World War II training unit The unit was established in mid-1942 by
III Bomber Command as a
Replacement Training Unit (RTU) for
Martin B-26 Marauder crews. Graduates from Training Command technical, gunnery and twin-engine flight schools would be trained on B-26s, then after graduation be assigned to combat units overseas. The group was inactivated in May 1944.
Survival Training Background In 1949,
Strategic Air Command (SAC) was concerned about the ability of its
aircrews to survive and evade capture if shot down behind enemy lines. It established the 3904th Training Squadron at
Fort Carson, Colorado, on 16 December to provide survival and
escape and evasion skills for its crews. Little more than a year later, on 21 October 1950, it established the 3904th Composite Wing to include the training squadron, the specialized
8th Air Rescue Squadron, and support units. On 1 September 1951, the 3904th moved to
Stead Air Force Base, Nevada, and the United States Air Force Survival School was established under the wing. The
Korean War made it apparent that this training should not be limited to SAC, and on 1 September 1954, the 3904th was transferred to
Air Training Command (ATC) and renamed the 3635th Combat Crew Training Wing (Survival). This wing changed its name to the 3635th Flying Training Wing (Advanced) on 15 July 1958 when it added helicopter training to its mission. The 3635th continued to provide Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) training at Stead until the spring of 1966, when Stead closed and the survival school was moved to
Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington.
Move to Fairchild Air Force Base The 3635th Wing did not move with the school. Instead, ATC discontinued it at Stead on 15 June 1966 and established the 3636th Combat Crew Training Group at Fairchild in April 1966 to conduct survival training at its new location. However, all aspects of
Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) training were not unified under the group. By the early 1970s,
Pacific Air Forces was running the Jungle Survival School at
Clark Air Base, Philippines, while
United States Air Forces Southern Command had a Tropical Survival School at
Howard Air Force Base in the Panama Canal Zone.
Alaskan Air Command had an Arctic Survival School at
Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska and
Tactical Air Command operated a Water Survival School at
Homestead Air Force Base, Florida. In April 1971, these schools were brought under one hand, and the 3636th Group was upgraded in status to the 3636th Combat Crew Training Wing. Squadrons were organized to conduct training at Clark, Fairchild and Homestead, while detachments were established at the other locations including with
Operation Red Flag at
Nellis Air Force Base where Detachment 2, , 3636 Combat Crew Training Wing (Det 2), was established to conduct evaluations and provide training of personnel assigned or Temporary Duty. Det 2 conducted simulated Search and Rescue Exercises in Northern Nevada and at
CFB Cold Lake,
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, with various air units, from 1976 to 1985. It was at Det 2 that the Combat Desert Survival Course was written and tested. This course would be formalized by the wing and eventually this would cause a major change in the USAF Survival Training Schools emphasizing "Combat Survival" instead of "Global Survival". In 1985, Det 2 was discontinued and its personnel were assigned to the
Tactical Air Command at
Nellis Air Force Base or transferred back to the 3636th. Detachment 2, 66th Training Squadron, was located at
NAS Pensacola, Florida in 1993 where it conducted the Parachute Water Survival Course for
aircrew flying aircraft with
ejection seats jointly with the
United States Navy. The separate Air Force School at Homestead was discontinued. Students attending SERE training at Fairchild, were sent on temporary duty to Pensacola for this training. The school was moved to Fairchild in August 2015, and combined with the existing non-ejection water survival course to avoid the expenses associated with student travel.
Courses circa 2016 • The 22d Training Squadron conducts Combat Survival Training. • The 66th Training Squadron conducts the SERE Training Instructor Course. This is a five-and-one-half-month program designed to teach future survival instructors how to instruct aircrew members to survive in any environment. The non-ejection water survival course trains aircrew members of non-parachute-equipped aircraft. The resistance training orientation course covers the theories and principles needed to conduct Level C Code of Conduct resistance training laboratory instruction. The SERE training instructor, 7-level upgrade course is a 19-day course, conducted annually, provides 5-level instructors with advanced survival training in barren Arctic, barren desert, jungle, and open-ocean environments. ==Lineage==