18th Air Refueling Squadron

18th Air Refueling Squadron
18th Air Refueling Squadron Patch
Active	11 December 1940 – 31 July 1945 1 August 1948 – 1 March 1949 14 July 1952 – 21 July 1954 3 August 1961 – 25 June 1967 15 October 1969 – 31 August 1972 1 October 1995 - Present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Aerial refueling
Part of	Air Force Reserve Command Fourth Air Force 507th Air Refueling Wing 931st Air Refueling Group
Garrison/HQ	McConnell Air Force Base
Colors	Blue/Gold
Engagements	Operation Husky Operation Dragoon Operation Joint Endeavor Operation Joint Guard Operation Joint Forge Southern Watch Northern Watch Operation Desert Fox Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Iraqi Freedom Operation Noble Eagle
Decorations	DUC AFOUA

The 18th Air Refueling Squadron (18 ARS) is a United States Air Force Reserve squadron, assigned to the 931st Operations Group, stationed at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas.

Overview

The squadron operates the KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft, conducting aerial refueling missions.

History

During World War II the 18th flew airborne assaults on Sicily, Myitkyina, Burma, and Southern France in addition to supporting partisans in Northern Italy from January to May 1945 and conducting aerial transportation in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) and briefly in the China-Burma-India Theater (CBI). It flew strategic and tactical airlift missions from 1948 to 1954 and 1962 to 1967. The squadron provided tactical airlift training for US and subsequently South Vietnamese pilots and crews from 1969 to 1972.

This unit has flown worldwide air refueling missions since 1995.^[1]

Operations^[1]

World War II
Operation Husky (the invasion of Sicily)
Operation Dragoon (the invasion of southern France)
Operation Joint Endeavor (Peacekeeping in Bosnia Herzegovina)
Operation Joint Guard (Peacekeeping in Bosnia Herzegovina), 21 June 1996 – 19 June 1998
Operation Joint Forge (Peacekeeping in Bosnia Herzegovina), June 201998 - 12 February 2004
Southern Watch (enforcing a no-fly zone in pre-war southern Iraq)
Northern Watch (enforcing a no-fly zone in pre-war northern Iraq)
Operation Desert Fox (December 1998 bombing of Iraq)
Operation Enduring Freedom (The Global War on Terror)
Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003 Iraq War)
Operation Noble Eagle ( US homeland security)

Lineage^[1]

18th Transport Squadron (1940–1942)
18th Troop Carrier Squadron (1942–1948)
18th Troop Carrier Squadron, Heavy (1948–1952)
18th Troop Carrier Squadron, Medium (1952–1966)
18th Troop Carrier Squadron (1966–1969)
18th Tactical Airlift Training Squadron (1969–1994)
18th Air Refueling Squadron (1994 – present)

Assignments^[1]

64th Troop Carrier Group (1940–1945)
5700th Composite Wing (1948–1949)
64th Troop Carrier Group (1952–1954)
Tactical Air Command (1961–1962)
64th Troop Carrier Wing (1962–1963)
516th Troop Carrier Wing (1963)

314th Troop Carrier Wing (1963–1965)
317th Tactical Airlift Wing (1965–1967)
516th Tactical Airlift Wing (1969–1972)
463d Tactical Airlift Wing (1972)
931st Air Refueling Group (1995 – present)

Stations^[1]

McClellan Field, California (1940–1941)
March Field, California (1941–1942)
Westover Field, Massachusetts (1942)
RAF Ramsbury, England (1942)

Operated From: Maison Blanche, Algeria (11 November - December 1942)

Blida Airfield, Algeria (1942–1943)
Kairouan Airfield, Tunisia (1943)
El Djem Airfield, Tunisia (1943)
Comiso Airfield, Italy (1943–1944)

Operated From: India (April - June 1944)

Ciampino Airfield, Italy (1944–1945)

Operated From: Istres Air Base, France (7 September - 11 November 1944)

Rosignano Airfield, Italy (1945)
Waller Field, Trinidad (1945)
Albrook Air Force Base, Panama Canal Zone (1948–1949)
Donaldson Air Force Base, South Carolina (1952–1954)
Dyess Air Force Base, Texas (1962–1963)
Sewart Air Force Base, Tennessee (1963–1965)
Lockbourne Air Force Base, Ohio (1965–1967)
Dyess Air Force Base, Texas (1969–1972)
McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas (1995 – present)

Aircraft Operated^[1]

C-47 Skytrain (1941–1945)
C-54 Skymaster (1948–1949)
C-82 Packet (1951–1953)
C-119 Flying Boxcar (1953–1954)
C-130 Hercules (1962–1967)
C-7 Caribou (1969–1972)
KC-135 Stratotanker (1995 – present)

Commands	Reserve Air National Guard Field Operating Agencies Installations

Direct Reporting Units	District of Washington Operational Test and Evaluation Center USAF Academy

Major Commands	Air Combat Air Education and Training Air Mobility Global Strike Materiel Reserve Space Special Operations Europe & Africa Pacific

Numbered Air Forces	First Second Third Fourth Fifth Seventh Eighth Ninth Tenth Eleventh Twelfth Fourteenth Seventeenth Eighteenth Nineteenth Twentieth Twenty-Second Twenty-Third Twenty-Fourth Twenty-Fifth

Wings ANG Groups ANG Squadrons ANG Security forces Civilian auxiliary: Civil Air Patrol

Personnel and
training

Uniforms and
equipment

History and
traditions

Category
Portal

Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC)

Air Forces

Bases

Command

Air Reserve Personnel Center

Wings/Groups

Air Refueling	434th 459th 507th 916th 939th 940th

Airlift	94th 302d 315th 433d 439th 440th 445th 446th 512th 908th 910th 911th 914th 927th 932d 934th

Fighter	301st 414th 419th 442d 476th 477th 482d 944th

other	310th Space 349th Air Mobility 403d 452d Air Mobility 514th Air Mobility 307th Bomb 919th Special Operations 920th Rescue

References

This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

1 2 3 4 5 6 AFHRA 18 ARS Page

AFHRA 18th Air Refueling Squadron History

External links

"C-130 Dyess timeline". Abeline Reporter News. 23 April 2011. Retrieved 29 January 2014.

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 6/7/2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.

18th Air Refueling Squadron

Overview

History

Operations[1]

Lineage[1]

Assignments[1]

Stations[1]

Aircraft Operated[1]

See also