World War II The
squadron was first activated in April 1943 in Australia as the
822nd Bombardment Squadron, a
North American B-25 Mitchell medium bomber squadron, along with the
823d Bombardment Squadron. After equipping, the 822nd moved to New Guinea, where it joined the other elements of the 38th Group. It flew bombardment missions against Japanese shipping and
airfields. The 822nd was awarded a
Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC) for bombing and strafing Japanese troops and
fortifications located on New Britain's
Cape Gloucester to prepare for an
amphibious attack on the island in December 1943. It earned a second DUC for attacks on Japanese ships and airfields on 16 and 17 June 1944. The 822nd moved to the
Molucca Islands in November and attacked targets in the Philippines to prepare for
the American attack on Leyte. In November it struck a large enemy convoy in
Ormoc Bay, preventing Japanese reinforcements from reaching the battle area, for which it was awarded its third DUC. After moving to the Philippines, it continued to support ground forces fighting there, while also flying missions along the Chinese coast and to Formosa. Photo taken in 1956. The 822nd was reactivated at
Laon-Couvron Air Base, France on 1 January 1953. a
Missouri Air National Guard squadron that had been
mobilized for the
Korean War, but was being returned to State control at the end of its active duty tour. Over the next two years, the squadron completed an upgrade of its Invader force to planes equipped for night intruder missions. As facilities at Laon were completed, it was able to move from tents to permanent buildings. In January 1955, the squadron's pilots began flying missions in jet
Lockheed T-33 T-Birds to prepare them for conversion to
Martin B-57B Canberras. It would not be until the end of the year before the first B-57Cs, equipped with dual controls were on hand, so for some squadron pilots, their first solo in the Canberra was also their first flight in the bomber. In July 1955, the squadron's mission was changed from night intruder missions to the delivery of nuclear weapons. Starting in January 1956, the squadron, along with the other squadrons of the 38th Wing, began to rotate aircrews and aircraft to
Landstuhl Air Base, where they stood alert with
nuclear weapons (called Zulu Alert). The squadron also participated in the wing's maintenance of twelve aircraft on
alert at its home station. To maintain efficiency in its operational mission, the squadron deployed to
Wheelus Air Base, Libya for gunnery and bombing practice. In December 1957, the
38th Bombardment Wing converted to the dual deputy organization. The 38th Bombardment Group was inactivated and the squadron was assigned directly to wing headquarters.
Conversion to missile unit The end of the B-57 bomber mission in Europe did not, however, result in the inactivation of the squadron. On 18 June, the 38th Wing moved to Germany, where it replaced the
701st Tactical Missile Wing. The 822nd moved on paper to
Sembach Air Base, where it became the
822nd Tactical Missile Squadron and assumed the mission, personnel and
Martin TM-61 Matador missiles of the
11th Tactical Missile Squadron, which was simultaneously inactivated. The wing's squadrons were dispersed among several bases in Germany, and the squadron was assigned to the missile group at Sembach, the
587th Tactical Missile Group. In September 1962, the 38th Wing reorganized, eliminating its groups. As a result, the squadron was now assigned directly to the 38th Tactical Missile Wing. At the same time, the wing completed its upgrade from Matadors to the
TM-76 Mace missile. The Mace was a development of the Matador, with an internal guidance system. This reorganization included the activation of two additional squadrons at Sembach, the
823rd and
887th Tactical Missile Squadrons, which took over the operation of Sites 2 and 3 from the 822d. It then remained as a tactical missile unit until 1966 when the A model of the Mace was retired and the last missiles were shipped to
Eglin Air Force Base. Florida to be used as targets. By the time the Gryphons were fully deployed in 1987, talks between the United States and the Soviet Union had begun that led to the signing of the
Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, banning the missiles from Europe. The last missiles were gone by May 1991, and the squadron inactivated on the 27th of that month. ==Lineage==