:
See 17th Bombardment Group for additional history and lineage information prior to 1952 Korean War Established as the
17th Bombardment Wing, Light on 8 May 1952 and assigned to the
Far East Air Forces Fifth Air Force. The wing was activated two days later at Pusan-East Air Base (K-9), South Korea, where it replaced the
Air Force Reserve 452d Bombardment Wing Light when its activation ended. Its
17th Bombardment Group acquired the World War II-era 452d's Douglas
A-26 Invaders. The Invader had proven to be the only bomber suited to the night interdiction role in Korea. Unfortunately, the Invader was capable of visual-only operations and was available only in dwindling numbers. Operational squadrons of the 17th BG were the 34th, 37th and 95th Bombardment Squadrons. The wing conducted combat operations during the
Korean War, 10 May 1952 – 27 July 1953, including night intruder light bombardment missions against enemy supply centers, communications and transportation facilities; interdiction of North Korean railroads; armed reconnaissance; and close air support for ground forces. Remaining in South Korea for over a year after the armistice that ended combat as a deterrent force, the wing moved to
Miho AB, Japan on 10 October 1954, where it maintained operational proficiency for light bombardment. It was inactivated on 20 March 1955.
Tactical Air Command The unit was reactivated in the United States on 1 April 1955 and assigned to
Ninth Air Force of
Tactical Air Command (TAC). It was stationed at
Eglin Air Force Base Aiuxiliary Field No. 9, Florida where it was programmed to receive the
Martin B-57 Canberra, the replacement for the B-26. On 1 October 1955, it was redesignated the
17th Bombardment Wing, Tactical and received B-57B aircraft in early 1956. The first B-66 arrived from
Norton Air Force Base, California, on 16 March 1956. In late 1957, TAC began to transfer its Destroyers to the
47th Bombardment Wing of
United States Air Forces Europe and the 17th was inactivated on 25 June 1958.
Strategic Air Command 4043d Strategic Wing The 17th was assigned to
Strategic Air Command and redesignated as the
17th Bombardment Wing, Heavy and organized on 1 February 1963 at
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The 17th's origins under SAC began on 1 April 1959 when
Strategic Air Command organized the 4039th Strategic Wing at Wright-Patterson and assigned it to the
40th Air Division on 1 July as part of SAC's plan to disperse its
B-52 Stratofortress heavy bombers over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the
Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike. The wing remained a headquarters only until 15 September 1959 when the
66th Aviation Depot Squadron was activated to oversee the wing's special weapons. In October three maintenance
squadrons and a squadron to provide security for the wing's aircraft and weapons were added, but it was not until 1 December that the wing's first flying squadron, the
922d Air Refueling Squadron, flying
Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers was activated and assigned. The wing was fully organized on 1 June 1960 when the
42d Bombardment Squadron (BS), consisting of 15
Boeing B-52 Stratofortresses moved to Wright-Patterson from
Altus AFB, Oklahoma where it had been one of the three squadrons of the
11th Bombardment Wing. Starting in 1960, one third of the squadron's aircraft were maintained on fifteen-minute
alert, fully fueled and ready for combat to reduce vulnerability to a Soviet missile strike. This was increased to half the squadron's aircraft in 1962. In 1962, the wing's
bombers began to be equipped with the
GAM-77 Hound Dog and the
GAM-72 Quail air-launched
cruise missiles, The 4042d Airborne Missile Maintenance Squadron was activated in November to maintain these missiles.
Reactivation of the 17th Bombardment Wing In 1962, in order to perpetuate the lineage of many currently inactive bombardment units with illustrious
World War II records, Headquarters SAC received authority from Headquarters USAF to discontinue its Major Command controlled (MAJCON) strategic wings that were equipped with combat aircraft and to activate Air Force controlled (AFCON) units, most of which were inactive at the time which could carry a lineage and history. The 4043d Wing was replaced by the
17th Bombardment Wing on 1 February 1963 and was assigned to SAC's 40th AD. The 922d Air Refueling Squadron and 66th Munitions Maintenance Squadron transferred to the 17th. The 42d Bombardment Squadron was replaced by the
34th Bombardment Squadron, one of the unit's World War II historical bomb squadrons and the 4043d's maintenance and security squadrons were replaced by ones with the 17th numerical designation of the newly activated wing. Each of the new units assumed the personnel, equipment, and mission of its predecessor. Under the Dual Deputate organization, all components were directly assigned to the wing, no operational or maintenance group element was activated. The history, lineage and honors of the
17th Bombardment Group were temporarily bestowed upon the newly established wing upon activation. The 17th Bomb Wing trained in strategic bombing and aerial refueling on a global basis. It furnished B-52s and KC-135 aircraft and crews to deployed SAC wings in the western Pacific and Thailand that were engaged in combat operations over
Southeast Asia as part of the
Vietnam War from 1966 to 1975. The 17th BW was taken off alert at Wright-Patterson AFB, OH, on 30 June 1975 and phased down, transferring aircraft by 7 July as part of SAC's leaving the base. It was reassigned without personnel or equipment to
Beale AFB, California, on 30 September 1975 and absorbed resources of the
456th Bombardment Wing, including B-52G and KC-135Q aircraft. At Beale, the 17th continued global strategic bombardment alert to 30 June 1976 and used tanker aircraft primarily to refuel SR-71s of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing. The wing was inactivated on 30 September 1976 and replaced by the
100th Air Refueling Wing as part of a realignment of SAC assets. The wing was reactivated at
RAF Alconbury, in the United Kingdom as the
17th Reconnaissance Wing on 1 October 1982. The operational squadron of the 17th Wing was the 95th Reconnaissance Squadron. The wing flew tactical and strategic surveillance missions in Western Europe using the TR-1 (U-2R). It received the P. T. Cullen Trophy for providing "the greatest contribution to the intelligence gathering efforts of SAC" in 1989 and 1990. During 1990–91, many of the wing's assets and personnel supported
Gulf War operations by ferrying aircraft and equipment to
Taif, Saudi Arabia. The wing inactivated on 30 June 1991, but its subordinate
95th Reconnaissance Squadron, remained at Alconbury as a non-flying organization until 15 September 1993. The U-2Rs were consolidated at
Beale Air Force Base, California with the 9th Wing. When the wing was reactivated in July 1993, it initially comprised the
17th Training Group, 17th Medical Group, and 17th Mission Support Group. The 17th Training Group was activated as the 3480 Technical Training Wing on 1 July 1978; redesignated as the 3480 Technical Training Wing (USAF Cryptological Training Center) on 3 January 1984; the 3480 Technical Training Wing on 1 March 1985; the 3480 Technical Training Group on 1 February 1992; the 391 Technical Training Group on 15 September 1992; the 17 Technical Training Group on 1 Jul 1993; and the 17 Training Group on 1 April 1994. The 17th Medical and Mission Support Groups had previously served with the Wing in the 1950s. There are 17 TRW units at the Defense Language Institute, Corry Station, and Fort Huachuca, AZ which also do intelligence training. The wing is also responsible for writing the CDCs for the AFSCs which it trains. ==Lineage==