359th Fighter Group

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= 359th Fighter Group


caption= 359th Fighter Group Insignia
dates= 1943 - 1945
country= United States
allegiance=
branch= United States Army Air Forces
type=
role= Fighter
size=
command_structure= Eighth Air Force
current_commander=
garrison= European Theatre of World War II
ceremonial_chief=
colonel_of_the_regiment=
nickname=
patron=
motto=
colors=
march=
mascot=
battles=
anniversaries=The 359th Fighter Group was a World War II United States Army Air Forces combat organization. It served primarily in the European Theatre of World War II.

History

Operational Units

* 368th Fighter Squadron (CV)
* 369th Fighter Squadron (IV)
* 370th Fighter Squadron (CS)

Aircraft Flown

* Republic P-47 Thunderbolt
* North American P-51 Mustang

Stations assigned

* Westover Field, MA 15 Jan 1943
* Grenier Field, NH 7 Apr 1943
* Republic Field, NY 11 Jul 1943
* Westover Field, MA 23 Aug-2 Oct 1943
* RAF East Wretham, England Oct 1943-Nov 1945 133
* Camp Kilmer, NJ 9-10 Nov 1945

Operational history

World War II

Constituted as 359th Fighter Group on 20 Dec 1942. Activated on 15 Jan 1943. Apparently not manned until Mar 1943. Moved to RAF East Wretham England in Oct 1943 and became part of Eighth Air Force. The group was under the command of the 67th Fighter Wing of the VIII Fighter Command.

The 359th FG entered combat in mid-December 1943 after some of the pilots had already flown combat missions with another fighter group. Began operations with P-47's, later converting to P-51's in April 1944. In combat the group flew escort, patrol, strafing, dive-bombing, and weather-reconnaissance missions. At first, engaged primarily in escort activities to cover B-17/B-24 bombers that attacked airfields in France, and later expanded their area of operations to provide escort for bombers that struck rail centers in Germany and oil targets in Poland.

The group supported the invasion of Normandy during June 1944 by patrolling the English Channel, escorting bombardment formations to the French coast, and dive-bombing and strafing bridges, locomotives, and rail lines near the battle area.

During the period July 1944 - February 1945, the group engaged chiefly in escorting bombers to oil refineries, marshalling yards, and other targets in such cities as Ludwigshafen, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Berlin, Merseburg, and Brux. The 359th FG received a Distinguished Unit Citation for operations over Germany on 11 September 1944 when the group protected a formation of heavy bombers against large numbers of enemy fighters.

In addition to its escort duties, the 359th supported campaigns in France during July and August 1944, bombed enemy positions to support the airborne invasion of Holland in September, and participated in the Battle of the Bulge (Dec 1944-Jan 1945). The group flew missions to support the assault across the Rhine in March 1945, and escorted medium bombers that attacked various communications targets, Feb-Apr 1945.

The 359th Bomb Group returned to Camp Kilmer, New Jersey and was inactivated on 10 November 1945.

See also

* Eighth Air Force

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