World War II The
US Army Air Corps constituted the
32nd Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor). Seven weeks later, on 1 February 1940, the squadron activated at
Kelly Field, Texas. After completing this training, in November 1940, the 32nd transferred to
Langley Field in Virginia to join the
36th Pursuit Group. Once there, the 36th equipped the squadron with
Curtiss P-36A Hawk aircraft. During its stay at Langley, the 32nd Pursuit Squadron flew a number of
Curtiss YP-37 aircraft for a short period. On 21 June 1971, F-4E
68-0433 crashed near
Maurik, the Netherlands, killing both the crew after the pilot over corrected when trying to avoid a flock of birds. In March 1976,
the Wolfhounds began receiving newer
FY1974 F-4Es to replace their older models. On 19 October 1977, the USAF decided that the 32nd would receive the
McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle as part of Project Ready Eagle. Throughout 1978, the majority of Phantoms were flown to
Ramstein Air Base in West Germany where they were assigned to the
86th Tactical Fighter Wing, while others went to
Spangdahlem Air Base and
Hahn Air Base. The first two F-15As (
77-0074 and
77-0075) for the 32nd TFS arrived at Soesterberg on 13 September 1978, with the last jets arriving on 17 January 1979. The 32nd TFS hosted the 71st TFS once more between 1 and 29 June 1984 as part of Coronet Hawk. The
9th Tactical Fighter Squadron deployed to Soesterberg between 20 May and 20 June 1986 under Coronet Apache. On 4 July 1989, a pair of 32nd TFS F-15Cs scrambled to intercept what turned out to be an unoccupied
Soviet Air Forces MiG-23M 'Flogger' which had flown on autopilot from its base in
Bagicz, Poland, to West Germany after the pilot had ejected. The pilots were instructed to shoot it down over the North Sea however the MiG-23 ran out of fuel and
crashed into a house in
Kortrijk, Belgium, killing an occupant. In 1989, the Dutch government allowed USAF to expand its headquarters unit at Soesterberg from squadron to group. The
32nd Tactical Fighter Group was activated at Soesterberg on 16 November 1989 and took over functions of old 32nd Squadron headquarters element and support flights (later squadrons) received support responsibilities. On 25 April 1990, F-15C
81-0049 crashed into the North Sea after its engines caught fire – the pilot ejected safely. The 32nd TFS hosted the
60th Tactical Fighter Squadron between 31 May and 25 June 1990 as part of Coronet Trigger.
Gulf War to inactivation (1990–1994) , August 1992 During the
1991 Gulf War, after more than forty years,
the Wolfhounds saw action again. Aircrew and ground support personnel were deployed, during the Operations
DESERT SHIELD and
DESERT STORM, August 1990 until March 1991, at
Incirlik Air Base, Turkey. On 28 January 1991, Capt. "Muddy" Watrous shot down an
Iraqi Air Force MiG-23 'Flogger',
the Wolfhounds only victory of the war. After the war, they continued their air activities in theatre as a part of
Operation Provide Comfort from April 1991 until April 1993. Headquarters USAFE replaced the 32nd Fighter Group on 1 July with the 632nd Air Base Squadron; its duty was to complete the closure actions. In late 1991 and throughout 1992,
the Wolfhounds began re-equipping with the F-15A/B. On 19 April 1994, the group furled its colors in formal ceremonies attended by members of the royal family and the American ambassador. The 32nd Group's subordinate units were inactivated on 1 July and the group on 1 October 1994.
Air operations unit (1994–2005) In the spring of 1994, USAFE received permission from HQ USAF to use the 32nd designation for the new 32nd Air Operations Group. The 32nd Fighter Squadron was redesigned the
32nd Air Operations Squadron on 1 August 1994 following their inactivation at Soesterberg Air Base in July. The squadron assigned to the 32nd Air Operations Group, formerly the 32nd Fighter Group, which was also redesigned on 1 August 1994. Both the group and the squadron were stationed at
Ramstein Air Base, Germany, under the USAFE Theater Air and Space-operations Center. The 32nd Air Operations Squadron was inactivated on 1 November 2005. ==Lineage==