The
8th Ground Air Support Command was organized on 28 April 1942 at
Bolling Field, Washington, D.C. commanded by Col. Robert C. Candee and assigned to
8th Air Force. Col. Candee was promoted to Brigadier General. The command moved to
Savannah, Georgia the following month, joining its parent, 8th Air Force. the command
headquarters, but not its assigned units, for England in July, but did not open its headquarters at
RAF Membury in Berkshire until 17 August. The mission of VIII Ground Air Support Command was initially training reconnaissance and troop transport units. In February 1943, the command's mission was expanded to carrying out medium bombardment operations against the enemy on the Continent. In February 1941, the first
Martin B-26 Marauder medium bombers were accepted by the
Army Air Forces. It was to be in the European theater where the Marauder was to achieve its greatest success. In the United Kingdom, the Marauder formed the
medium bomber forces of the VIII Air Support Command. The first B-26s arrived in the United Kingdom in February 1943. They were to be used in low-level missions against German military targets on the Continent. On 16 October 1943, the B-26 Marauder units were reassigned to
IX Bomber Command, leaving the command without operational units. Its command staff was reassigned to other units, and the command was disbanded on 1 December 1943. ==Lineage==