:
For additional history and lineage, see 305th Air Mobility Wing World War II The
305th Bombardment Group was activated 1 March 1942 at
Salt Lake City Army Air Base, Utah. The unit trained there before moving to
Geiger Field, Washington on 11 June 1942. Received intensive training at
Muroc Army Air Field, California beginning in July 1942. The ground unit went by train to at
Fort Dix Army Air Base, New Jersey. The ground unit sailed on the Queen Mary on 5 September 1942, and disembarked from Greenock on 12 September 1942. The aircraft assembled at
Hancock Field, New York, and spent six weeks in advanced flight training. The unit received new
Boeing B-17F Flying Fortress bombers, and left for the United Kingdom in October 1942 via
Presque Isle Army Air Field and
Gander Airport, to
Prestwick Airport Scotland. The 305th Bomb Group deployed to England in September 1942 and formed at
RAF Grafton Underwood as part of VIII Bomber Command's 40th Bombardment Wing. Was assigned group tail code "Triangle-G". From Grafton Underwood, the group began combat on 17 November 1942 and attacked such targets as submarine pens, docks, harbours, shipyards, motor works, and marshalling yards in France, Germany, and the Low Countries. During December 1942, the group was transferred to
RAF Chelveston. On 27 January 1943, the group participated in the Eighth Air Force's first raid on Germany. During the winter of 1942–1943, the 305th was commanded by
Colonel Curtis LeMay and pioneered many of the techniques of daylight bombing used by the USAAF over Nazi-controlled Europe. The 305th Bomb Group bombed the navy yards at
Wilhelmshaven on 27 January 1943 when heavy bombers of Eighth Air Force made their first penetration into Germany. Through mid-1943, the group attacked strategic targets such as submarine pens, docks, harbors, shipyards, motor works, and marshaling yards in France, Germany, and the
Low Countries. The 305th received the
Distinguished Unit Citation for a mission in April 1943 when an industrial target in Paris was bombed with precision in spite of pressing enemy fighter attacks and heavy
flak. During the second half of 1943, the unit began deeper penetration into enemy territory to strike heavy industry. Significant objectives included aluminum, magnesium, and nitrate works in Norway, industries in
Berlin, oil plants at
Merseburg, aircraft factories at Anklam, shipping at Gdynia, and ball-bearing works at
Schweinfurt. A second Distinguished Unit Citation was awarded to the 305th for withstanding severe opposition to bombing aircraft factories in central Germany on 11 January 1944. The unit participated in the intensive campaign of heavy bombers against the German aircraft industry during "Big Week," 20–25 February 1944. In addition to bombardment of strategic targets, the 305th Bomb Group often flew tactical interdictory missions and supported infantry units. Prior to the Normandy invasion in June 1944, it helped to neutralize enemy installations such as V-weapon sites, airfields, and repair shops. On
D-Day, 6 June, the unit bombed enemy strongholds near the battle area. During the
Battle of Normandy the 305th attacked enemy positions in advance of ground forces at
Saint-Lô in July 1944 and struck antiaircraft batteries to cover the
airborne invasion of the Netherlands in September. After "Victory in Europe Day" (
V-E Day), the 305th moved to
Saint Trond Airfield, Belgium in July 1945 where it conducted photo-mapping flights which was called Project Casey Jones over Europe and North Africa. On 15 December 1945, the 305th moved to
Lechfeld Airfield, Germany which it had bombed on 18 March 1944. The 364th Bomb Squadron was inactivated on 1 July 1946. The
423d Bombardment Squadron of the
306th Bombardment Group was attached to the group after this date but, by the end of October 1946, the group ceased all operations. Officially the unit was inactivated on 25 December 1946. On the Continent it was assigned to Ninth Air Force and inactivated on 15 November 1945.
Cold War Not operational from 16 October to 25 December 1946. During two periods of activation (between July 1947 and September 1948, and, between January 1951 and June 1952), the group was manned only from 2 January to 9 February 1951 when SAC reorganized its wings into the dual deputate system.
Reactivation On 1 September 1991, the 305th Operations Group activated under the "Objective Wing" concept adapted by the Air Force as the lines between tactical and strategic forces blurred. The flying components of the 305th Air Refueling Wing were reassigned to the newly established group. The
1993 Base Realignment and Closure Commission directed realignment of
Grissom Air Force Base, Indiana to the
Air Force Reserve and the 305th OG phased out operations there in 1993. The
Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker equipped
70th and
305th Air Refueling Squadrons were inactivated. In addition, the EC-135G/L radio relay aircraft as part of the PACCS system were also retired. flies over New York City after completing the first transcontinental flight on synthetic fuel to McGuire AFB The 305th was reactivated at McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey, replacing the
438th Operations Group on 1 October 1994. At McGuire, the group controls three squadrons of
Boeing C-17A Globemaster III transports and
McDonnell Douglas KC-10A Extender air refueling aircraft. ==Lineage==