World War II The
squadron was activated on 30 September 1942 at
Mitchel Field, New York as the
342d Fighter Squadron and equipped with
Republic P-47 Thunderbolts. It deployed to the
Southwest Pacific Area, where the unit became part of
Fifth Air Force in
New Guinea. It engaged in combat operations until August 1945, then became part of the
occupation forces in Japan. The unit returned to the United States during May 1946 and was inactivated.
Delaware Air National Guard The squadron was redesignated as the
142d Fighter Squadron and allotted to the National Guard on 24 May 1946. It was activated on 6 September 1946, and its formal federal recognition was recognized at a ceremony in the Wilmington Armory. The ceremony was conducted by Brigadier General Paul R. Rinard, the Adjutant General and Colonel John B. Grier, U.S. Property and Disbursing Officer for Delaware. Shortly afterwards the squadron received its first fighter planes, P-47N Thunderbolts. Prior to being federalized during the
Korean War on 1 February 1951, the unit received
Republic F-84C Thunderjets. On 17 May 1951, the unit was redesignated the
142d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron and in September 1951 the unit exchanged its F-84s for the
Lockheed F-94 Starfire interceptor aircraft to fit the unit's new
air defense mission. On 1 November 1952 the 142d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was released from active duty and reorganized in the Delaware Air National Guard. On 1 December 1952 the unit was redesignated the
142d Fighter-Bomber Squadron and reverted to a propeller-driven aircraft, the
North American F-51H Mustang. In 1954 the unit received
North American F-86A Sabre day interceptor fighters to replace the F-51Hs. In July 1956 Major David F. McCallister (142d Fighter-Bomber Squadron Commander) set a fighter record by flying his F-86 Sabre 1,922 miles in three hours, 30 minutes, to win the Earl T. Ricks Memorial Trophy. On 10 November 1958 the unit was redesignated the
142d Tactical Fighter Squadron and its mobilization gaining command changed from the Air Force's
Air Defense Command to the
Tactical Air Command (TAC). On 7 April 1962 the
Delaware Air National Guard expanded the unit and established the
166th Air Transport Group. The group and squadron's gaining command changed from TAC to
Military Air Transport Service. The 142d squadron was assigned to the 166th and redesignated as the
142d Air Transport Squadron. The squadron was re-equipped with the four engine
Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter cargo aircraft. During the period from 1964–1974 the Delaware Air National Guard flew missions to
South Vietnam. In September 1965, only three years after receiving the C-97, the Delaware Air National Guard received the McCallister Trophy as the Air National Guard Outstanding Transport Unit. On 1 January 1966, the Military Air Transport Service was replaced by
Military Airlift Command (MAC). In addition to that name change MAC-gained Air National Guard units were also redesignated. The 142d became the
142d Military Airlift Squadron on 1 January 1966. In April 1966, the unit was awarded the Outstanding Unit Trophy by the Air Force Association based on its impressive collection of achievements and safety record. On 12 May 1971 the Group became the
142d Tactical Airlift Squadron and replaced its C-97s with
Lockheed C-130A Hercules prop-jet cargo plane, and its gaining command transferred from MAC back to TAC. Its antiquated C-130Bs were upgraded in October 1985 with the delivery of a brand new factory fresh C-130H models. On 25 January 1991 selected personnel were activated for the Persian Gulf War known as
Operation Desert Storm (8 planes with crews and maintenance and support personnel.) A majority of the unit became part of the 1670th Tactical Airlift Group (Provisional) at
Al Kharj Air Base, Saudi Arabia. On 30 June 1991 the aircraft and personnel were released from active duty. Another name change occurred on 16 March 1992. The 142d dropped the "Tactical" and was redesignated the
142d Airlift Squadron. In conjunction with the redesignation, the unit's gaining command, MAC, was replaced by
Air Mobility Command (AMC). In September 1992, a group of personnel from the squadron participated in the
Hurricane Andrew relief effort. On 26 October 1993 the gaining command for the squadron changed from AMC to
Air Combat Command (ACC). On 20 November 1995 the squadron was awarded the
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award for the period 15 August 1993 through 14 August 1995. On 1 April 1997 the gaining command for the squadron changed from ACC back to AMC. ==Lineage==