned to Second Air Force.
The 340th replaced and absorbed the resources of the 4224th Air Base Squadron. Sedalia at the time was undergoing a massive modernization program, from its World War II configuration of temporary buildings and short runways designed for glider and pilot training to that of a modern, permanent air force base. The wing devoted its efforts to supervising base rehabilitation and new construction until May 1954, This was done by the 340th Air Base Group. The wing headquarters, tactical and maintenance squadrons had minimum manning during this period and were basically "paper" units.
The Wing received its first Boeing B-47 Stratojet in March 1954 and on 1 July 1955, was declared combat ready. The 340th Air Refueling Squadron, flying with Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighters was also assigned to the wing, but was detached to the 93d Bombardment Wing at Castle Air Force Base, California. On 3 December 1955, Sedalia Air Force Base was renamed Whiteman Air Force Base.
The 340th achieved recognition as one of Strategic Air Command (SAC)'s first units to reorganize under the dual deputy organization. It tested the feasibility of assigning Aviation Depot Squadron functions to the Deputy Commander for Maintenance. SAC later adopted the plan and accomplished a command-wide change which included the formation of Munitions Maintenance Squadrons. Until 1960, the 340th played a key role in SAC's mission of strategic deterrence. From 1961 to 1963, the 34th Air Refueling Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska was assigned to the 340th and operated the Operation Looking Glass SAC's Airborne Command Post with KC-135's.
By 1962 the B-47 was being programmed for retirement as it was believed that it could not penetrate the air defenses of the Soviet Union. The wing began phasing down and sent its aircraft to other SAC wings or to flyable storage at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. The 340th transferred host responsibilities for Whiteman to the incoming 351st Strategic Missile Wing. On 1 September 1963 the 340th moved without personnel or equipment to Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas and became a heavy bomber wing, replacing the 4130th Strategic Wing.
B-52 Stratofortress era Background
On 1 October 1958 SAC established the 4130th Strategic Wing at Bergstrom as part of SAC's plan to disperse its Boeing B-52 Stratofortress heavy 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 and assigned it to the 19th Air Division. The wing also assumed host base responsibilities as Bergstrom transferred from Tactical Air Command (TAC) to SAC.Mueller, pp. 29–34 Two weeks later the 910th Air Refueling Squadron, flying Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers was activated and assigned to the wing. The wing became fully operational in January 1959 when the 335th Bombardment Squadron, consisting of 15 B-52s moved to Bergstrom from Biggs Air Force Base, Texas where it had been one of the three squadrons of the 97th Bombardment WingMaurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 413–414 and the 50th Aviation Depot Squadron was activated to oversee the wing's special weapons. Starting in 1960, one third of the wing's aircraft were maintained on fifteen-minute alert, fully fueled, armed and ready for combat to reduce vulnerability to a Soviet missile strike. This was increased to half the wing's aircraft in 1962. The 4130th (and later the 340th) continued to maintain an alert commitment until the wing inactivated in 1966. In 1962, the wing's bombers began to be equipped with the GAM-77 Hound Dog and the GAM-72 Quail air-launched cruise missiles, The 4130th Airborne Missile Maintenance Squadron was activated in November to maintain these missiles. On 1 July 1963 the wing was reassigned to the 4th Air Division.
However, SAC strategic wings could not carry a permanent history or lineage and SAC looked for a way to make its strategic wings permanent. In 1962, in order to perpetuate the lineage of bombardment units with illustrious World War II records, Headquarters SAC received authority from Headquarters USAF to discontinue its Major Command controlled (MAJCON) strategic wings that were equipped with combat aircraft and to activate USAF controlled (AFCON) units, most of which were inactive at the time which could carry a lineage and history.
Replacement of strategic wing