Post World War II The 502nd Tactical Control Group (TCG) was established on 15 December 1945. Within the 502 TCG were the 607th Aircraft Control & Warning (AC&W), 606th Aircraft Control & Warning (now 606th Air Control Squadron,
Aviano, Italy) Squadrons. The unit consisted of 2,170 personnel. The primary focus of the 502 TCG was testing and evaluation of early warning radar for detection of adversary aircraft and control of friendly aircraft. In 1947, the 502 TCG was relocated to Greenville, SC and by mid 1947, the size of the squadron was reduced to 80 personnel with a mission set focused on aircraft control and interception. In August of that year, the squadron was relocated to Turner Air Force Base, GA.
Korean War Upon the outbreak of the
Korean War in 1950, the 607th Aircraft Control & Warning Squadron was mobilized and deployed to support
United Nations forces. The squadron sent four radar sets (AN/TPS1B), a MPQ-12 radar, as well as radio jeeps to be used by the
Tactical Air Control Parties (TACP). Due to the mishandling of equipment during the shipping process, much of the equipment was damaged. Some 5,000 boxes were utilized for all of the equipment and everything was hand packed. Upon arrival in country, the equipment was then loaded onto rail to be sent to
Daegu, where it was to be unloaded, packed onto trucks for the final journey to
Seoul. This processes further exacerbated the already damaged and delicate equipment. Several members were injured or killed during the journey. The move from
Busan took three trips and resulted in an ambush by
North Korean forces, leaving two airmen killed and much of the equipment damaged. By 14 October 1950, the 607 AC&W was established and operational at
Kimpo Airfield, Korea. Despite the damaged equipment and attrition from the journey, the remainder of 1950 operations resulted in 1,370 navigational steers of friendly aircraft and 11 allied aircraft saved. Due to the mobility of the 607 AC&W, Detachment 1 of the squadron was established and progressed northward. By the end of October, 1950, the 607 AC&W Det 1 set up camp and established operations in
Pyongyang, the capital city of North Korea. The remainder of the squadron continued to operate in Kimpo. In early November, 1950, the 607 AC&W progressed further north to
Anju. By this point, the squadron had moved to the
Forward Edge of the Battle Area (FEBA). Despite having been assured that the area was secured in allied control, Major W. H. Wilkin ordered the radar and equipment be set up that evening. The following morning, the U.S. Eighth Army approached from the south and the commander informed Major Wilkin that the North Korean Army had only just left the area. The 607 AC&W remained in Anju for less than a month while they assisted the 606 AC&W with
B-26 bombings northward up the
Yalu River. As winter set in and the temperatures dropped to nearly , much of the equipment and airmen struggled. None of the airmen were issued arctic weather gear and opted to wear multiple layers of uniforms to stay warm. By the end of November, 1950 the
Chinese People's Volunteer Army launched their overwhelming attack and forced the withdrawal of UN Forces southward. The airmen of Detachment 1, 607 AC&W packed their gear and began the withdrawal to Kimpo and by mid-December, all equipment was dismantled and airlifted to Daegu. All radar units within the 502 TCG (606 AC&W & 607 AC&W) were south of the 38th parallel. By the end of December 1950, Detachment 2 of the 607 AC&W was established at
Pohang. The detachment was equipped with a TPS-1B but lacked any height finding radar capabilities. By January 1951, UN Forces regained the initiative and Det 1 joined the offensive north toward
Pyeongtaek. In March 1951, the 607 AC&W moved and set up headquarters at Yoju Airstrip, this time with CPS-5 and CPS-4 radars, allowing for early warning and height finding capabilities. Summer of 1951 brought multiple bombing campaigns conducted by
Martin B-26 Marauder and
Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers, mostly in darkness and inclement weather. The 607 AC&W provided command and control for these operations. In June of that year, the 607 AC&W provided intercept control for
North American P-51 Mustang fighters which resulted in the shoot down of two enemy aircraft 65 miles north of their radar site at an altitude of 1,055 feet. On top of providing ground controlled intercepts and
offensive air operations, the controllers of the 607 AC&W provided safe guidance and returns to friendly airfields for lost or battle damaged aircraft almost daily. Additionally, the controllers guided helicopters to
rescue downed pilots, behind enemy lines. By July 1951, the 607 AC&W was responsible for control of all night fighters and
anti-aircraft artillery in its area of responsibility (AOR). In October 1957, the 607th Aircraft Control & Warning Squadron had been inactivated.
Post Vietnam era In October 1979, the 607th Tactical Control Squadron (TCS) was activated at
Tyndall Air Force Base in
Panama City, Florida. Its primary mission was to establish and provide a standardized training for all controllers for the Combat Air Force (CAF).
Modern era The 607th Air Control Squadron moved from Tyndall Air Force Base to Luke Air Force Base to be collocated with the 107th Air Control Squadron (Arizona Air National Guard), which had previously operated out of Papago Park in Phoenix, Arizona. The 107 ACS moved to Luke in 2009. The primary mission of the 107 ACS was to provide advanced training for Weapons Directors (WD). Together, the 107 ACS and 607 ACS provided training for controllers to the CAF before the 107 ACS was inactivated on 15 November 2013. The Control and Reporting Center integrated three distinct Air Force Specialty Codes (AFSC) into a unified career field, known as the Mission Systems Operator (MSO), in alignment with the objectives set forth by General Charles Brown Jr., Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force. Mission Systems Operators, now under the Multi-Capable Airmen Concept conduct the roles of Surveillance Technicians (ST), Interface Control Technicians (ICT) and Air Surveillance Technicians (AST). In the summer of 2024, the 607th Air Control Squadron deployed a crew to
Red Flag at
Nellis Air Force Base, NV to operate and employ utilizing Tactical Operating Center-Lite (TOC-L), the future replacement to 23A CRC employment. == Lineage ==