World War II Initial training and deployment The 561st was first activated as the
561st Bombardment Squadron at
Gowen Field, Idaho, one of the four original
squadrons of the
388th Bombardment Group, in December 1942. The
cadre that formed at Gowen moved to
Wendover Field, Utah in February 1943, where the unit was fully manned and squadron training with
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers began. Training continued until June 1943, when it deployed to England. The air echelon ferried its B-17s to England via the northern ferry route, while the ground echelon departed for
Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, the port of embarkation, sailing in the on 1 July.
Combat in Europe The squadron assembled at
RAF Knettishall, its combat station, and flew its first combat mission on 17 July, when it attacked an aircraft factory in
Amsterdam. The squadron primarily engaged in the
strategic bombing campaign against Germany, attacking industrial sites, oil
refineries and storage facilities, communications centers and naval targets on the European Continent. The squadron trained under the supervision of
Air Defense Command (ADC)'s 141st AAF Base Unit (Reserve Training) (later the 2471st Air Force Reserve Flying Training Center), although it does not appear that it was fully manned or equipped. In July 1948
Continental Air Command (ConAC) assumed responsibility for managing reserve and
Air National Guard units from ADC. ConAC moved the squadron to
General Mitchell Field, Wisconsin in September 1948. The 561st was inactivated when President
Truman's reduced 1949 defense budget required reductions in the number of units in the Air Force, With the squadron's inactivation reserve flying operations at Mitchell ended until 1952, when the
438th Troop Carrier Wing was activated there.
Fighter operations in Europe The squadron was redesignated the
561st Fighter-Bomber Squadron and activated at
Clovis Air Force Base, New Mexico in November 1953. A year after activation, in November 1954, the squadron was transferred to
United States Air Forces Europe and departed, along with other elements of the
388th Fighter-Bomber Wing, for
Étain-Rouvres Air Base, France. However, construction at Etain was not far enough advanced to permit it to accept fighter aircraft, and only the wing
headquarters settled in to the base. Instead, the squadron ferried their Sabres to
Hahn Air Base, Germany, arriving the following month. Little flying was done in the squadron's first winter in Europe due to weather. It deployed to
Wheelus Air Base, Libya in April 1955, where it was able to train in gunnery and bombing for the first time since arriving in Europe. The squadron was the last of the wing's operational units to rejoin the wing at its permanent base in France. Starting in November 1955, the squadron provided support for Detachment 1 of the 388th Wing at Hahn, and deployed there to stand nuclear
alert. The detachment moved to
Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany in February 1956. In August 1956, the squadron began training to convert to the
North American F-100 Super Sabre. The conversion was completed by May 1957. However, the squadron flew the "Hun" for less than a year. On 10 December 1957, the
49th Fighter-Bomber Wing moved from Japan on paper to replace the 388th Wing, The 561st was inactivated and its mission, personnel and aircraft transferred to the
7th Fighter-Bomber Squadron.
F-105 fighter operations The squadron was redesignated the
561st Tactical Fighter Squadron and organized at
McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas in October 1962 and assigned to the
388th Tactical Fighter Wing. In February 1964, the 388th was replaced at McConnell by the
23d Tactical Fighter Wing. The 561st was equipped with the
Republic F-105 Thunderchief. The squadron conducted tactical operations and training in preparation for global deployment and deployed to
Yokota Air Base, Japan in 1965. After 1966, the squadron conducted replacement training in the F-105, conducting frequent deployments to
George Air Force Base, California.
Wild Weasel operations Wild Weasel operations became the squadron's primary mission in mid-1970, when the squadron exchanged its single seat F-105s for two seat F-105G Thunderchiefs. In April 1972, the squadron established Detachment 1 at
Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand and flew combat Wild Weasel missions. The detachment was discontinued in September, but crews and planes of the squadron continued to fly missions until late January 1973. The squadron was awarded the
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with
"V" Device and the
Vietnamese Gallantry Cross with Palm for this period. On 1 July 1973, the 561st moved to
George Air Force Base and joined the
35th Tactical Fighter Wing. At George, the squadron mission was primarily the training of Wild Weasel crews. The squadron continued to fly the F-105G until 1980, when it began transitioning into the
McDonnell F-4G Phantom II advanced Wild Weasel, completing the transition the following year. In August 1990, the Wild Weasels deployed to
Sheikh Isa Air Base, Bahrain and during
Operation Desert Storm flew over 2,400 sorties logging more than 8,000 combat hours. After the war, the squadron was inactivated on 30 June 1992. The squadron was activated at
Nellis Air Force Base as part of the
57th Operations Group on 1 February 1993. the 561st soon deployed to
Incirlik Air Base in support of
Operation Provide Comfort and returned to
Southwest Asia at
Dhahran Air Base in Saudi Arabia, supporting
Operation Southern Watch and
Operation Vigilant Warrior. The 561st was also employed as an "Aggressor" squadron during
RED FLAG exercises. In 1994, the 561st became the largest fighter squadron in the
United States Air Force. It maintained a continuous deployment to the Middle East until inactivating in October 1996.
Joint tactics The squadron was redesignated the
561st Joint Tactics Squadron and activated at Nellis in May 2007 in its current role. It was reassigned to the
USAF Weapons School and renamed the
561st Weapons Squadron in July 2019. ==Lineage==