308th Armament Systems Wing
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| 308th Armament Systems Wing | |
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 308th Armament Systems Wing emblem |
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| Active | 19xx-Present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Garrison/HQ | Eglin AFB, Florida |
The United States Air Force's 308th Armament Systems Wing (308 ARSW) is a non-flying wing based at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
The wing was activated in 2004 to design, develop, field and maintain a family of air-to-ground munitions that enhance warfighter strike capabilities.
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[edit] Mission
The mission of the 308th Armament Systems Wing is to enhance worldwide Air Force combat capability, effectiveness, aircrew survivability, and readiness through joint development, procurement, deployment and sustainment. This mission is executed by air combat test and training systems, expeditionary support equipment, munitions handling equipment and armament subsystems, Explosive Ordnance Disposal support equipment, and realistic Electronic Warfare threat simulators.
The 308 ARSW designs, develops, produces, fields, and sustains a family of air-to-ground and air-to-air munitions, enhancing warfighter capabilities (both U.S. and allies) in defeating a spectrum of enemy targets
[edit] Units
The 308 ARSW is a critical component of the Air Armament Center, which covers the complete weapon-system life-cycle from concept through development, acquisition, experimental testing, procurement, operational testing and final employment in combat.
The wing consists of over 400 highly qualified personnel trained in the development, test, acquisition, fielding, and operational support of systems such as the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM), Small Diameter Bomb (SDB), Sensor Fuzed Weapon (SFW), Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser (WCMD) and a host of other specialized programs.
[edit] History
[edit] Lineage
- Established as 308th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 Jan 1942.
- Activated 15 Apr 1942.
- Inactivated 6 Jan 1946.
- Redesignated 308th Reconnaissance Group, Weather, on 27 Sep 1946.
- Activated 17 Oct 1946.
- Inactivated 5 Jan 1951.
- Established as 308th Bombardment Wing, Medium, on 4 Oct 1951.
- Activated on 10 Oct 1951.
- Inactivated 25 Jun 1961.
- Redesignated 308th Strategic Missile Wing (ICBM-Titan), and activated, on 29 Nov 1961.
- Organized on 1 Apr 1962.
- Inactivated 18 Aug 1987.
- Consolidated (3 May 2006) with Air to Ground Munitions Systems Wing, which was established 23 Nov 2004.
- Activated 27 Jan 2005.
- Redesignated 308th Armament Systems Wing on 15 May 2006.
[edit] Bases assigned
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United States Army Air Forces
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United States Air Force
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[edit] Aircraft and Missiles
- Consolodated B-24 Liberator, 1942-1945
- Boeing B-29 Superfortress, 1946-1951, 1951-1952, 1952-1953
- Boeing B-47 Stratojet, 1953-1954, 1954-1959
- Boeing KC-97 Stratotanker, 1953-1959
- Titan II ICBM, 1963-1987
[edit] Operational history
[edit] World War II
Constituted as 308th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 Jan 1942. Activated on 15 Apr 1942. Trained with B-24's. Moved to China early in 1943, with the air echelon flying its planes by way of Africa, and the ground echelon traveling by ship across the Pacific. Assigned to Fourteenth Air Force.
Made many trips over The Hump to India to obtain gasoline, oil, bombs, spare parts, and other items the group needed to prepare for and then to sustain its combat operations. The 308th Group supported Chinese ground forces; attacked airfields, coalyards, docks, oil refineries, and fuel dumps in French Indochina; mined rivers and ports; bombed shops and docks at Rangoon; attacked Japanese shipping in the East China Sea, Formosa Strait, South China Sea, and Gulf of Tonkin.
Received a Distinguished Service Cross for an unescorted bombing attack, conducted through antiaircraft fire and fighter defenses, against docks and warehouses at Hankowon 21 Aug 1943. Received second DUC for interdiction of Japanese shipping during 1944-1945.
Major Horace S Carswell Jr. was awarded the Medal of Honor for action on 26 Oct 1944 when, in spite of intense antiaircraft fire, he attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea; his plane was so badly damaged that when he reached land he ordered the crew to bail out; Carswell, however, remained with the plane to try to save one man who could not jump because his parachute had been ripped by flak; before Carswell could attempt a crash landing, the plane struck a mountainside and burned.
The group moved to India in Jun 1945. Ferried gasoline and supplies over the Hump. Sailed for the US in Dec 1945. Inactivated on 6 Jan 1946.
[edit] Cold War
Redesignated 308th Reconnaissance Group (Weather). Activated on 17 Oct 1946. Assigned to Air Weather Service and equipped with B-29's. Inactivated on 5 Jan 1951.
In 1951 it was reactivated at Forbes Air Force Base, Kansas. Initially equipped with B-29s, but was upgraded to B-47 Stratojets the next year. Also received KC-97 tankers. Over the next eight years, tie 308th conducted strategic bombardment training and air refueling to meet SAC's global commitments.
Deployed to bases in North Africa three times, twice in detachment form and once as a unit (Sidi Slimane Air Base Morocco, Aug 21- Oct 26, 1956). From November 1956 to March 1957, tested SAC alert plan by maintaining one-third of its bomber and tanker force on continuous alert.
Part of unit went to 2nd Bomb Wing at Hunter AFB, Georgia. Bulk moved to Plattsburgh AFB, New York on July 15, 1959, where it's aircraft were placed under the control of the 380th Bomb Wing.
Not operational as a wing from July 1959 to June 1961.
In the early 1962 the Air Force established 18 Titan II launch sites at the SAC Little Rock Air Force Base Arkansas. The 308th was reactivated as the 308th Strategic Missile Wing. The wing became fully operational with eighteen sites in December 1963.
In October 1981, US President Ronald Reagan announced that all Titan II sites would be deactivated by October 1, 1987, as part of a strategic modernization program. The wing completed deactivation on August 18, 1987.
[edit] Post Cold War
Activated in 2004 to design, develop, field and maintain a family of air-to-ground munitions that enhanced warfighter strike capabilities.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0892010924.
- Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947-1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0912799129.
[edit] External links
- 308th Armament Systems Wing
- 308th Bombardment Group in CBI Website
- 308 Strategic Missile Wing Memorial Website
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