World War II The squadron was first activated at
MacDill Field, Florida in December 1942 as the
555th Bombardment Squadron, one of the four original squadrons of the
386th Bombardment Group. After training at MacDill and
Lake Charles Army Air Field, Louisiana with the
Martin B-26 Marauder, it departed for the
European Theater of Operations in early May 1943. The ground echelon sailed on the on 27 May, while the air echelon ferried their Marauders to Europe via both the North Atlantic and South Atlantic ferry routes. Upon arrival in England, the squadron was stationed at
RAF Snetterton Heath. However,
Eighth Air Force had decided to transfer its B-26 units from
VIII Bomber Command to
VIII Air Support Command and move them to stations closer to the European continent, so a week after its arrival, the squadron moved to
RAF Boxted. This move also put the squadron's base in an area where it was planned to locate a future tactical air force. The squadron's entry into combat was delayed by the fact that its training in the United States had concentrated on low level attacks, while Eighth Air Force had determined to use the Marauders in medium level attacks to avoid light
flak. This required additional training. Although some diversionary missions were flown, the squadron did not fly its first combat mission, an attack on
Woensdrecht Airfield, until 30 July. During its first month of combat the squadron concentrated on attacks on enemy
air bases, although it also attacked
gun positions and
marshalling yards. In an effort to improve accuracy, the squadron participated in the 386th Group's first use of "drop on leader" tactics and revised formations in the European Theater on 2 September. The following month, the squadron flew its last mission with Eighth Air Force on 8 October when it attacked an airfield near
Lille. Shortly after its transfer to
Ninth Air Force, the squadron began participating in an extensive campaign against
V-1 flying bomb and
V-2 rocket sites in
Operation Crossbow. During
Big Week, the squadron attacked airfields in Belgium and the Netherlands to weaken enemy
air defenses against the
heavy bombers striking the German aircraft industry in
Operation Pointblank. In preparation for
Operation Overlord, the invasion of the continent, it attacked airfields, marshalling yards and gun positions. In late May, just before the landings, it concentrated on bombing bridges across the
Seine to interfere with possible enemy reinforcement of the landing areas. On
D-Day it hit
coastal defenses, and during the fighting in Normandy, struck fuel and supply depots,
lines of communication and enemy positions. The squadron provided
air support for
Allied forces attacking
Caen and on 25 July supported
Operation Cobra, the breakout at
Saint Lo. For its efforts against enemy opposition since entering combat the previous summer, the squadron was awarded the
Distinguished Unit Citation. During August, the squadron supported ground forces closing the
Falaise gap to prevent surrounded German forces from escaping. September saw the squadron conducting attacks in the area of
Brest. In October, the squadron moved to
Beaumont-sur-Oise Airfield, an
advanced landing ground in France to be closer to allied forces advancing through northern Europe. From its location on the continent, it attacked
Metz, targets in the Netherlands, and depots and defended areas in Germany. During the
Battle of the Bulge in December 1944 and January 1945, it concentrated on attacks on bridges. Shortly after the fighting in the
Ardennes, the squadron was withdrawn from combat to convert from the Marauder to the
Douglas A-26 Invader. It flew missions with its new plane from
Sint-Truiden Airfield, Belgium through May 1945. The squadron's last mission was on 3 May, an attack on the
Stod Ammunition Plant in Czechoslovakia. After
V-E Day the squadron remained in Belgium until July, when it returned to the United States, inactivating at
Westover Field, Massachusetts on 7 November 1945.
Vietnam Era & Late Cold War Era On 8 January 1964, the 555th re-emerged at
MacDill Air Force Base, Florida as the 555th Tactical Fighter Squadron (555 TFS), operating the
McDonnell F-4C Phantom II. The squadron was organized from elements of the 557th, 558th and 559 TFS at MacDill, when the parent
12th Tactical Fighter Wing (12 TFW) reduced the number of aircraft from three squadrons of 25 aircraft each to four squadrons of 18 aircraft. The conflict in Southeast Asia was escalating and throughout 1965 the wing supported
Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Contingency Operations by rotating combat squadrons quarterly to
Naha Air Base, Okinawa, in the Ryukyu Islands. At Naha AB, the squadrons were part of the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing (51 FIW) and performed as air defense interceptor squadrons for the Ryukyu Islands. The 555th had flown its planes to Naha AB in December 1964 on the first three-month rotation. Later, the 555th was chosen to return to Naha AB and left MacDill AFB on 6 November 1965 via
Boeing C-135 Stratolifter transports. The 555th relieved the 559th at Naha and assumed control of its F-4 aircraft and other assets. The 12 TFW was slated to open
Cam Ranh Base,
South Vietnam (RVN). The air defense mission in Okinawa could not be abandoned and a decision was made to keep the 555th there until a replacement unit could be identified. The remainder of the 12 TFW deployed to Cam Ranh beginning in November 1965. A
Convair F-102 Delta Dagger fighter-interceptor squadron at
Travis Air Force Base, California was picked to replace the 555th at Naha. The F-102 was not able to air refuel, so the F-102s were modified to a U.S. Navy and NATO style probe and drogue refueling configuration and the pilots trained to perform air refueling, a new concept for a fighter-interceptor squadron. The F-102s arrived at Naha in late February 1966. A decision was made to send the 555th to
Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base in northeastern Thailand, near
Vientiane, Laos, and not to join the other three 12 TFW squadrons at Cam Ranh. Cam Ranh could hold only four F-4C squadrons. 391 TFS had arrived at Cam Ranh awaiting runway construction at
Phan Rang Air Base, RVN. Until the 391st rejoined 366 TFW, the 12th could not accommodate the 555th (lack of space). The decision to assign 555th at Udorn was validated in April 1966 when the 555th downed five
North Vietnamese
Vietnam People's Air Force MiG fighters. A sixth MiG was downed by an F-4C from
Danang Air Base, RVN. Udorn was small and when a squadron of USAF
Lockheed F-104A Starfighters was brought there, it was decided to send two flights, half of the 555th, to
Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base. There was not enough billeting for the entire 555th at Ubon and what was available was not adequate for daytime rest. The 8 TFW was the resident unit at Ubon and were flying only night missions (Night Owl) into North Vietnam. During the first two weeks at Ubon, the 555th flew day strikes into North Vietnam. A barracks-type building was hastily constructed to house the entire 555th and the remaining half of the squadron was brought to Ubon in July 1966, at which time the entire squadron began flying Night Owl missions. However, the new building was not air conditioned, so the 555th flew from sunset to about 23:00 hours local time. The two squadrons of the 8 TFW flew the missions from 23:00 to sunrise. Later in 1966, the 555th was transferred from the 12 TFW to the 8 TFW. The 8 TFW later became known as the "Wolfpack" and the 555th led the first strike against MiG airfields in North Vietnam. The 555 TFS launched night bombing attacks against North Vietnam on 29 September 1967. While at Ubon, the 555th downed additional MiGs, including four
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21s on 2 January 1967 in
Operation Bolo. The unit thus became the only "Quad Ace" fighter squadron to that point, with 20 MiGs to its credit. In 1968, the 555th participated in the campaign against the
Ho Chi Minh Trail and the
Linebacker campaigns against the North Vietnam heartland in 1972. During Linebacker I and
Linebacker II, the 555th returned to its air superiority role and brought its MiG tally to 39 confirmed victories with ten
MiG-17s, three
MiG-19s, and 26 MiG-21s, producing the first and second USAF aces, and earning the motto, "World's Largest Distributor of MiG Parts". From 1966 to 1973, the 555th earned three more Presidential Unit Citations, five
Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards with Combat "V" device, the
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with palm, and the 1973 Hughes achievement award. Squadrons either stood down on a rotating basis or kept combat ready or at a reduced readiness level called "basic mission capable" for part or all of the remaining months in fiscal year 2013. This affected the 555th Fighter Squadron with a stand-down grounding from 9 April to 30 September 2013.
Operations •
World War II •
Vietnam War •
Operation Deny Flight •
Operation Deliberate Force •
Operation Deliberate Guard •
Operation Allied Force •
Operation Northern Watch •
Operation Southern Watch •
Operation Enduring Freedom •
Operation Iraqi Freedom •
Operation Freedom's Sentinel •
Operation Inherent Resolve ==Lineage==