World War II The
squadron was activated as the
29th Transport Squadron in March 1942 as the original squadron of the
313th Transport Group. The
group was expanded from a
headquarters and a single squadron in June, when the
47th,
48th, and
49th Transport Squadrons were activated to fill out the 313th. The 29th trained under Air Transport Command (later
I Troop Carrier Command) and equipped with
Douglas C-47 Skytrain aircraft and other military models of the Douglas DC-3, including the C-53 Skytrooper in the southeastern United States. Two days later, 11 July 1943, the squadron was part of a formation of troop carrier units of the
52d Troop Carrier Wing bringing reinforcements, planning to drop
paratroops near
Gela. Planes of the 313th Group led the stream of troop carriers. However, attacks in the Gela area by enemy aircraft had sunk two ships and forced other ships in the invasion force to disperse. The heaviest enemy attack came at 2150 hours. Fifty minutes later, the first 313th Group aircraft approached the
drop zone. The 48th was able to successfully make its drop on Farello Airfield. Mistaking the troop carriers for another enemy attack, ships of the assault force and antiaircraft units ashore began a heavy fire on squadron's C-47s as they departed. Of the 144 planes of the 52d Wing that participated in the mission, 23 were shot down and an additional 37 were heavily damaged. For its completion of this mission the squadron earned its first
Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC). In February 1944, the squadron moved to
RAF Folkingham, England, where it became part of
IX Troop Carrier Command and began training for the assault on the continent of Europe. On
D-Day the squadron dropped paratroopers near
Picauville, Normandy and dropped reinforcements the following day. The squadron's efforts during
Operation Overlord earned it a second DUC. It once again was equipped with C-47s. The squadron briefly moved to
Tulln Air Base, Austria in the spring of 1947.
Cold War The squadron was activated at
Mitchel Air Force Base, New York in February 1953, assuming the personnel and
Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars of the
335th Troop Carrier Squadron, an
Air Force Reserve unit that had been called to active duty for the
Korean War and was transitioning to the C-119 from the Curtiss Commando. The squadron trained to maintain combat readiness in tactical airlift operations. It was inactivated on 8 June 1955.
Vietnam War The squadron was reactivated at
Forbes Air Force Base, Kansas in 1964, flying
Lockheed C-130 Hercules. In March 1965, the 29th became the first combat-ready unit of Tactical Air Command at Forbes. It then assumed a commitment to rotate aircraft to the
Panama Canal Zone. The squadron frequently deployed to support airlift requirements of overseas commands, participate in tactical exercises and disaster relief. In December 1965 the squadron left Forbes for
Clark Air Base, Philippines, arriving in late January 1966 to perform theater airlift in
Southeast Asia as part of
315th Air Division. The unit deployed aircraft and crews to provide intra-theater airlift for United States military civic actions, combat support and civic assistance throughout the
Republic of Vietnam, particularly from the C-130 operating location at
Tan Son Nhut Airport outside Saigon. In May 1969, the unit assumed the
Commando Vault mission, dropping a 10,000-pound bomb designed to clear helicopter landing zones out of jungle from its cargo bay. The squadron was inactivated in October 1970 and its remaining aircraft and crews were distributed among the
463d Tactical Airlift Wing's other squadrons. The squadron was reactivated in April 1971 at
Langley Air Force Base, Virginia and began training with C-130s. Shortly after becoming combat ready, in November its mission, equipment and personnel were transferred to the
38th Tactical Airlift Squadron and the 29th was inactivated.
Weapons system training The squadron was redesignated the
29th Weapons Squadron and reactivated in June 2003 at
Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas as part of the USAF Mobility Weapons School and equipped with C-130 Hercules. The squadron was reassigned to the
USAF Weapons School at
Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada in 2006. In August 2014 the squadron established a detachment at
Rosecrans Field, Missouri to conduct the Weapons Instructor Course for
Air National Guard and
Air Force Reserve aircrews flying the C-130H. This allowed the elements at Little Rock the ability to focus primarily on the C-130J. ==Lineage==