World War I The
squadron was organized at
Kelly Field, Texas in August 1917 as the
88th Aero Squadron. It deployed to France on in November 1917 and served on the
Western Front during
World War I . It engaged in combat as a corps observation squadron from 30 May 1918 until the
Armistice of 11 November 1918, primarily with
Salmson 2A2s. After the armistice, it served in the
occupation force, until June 1919 when the squadron returned to the United States.
Inter-War era Observation operations The squadron returned from Europe in the summer of 1919 and in July was stationed at
Scott Field, Illinois, where it began to equip with
Dayton-Wright DH-4s and
Douglas O-2s. In the fall, it moved to
Langley Field, Virginia, where it became part of the
1st Army Observation Group. In 1921, it was reassigned to the
Air Service Field Officers School, as the
88th Squadron, but it was soon attached to the
1st Provisional Air Brigade for operations. With the 1st Brigade, it participated in demonstrations of the effectiveness of aerial bombardment on capital warships from June to September 1921. It deployed a detachment to
Charleston, West Virginia for service in connection with
civil disorders arising from West Virginia coal strikes in September 1921. The squadron became the
88th Observation Squadron in 1923. In May 1927, the squadron moved to
Brooks Field, Texas, where it was assigned to the
Air Corps Training Center, as reserve officers were withdrawn from the 5th Division. The squadron was again activated at
Post Field, Oklahoma on 1 June 1928 and assigned to
Eighth Corps Area. However, it was attached to the
Field Artillery School to provide support for the school's training mission. Although initially equipped with O-2s, it replaced them in 1930 with
Thomas-Morse O-19s. It also carried
Douglas O-31 monoplane observation aircraft and
Douglas C-1 transport on strength.
World War II Operations in the Pacific The squadron's B-17s being ferried came under attack during their arrival at
Hickam Field, Hawaii on 7 December in the middle of the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor. Some of the planes managed to land at
Haleiwa Fighter Strip, one set down on a golf course, and the remainder landed at Hickam under the strafing of Japanese planes. Following the attacks in Hawaii and the Philippines, the decision was made to divert the 7th Bombardment Group to Java, where it would be reunited with its ground echelon and begin operations there starting in January 1942. However, the 88th Squadron air echelon did not proceed across the Pacific with the other elements of the 7th Group, but remained behind to serve in the
air defense of Hawaii until 10 February 1942. It spent a brief period flying missions from
Nandi Airport in the Fiji Islands, before proceeding to
Townsville Airfield, Australia later that month. However,
Clayton Bissell, commander of
Tenth Air Force considered the B-17 unsuitable for the long range operations from India, and in August 1942, the decision was made to convert the group to a
Consolidated B-24 Liberator unit. Squadron operations were primarily directed against Japanese installations in Burma (Myanmar). The squadron attacked airfields, supply dumps, locomotive manufacturing facilities, and vulnerable sites in the Japanese
line of communications, including docks, warehouses and shipping. Other targets included power plants in China oil refineries and railroads in Thailand, and shipping in the Andaman Sea. In November 1948, the wing began to receive B-36Bs, which were capable of carrying nuclear weapons, By 1951, almost all B-36As and B-36Bs had been withdrawn from service to be modified to newer configuration. The 7th Wing conducted the first overseas deployment of the B-36 in January 1951, to
RAF Lakenheath.
Strategic Air Command (SAC)’s mobilization for the
Korean War highlighted that SAC wing commanders focused too much on running the base organization and not spending enough time on overseeing actual combat preparations. To allow wing commanders the ability to focus on combat operations, the air base group commander became responsible for managing the base housekeeping functions. Under the plan implemented provisionally in 1951, combat squadrons reported directly to the wing commander, who focused primarily on the wing's combat units and the maintenance necessary to support them. The plan became permanent in June 1952, as the 7th Bombardment Group was inactivated. From July to September 1955, the squadron deployed with the wing to
Nouasseur Air Base, Morocco.
B-52 era In 1958, the squadron began to replace its B-36s with
Boeing B-52F Stratofortresses. SAC bases with large concentrations of bombers made attractive targets. SAC’s response was to break up its wings and scatter their aircraft over a larger number of bases. SAC began to disperse its B-52 bombers over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike. On 15 April 1958, SAC ended its B-47 operations at
Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, when the
301st Bombardment Wing moved to
Lockbourne Air Force Base, Ohio, where it replaced the
26th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing. 1 August 1958, the 436th dispersed to Barksdale. where it became the strike element of the new
4238th Strategic Wing. Soon after detection of Soviet missiles in Cuba in 1962, on 20 October all B-52 units, including the 436th, were directed to put two additional planes on alert. On 22 October 1/8 of the B-52s were placed on airborne alert. On 24 October SAC went to
DEFCON 2, placing all aircraft on alert. On 21 November SAC returned to normal airborne alert posture. On 27 November SAC returned to normal ground alert posture as tensions over Cuba eased. In February 1963, The
2nd Bombardment Wing moved on paper from
Hunter Air Force Base, Georgia and assumed the aircraft, personnel and equipment of the 4238th Strategic Wing, which was discontinued. The 4238h was a
Major Command controlled (MAJCON) wing, which could not carry a permanent history or lineage, and SAC wanted to replace it with a permanent unit. The 436th was inactivated and its mission, personnel and equipment were transferred to the 2nd Wing's
20th Bombardment Squadron. While these actions were almost tantamount to redesignation, they were not official redesignations."
Training operations The squadron reactivated in July 1986 at
Carswell Air Force Base, Texas as the
436th Strategic Training Squadron to supported the SAC mission through classroom instruction, multimedia production, and training aid fabrication. With the disestablishment of SAC and
Tactical Air Command in June 1992, the term "strategic" was dropped from the squadron name and the squadron was reassigned to
Air Combat Command as the
436th Training Squadron. In 1993, the squadron moved to
Dyess Air Force Base, Texas when Carswell became a joint reserve base. The squadron continues to provide classroom instruction for over 10 courses to students from every major command and multimedia productions used throughout the Department of Defense. ==Lineage==