World War II The unit was constituted as the
479th Fighter Group on 12 October 1943 and activated on 15 October at Grand Central Air Terminal, near
Long Beach, California. Equipped with the
Lockheed P-38 Lightning, the group trained for combat and served as an air defense organization for the west coast as part of
IV Fighter Command of
Fourth Air Force. It was stationed at
Santa Maria Army Air Field, California Even though the defense of the US west coast initially took priority, it was decided to deploy Lightning squadrons to Britain for heavy bomber escort duty. The 479th was reassigned to
RAF Wattisham, England, April–May 1944, and assigned to the
65th Fighter Wing, VIII Fighter Command,
Eighth Air Force. The 479th group consisted of three Fighter Squadrons, (
434th (L2),
435th (J2), and 436th (9B)) and the aircraft of the group had no cowling color markings as did other Eighth Air Force fighter groups. 479th P-38s were marked only with colored tail rudders. The initial inventory of P-38s, many of which were hand-me-downs from other groups painted in olive drab camouflage, used geometric symbols on the tail to identify squadrons, white for camouflaged aircraft and black for unpainted (natural metal finish) Lightnings. The 479th FG escorted heavy bombers during operations against targets on the Continent, strafed targets of opportunity, and flew fighter-bomber, counter-air, and area-patrol missions. Engaged primarily in
B-17/
B-24 escort activities and fighter sweeps until the
Normandy invasion in June 1944. The group patrolled the beachhead during the invasion. Strafed and dive-bombed troops, bridges, locomotives, railway cars, barges, vehicles, airfields, gun emplacements, flak towers, ammunition dumps, power stations, and radar sites while on escort or fighter-bomber missions as the
Allies drove across France during the summer and fall of 1944. The unit flew area patrols to support the breakthrough at
Saint-Lô in July and the
airborne attack on the Netherlands in September. The 479th Fighter Group received a
Distinguished Unit Citation for the destruction of numerous aircraft on airfields in France on 18 August and 5 September and during aerial battle near
Münster on 26 September. The unit continued escort and fighter-bomber activities from October to mid-December 1944. It converted to
North American P-51 Mustangs between 10 September and 1 October, using both types on missions until conversion was completed. The group participated in the
Battle of the Bulge (December 1944 – January 1945) by escorting bombers to and from targets in the battle area and by strafing transportation targets while on escort duty. From February to April 1945 it continued to fly escort missions, but also provided area patrols to support the
airborne attack across the Rhine in March. The unit returned to
Camp Kilmer, New Jersey in November 1945, and was inactivated in December 1945. Among the notable pilots of the 479th were its second group commander, Colonel
Hubert Zemke, with 17.75 confirmed aerial victories and Major
Robin Olds, who was officially credited with 12 German planes shot down and 11.5 others destroyed on the ground. The group remained in England after the end of the war in Europe, demobilizing most of its personnel. The group itself was inactivated as an administrative unit under
Army Service Forces in December 1945.
Cold War The group was reactivated at
George Air Force Base, California on 1 December 1952 as the
479th Fighter-Bomber Group. Under the postwar
United States Air Force, the group was the operational component of the new
479th Fighter-Bomber Wing. The 479th's three old World War II squadrons were retained and a new squadron, the 476th Fighter-Bomber/Tactical Fighter Squadron, assigned. The group trained and achieved tactical proficiency with initially with F-51D Mustangs (1952–53), later with F-86F Sabres (1953–55), and being re-designated as the
479th Fighter-Day Group on 15 February 1954. It participated in numerous exercises, augmented air defenses of the West Coast, and deployed overseas to support other commands. In 1955 the group's assigned squadrons were assigned directly to the Wing, when the unit adopted the "Tri-Deputate" organization, becoming non-operational. It was inactivated on 8 October 1957
Flying training Holloman AFB The 479th was reactivated as
479th Fighter Group at
Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico on 26 July 1991 under the
833d Air Division. The group assumed the downsized assets of the
479th Tactical Training Wing which was inactivated due to cutbacks in training after the end of the
Cold War, with the residual resources of the 479th TTW taken over by the
49th Fighter Wing at Holloman. The group controlled the AT-38s of the 434th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron briefly, providing Lead-In Fighter Training (LIFT) training for pilots assigned to fly the
McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. The group inactivated on 15 November 1991.
Moody AFB The unit was reactivated as the
479th Flying Training Group at
Moody Air Force Base, Georgia on 30 July 2001 as an
Air Education and Training Command unit. The group's activation was part of an effort to increase pilot production due to a pilot shortage at the time throughout the Air Force. Its mission at Moody was to conduct primary Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training and Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals training. The group consisted of three training squadrons. These were : •
49th Flying Training Squadron (AT-38C) •
435th Flying Training Squadron (AT-38C) •
3d Flying Training Squadron (T-6 Texan II) • 479th Operations Support Squadron These aircraft all carried the Tail Code "MY". The 49 FTS and 435 FTS also conducted an advanced pilot training and the Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals (IFF) course for recently winged USAF Navigator/
Combat Systems Officers en route to Weapons System Officer (WSO) assignments in the
F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft and recently winged pilots en route to the F-22, F-15C, F-15E, F-16, and A-10. The 3d FTS provided primary undergraduate pilot training. As a result of BRAC 2005, the 479 FTG was inactivated on 21 July 2007 and its aircraft and equipment were redistributed to other AETC units.
NAS Pensacola The 479 FTG was reactivated at
Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida on 2 October 2009. It is using
T-6A Texan IIs and
T-1A Jayhawks to train
Combat Systems Officers (i.e., Navigators/Electronic Warfare Officers/Weapons System Officers) for eventual assignment to various USAF aircraft. In this capacity, and pursuant to
BRAC action, the 479 FTG assumes responsibility for the successor program to USAF Undergraduate Navigator Training (UNT) previously conducted in the
T-43 Bobcat and
T-1A Jayhawk by the
12th Flying Training Wing at
Randolph AFB, Texas from 1993 to 2010 and the
T-43 Bobcat and
T-37 Tweet with the
323d Flying Training Wing at the former
Mather AFB, California from 1973 to 1993. ==Lineage==