The 43rd has a long history beginning 17 August 1917, as the
86th Aero Squadron. It served as part of the zone of advance in France during the latter part of World War I. Then in 1935, it was an observation squadron operating as part of the
Air Corps Tactical School at
Maxwell Field, Alabama. Beginning 7 December 1941, the squadron conducted patrols over the Hawaiian islands. The squadron then switched yet again. As a combat mapping squadron, the unit's aircrews flew over Japanese held islands photographing and mapping the terrain and enemy positions. The 86th prepared the way for the taking of the Marshall Islands,
Wake Island,
Saipan,
Guam, and
Iwo Jima. Finally, in 1944, the squadron made the first photographic mosaics of
Tokyo. The squadron was redesigned as the
43rd Reconnaissance Squadron (Long Range Photographic) in 1945 then was inactivated in 1946. . In January 1954, the 43rd was again activated, this time at
Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. The squadron was initially equipped with the
Martin RB-57 Canberra. However, once the Air Force received enough
Douglas RB-66B Destroyer to equip more than a single squadron, the squadron transitioned to the Destroyer. It accomplished a night photographic mission. The unit was inactivated in 1959. Redesignated the
43rd Electronic Combat Squadron, the unit was activated 6 June 1986, at
Sembach Air Base, Germany. It served in Europe until 1991, then came to
Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and the
355th Wing on 1 May 1992, as the sister squadron to the 41st. The 43rd earned a combat streamer for its duties in World War I and six more for missions flown in the Pacific during World War II. The squadron began converting to the
L3Harris EA-37B Compass Call, with the first plane being delivered on 23 August 2024 to begin pilot training. It flew its first EA-37 mission with a full mission crew in early May 2025. The EA-37B is a wide-area airborne electromagnetic attack weapon system. It uses a heavily modified version of the
Gulfstream G550 airframe, and will replace the EC-130H as a more modern and cost-effective aircraft. By the time this mission was flown, ten of the squadron's fourteen EC-130H aircraft had been divested. In late March 2026, the 43rd deployed two of their EA-37Bs from Davis Monthan AFB. The squadron’s deployment was to the Middle East, to begin combat sorties within Operation Epic Fury against Iran. ==Lineage==