34th Training Wing

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name=34th Training Wing


caption=
dates= 20 November 1940 — present
country=United States
allegiance=
branch=Air Force
type=Training
role=
size=
command_structure=United States Air Force Academy
current_commander=
garrison=Air Force Academy
ceremonial_chief=
colonel_of_the_regiment=
nickname=
patron=
motto=
colors=
identification_symbol=
march=
mascot=The Bird
battles=
notable_commanders= Patrick K. Gamble
anniversaries=
decorations=Air Force Outstanding Unit Award
battle_honours=

The 34th Training Wing (34 TRW) is a wing of the United States Air Force based at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Mission

To educate and train potential United States Air Force officers.

History

Lineage

*34th Bombardment Group (1940 – 1945)
*34th Tactical Group (1963 – 1965)
*34th Training Wing (1994 – Present)

tations assigned

*Langley Field, Virginia (1941)
*Westover Field, Massachusetts (1941 - 1942)
*Pendleton Field, Oregon (1942)
*Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona (1942)
*Geiger Field, Washington (1942)
*Ephrata, Washington (1942)
*Blythe, California (1942 - 1944)
*RAF Mendlesham, England (1944 - 1945)
*Sioux Falls Field, South Dakota (1945)
*Bien Hoa Air Base, South Vietnam (1963 - 1965)
*United States Air Force Academy, Colorado (1994 - Present)

Aircraft operated

*B-17 Flying Fortress (1941 – 1942, 1944 – 1945)
*B-18 Bolo (1941)
*B-24 Liberator (1942 – 1944)
*B-26 Invader (1963 – 1964)
*B-57 Canberra (1964 – 1965)
*O-1 Bird Dog (1963 – 1965)
*U-10 Super Courier (1963 – 1965)
*T-28 Trojan (1963 – 1964)
*C-47 Skytrain (1963 – 1965)
*A-1 Skyraider (1964 – 1965)

World War II

The 34th Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated on 15 January 1941, almost a year before American entry into World War II. The group was the first B-17 equipped unit in the U.S. Army Air Corps and was created to prepare the nation for possible combat in Europe. [http://www.usafa.af.mil/df/dfmi/history.cfm]

The 34th flew patrol missions along the east coast after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. It served as a replacement training unit from mid-1942 until the end of 1943, and then prepared for overseas duty with B-24s.

The group moved to RAF Mendlesham England in April 1944 and entered combat on 23 May 1944. The 34th was assigned to the 93d Combat Bombardment Wing, and the group tail code was a "Square-S". It's operational squadrons were:

* 4th Bomb Squadron (Q6)
* 7th Bomb Squadron (R2)
* 18th Bomb Squadron (8I)
* 391st Bomb Squadron (3L)

The group flew both B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberators as part of the Eighth Air Force's strategic bombing campaign. The 34th flew 170 operations from the station, the first sixty-two while flying B-24 Liberators and the remainder with B-17G Fortresses. The change-over was made during the summer of 1.944 when, in common with other groups assigned to the 93rd Combat Wing, the 3rd Division standardised on the Fortress. The group helped to prepare for the invasion of Normandy by bombing airfields in France and Germany, and supported the landing in June by attacking coastal defences and communications. Continued to take part in the campaign in France by supporting ground forces at St Lo, 24-25 Jul, and by striking V-weapon sites, gun emplacements, and supply lines throughout the summer of 1944.

The group converted to B-17's in September 1944 and engaged primarily in bombardment of strategic objectives from October 1944 to February 1945. Targets included marshalling yards in Ludwigshafen, Hamm, Osnabruck, and Darmstadt; oil centres in Bielefeld, Merseburg] , Hamburg, and Misburg; factories in Berlin, Dalteln, and Hannover; and airfields in Münster, Neumünster, and Frankfurt. During this period the group also supported ground forces during the Battle of the Bulge, Dec 1944-Jan 1945. In March 1945, with few industrial targets remaining and with Allied armies advancing across Germany, the 34th turned almost solely to interdicting enemy communications and supporting Allied ground forces.

After V-E Day it carried food to flooded areas of Holland and transported prisoners of war from German camps to Allied centres. The 34th Bomb Group returned to Sioux Falls AAF South Dakota on 28 August 1945 and was deactivated.

Cold War

The 34th was reactivated in July 1963 as the 34th Tactical Group to train Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) personnel in counter-insurgency operations. It provided training for RVNAF strike pilots, forward air controllers, and observers. The 34th also flew a variety of combat missions, including close air support, escort and interdiction, psychological warfare, aerial supply, forward air control and tactical liaison. The group pioneered tactical weapons and munitions, such as the A-1 Skyraider, the minigun, the daisycutter, and the gunship. Aircrews of the 1st Air Commando Squadron performed the first combat tests of the FC-47 gunship beginning December 1964. The 6251st Tactical Fighter Wing replaced the group in July 1965, and the 34th was again deactivated.

Post Cold War

In late 1994, the 34th Training Wing was activated to encompass the Commandant of Cadets at the United States Air Force Academy as the administrative organization responsible for cadet leadership and military training programs, instruction in military and airmanship courses, and general supervision of cadet life activities.

References

* Freeman, Roger A. (1978) Airfields of the Eighth: Then and Now. After the Battle ISBN 0900913096
* Freeman, Roger A. (1991) The Mighty Eighth The Colour Record. Cassell & Co. ISBN 0-304-35708-1
* Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0892010924.

External links