World War II The unit was activated on 15 January 1941 as the
55th Bombardment Squadron (Light), a Southeastern Air District
Army Air Corps training squadron, assigned to the
48th Bombardment Group. Flying
Douglas A-20 Havoc bombers out of
Hunter Field, Savannah, Georgia, the squadron briefly flew
antisubmarine patrols, from March to April 1942, before resuming aircrew training. Between 1960 and 1972, the squadron's F-100 fleet trained with USAFE and NATO to react to aggression from the Soviet Union. They underwent a series of NATO tactical evaluations. The squadron conducted several deployments to Turkey, Italy, Spain, and across the United Kingdom. The 492nd also frequently deployed for training at
Wheelus Air Base, Libya, until 1969, when
Muammar Gaddafi, who had recently taken power, asked the United States to leave the country. On 1 October 1971, the 492nd TFS stood down from its NATO obligations, allowing it to convert to the
McDonnell Douglas F-4D Phantom II.
Modern era , Afghanistan, 2007. Redesignated as the
492nd Fighter Squadron (492nd FS) on 1 October 1991, the Bolars switched aircraft again, exchanging the F-111Fs for the McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle in early February 1992. This continued to add to the previous 50 years of flying the air-to-ground mission with one of the most capable multi-role/air-to-ground jets in the current Air Force inventory. Between 23 March and 10 April 2008, the squadron was assigned to the
404th Air Expeditionary Group of the
323d Air Expeditionary Wing and deployed F-15 fighters to the
Câmpia Turzii Air Base,
Romania in support of Operation Noble Endeavor. The squadron flew on air policing missions with the
Romanian Air Force for the
2008 Bucharest summit. During the three-day summit, the 492nd flew three air patrols over
Bucharest in addition to the alerts, and further protected President
George W. Bush during his trip to
Croatia. The squadron participated in Operation Odyssey Dawn in Libya in March 2011, along with numerous deployments to Southwest Asia supporting Air Expeditionary units as part of the ongoing Global War on Terrorism as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). Because of the squadron's extreme combat effectiveness and achievement of total air dominance in the AO, they were awarded the Raytheon Trophy, a first for any Strike Eagle squadron and multi-role aircraft. Between July and August 2019, the Bolars deployed to the U.S. with 14 F-15Es, initially to participate in
Red Flag 19–3 at Nellis AFB, before spending two weeks at Mountain Home AFB alongside the 366th Fighter Wing for Weapon System Evaluation Program (WSEP) exercises 'Combat Hammer' and 'Combat Archer'. At least one of the three F-15E Strike Eagles which were shot down in a
friendly fire incident by
Kuwaiti Air Force F/A-18Cs on 2 March 2026 during the
Iran War was operated by the 492nd.
The Madhatters / Bolars nickname While stationed at Chaumont Air Base, France, the Madhatters were seen wearing
berets. When they moved to England, the squadron adopted the
bowler hat, a traditional English hat with a rounded crown. The tradition of wearing the bowler hat has continued to present day despite the lack of official uniform regulations authorizing such wear. Due to the limit of five characters for a flight callsign, the squadron uses "Bolar" instead of bowler when conducting local flying. The 48th Fighter Wing official website (www.lakenheath.af.mil) has used the 'Madhatters' nickname in articles dated 2006, 2010, and occasionally since. However, in more recent years (e.g. articles dated 2017, 2020, and 2022), the use of 'Bolars' now appears more common. The practice of adopting headgear of the various geographic regions the 492nd Fighter Squadron is sent to continues. In Turkey, each deployed Madhatter wears a blue
fez hat. ==Lineage==