Origins - World War II The 72nd Air Refueling Squadron originated as the 72nd Troop Carrier Squadron on 3 January 1943. The squadron was activated on 9 February 1943 at
Alliance Army Air Field, Nebraska assigned to the
434th Troop Carrier Group. In September 1943 equipped with
Douglas C-47 Skytrains, the unit moved to
Baer Field, Indiana at which today is the Fort Wayne International Airport. Shortly thereafter the squadron deployed to Europe to fight alongside the British and other Allied Forces. During its time in Europe, the squadron operated out of
RAF Fulbeck, England,
RAF Aldermaston and finally out of
Mourmelon-le-Grand Airfield, France. It participated in airborne assaults on Normandy, the Netherlands, and Germany and the relief of Bastogne. It was credited with participation in the Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe campaigns. It earned the
Distinguished Unit Citation and
French Croix de Guerre with Palm for its participation in the airborne assault on Normandy, and later earned the French Fourragere. In addition to the C-47, the squadron also flew
Airspeed Horsa gliders, as well as
Waco CG-4 gliders during the war. After the war the 72nd returned to Baer Field, in August 1945 and then back to Alliance Army Air Field in September 1945. In October 1945 the unit moved to
George Field, Illinois, and finally in February 1946 it moved to
Greenville Army Air Base, South Carolina where it was inactivated on 31 July 1946. On 1 August 1947 the unit was reactivated as the 72nd Troop Carrier Squadron in the
reserves at Baer Field. It was assigned to the 434th Troop Carrier Group, equipped with C-47s.
Korean War - 1973 In July 1949 the squadron and group moved to
Atterbury Air Force Base, Indiana, which today is the Columbus Indiana Municipal Airport, where they transitioned to the
Curtiss C-46 Commando. Starting in May 1951 as part of the Korean mobilization the unit served under
Tactical Air Command's
Eighteenth Air Force for the next 21 months where it supported Army paratroop training in Georgia. In addition the 72nd participated in Exercises Southern Pine and Long Horn, as well as conducting routine airlift and troop carrier missions for Tactical Air Command. The squadron returned to Atterbury in February 1953. By 1957 Atterbury had been renamed Bakalar Air Force Base, and in the same year the 72nd converted to
Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars In 1962 as a result of the
Cuban Missile Crisis, the squadron served for 32 days supporting the deployment of Air Force strategic and tactical resources to the Southeast corner of the country and their redeployment there from. In July 1969, wing, group, and squadron were redesignated as tactical air support units and were reequipped with
Cessna U-3As and
Cessna O-2A Skymasters. On 31 December 1969, in connection with the closing of Bakalar, the 434th Wing was inactivated and the
931st Tactical Air Support Group and its squadron moved to
Grissom Air Force Base, IN. First reassigned to the
403rd Composite Wing on 1 June 1970 and then on 15 January 1971 to the
434th Special Operations Wing, concurrently activated and collocated with group and squadron at Grissom. On 1 March 1971, group and squadron converted to
Cessna A-37 Dragonflys and were redesignated as special operations units. On 15 September 1973, the 434th Wing was redesignated as a tactical fighter wing. On 1 October 1973, the 72nd Special Operations Squadron was inactivated in favor of the 46th Tactical Fighter Squadron because at the time another 72nd Tactical Fighter Squadron existed.
Air Force Reserve - Desert Storm On 18 May 1977 the squadron was redesignated as the 72nd Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy, and was assigned to the Air Force Reserve. HQ Air Force Reserve activated the 72nd Air Refueling Squadron on 1 July 1978. In July 1987 the 434th Tactical Fighter Wing was redesignated as the 434th Air Refueling Wing of which the 72nd was a part. In 1990 the 72nd as part of the 434th were recalled to active duty for the Gulf War and helped to form one of the largest tanker task forces ever assembled operating out of western Saudi Arabia. The 72nd and its partners flew more than 7,000 refueling missions, offloading fuel to more than 25,000 coalition aircraft. In June 1992, the 434th Air Refueling Wing with its
Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers and the
930th Fighter Group with its
Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt IIs merged to form a composite wing to include the 72nd and was designated the 434th Wing. In 1994 the A-10 squadron under the 434th inactivated and the 434th Wing reorganized as the 434th Air Refueling Wing once again.
Kosovo - Present During the 1990s the 72nd deployed personnel and aircraft numerous times to support "No Fly" operations in the Balkans, as well as Operations Northern and Southern Watch over Iraq. In May 1999, the 72nd and the 434th were activated to provide aerial refueling support to Operation Allied Force deployed out of Rhein Mein AB in Germany as part of the war in Kosovo. In September 2001, just days after the
September 11 terrorist attacks the squadron was activated for a year. The squadron initially deployed to the Pacific theatre to help provide a western air bridge in preparation for the
War in Afghanistan (2001-2021). Later during that year, the 72nd was deployed to a classified Southwest Asia location flying air refueling missions for U.S. and other allied fighters and bombers. The unit's activation ended in late summer of 2002, but 6 months later in Feb of 2003 the 72nd was again activated for a six-month stint in support of
Operation Iraqi Freedom. Most of the unit staged out of Moron AB, Spain, with a smaller elements staging out of
RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. Although the unit activation supporting the
Iraq War ended in late 2003, the 72nd continued to provide worldwide air refueling and air mobility support for Operations Noble Eagle, the War in Afghanistan, and the U.S. involvement in the
Iraq War (2003-2010). ==Lineage==