Military unit
The
802d Air Division
is a discontinued
United States Air Force
organization. Its last assignment was with
Strategic Air Command
, assigned to
Fifteenth Air Force
at
Schilling Air Force Base
, where it was inactivated on 20 June 1960.
Through most of its existence the division controlled
bombardment
wings flying
Boeing B-47 Stratojets
and based at Schilling. When its second wing was moved to another base as the B-47 was withdrawn from the
United States Air Force
inventory, only one SAC wing remained at Schilling and the division was inactivated.
History
[
edit
]
The
802d Air Division
was activated at
Smoky Hill Air Force Base
, Kansas in 1952 when
Strategic Air Command
(SAC) departed from the
wing base organization
system and created air divisions as the headquarters on bases with two operational wings. The
division
's components, the
40th Bombardment Wing
,
310th Bombardment Wing
, and 802d Air Base Group,
[2]
were all activated the same day as the division.
[3]
[4]
The 310th wing was activated at
Forbes Air Force Base
, Kansas, where it trained with the
Boeing B-29 Superfortress
under the supervision of the
90th Bombardment Wing
. It moved to Smoky Hill in September.
[4]
The 40th wing was not manned until early February 1953, when it began receiving personnel from the Tactical and Maintenance Squadron, Provisional, 40th at
Davis Monthan Air Force Base
, Arizona. This squadron had been formed as a holding organization for personnel surplus to the needs of the
43d Bombardment Wing
.
[3]
[5]
Once its personnel arrived at Smoky Hill, they began training with the 310th wing.
[3]
[4]
The division monitored and coordinated the manning, equipping, and training of its assigned wings for global strategic air warfare, including
bombardment
and
air refueling
operations and participated in
exercises
.
[1]
In 1954, both of the division's wings transitioned into the
Boeing B-47 Stratojet
. Once the wings became combat ready in the B-47, they periodically deployed to advanced bases in England. During these deployments the wings came under the operational control of the
7th Air Division
.
[3]
[4]
In March 1957 Smoky Hill was renamed Schilling Air Force Base
[6]
in honor of Col.
David C. Schilling
, who had died in an automobile accident the previous year.
[7]
In June 1960 the 40th wing moved on paper to Forbes Air Force Base, where it assumed the personnel and B-47s of the 90th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, which was inactivated.
[3]
[8]
With only a single wing remaining at Schilling, the 802d was inactivated and the 310th wing became the base host organization.
[1]
Lineage
[
edit
]
- Constituted as
802 Air Division
on 9 May 1952
- Activated on 28 May 1952
- Discontinued on 20 June 1960
[1]
Assignments
[
edit
]
Stations
[
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]
- Smoky Hill Air Force Base (later Schilling Air Force Base), Kansas, 28 May 1952 ? 20 June 1960
[1]
Components
[
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]
Wings
- 40 Bombardment Wing: 28 May 1952 ? 20 June 1960 (attached to 310th Bombardment Wing 6 February ? 1 May 1953; 7th Air Division 9 June 1955 ? 9 September 1955 and c. 1 July 1957 ? c. 1 October 1957)
- 310th Bombardment Wing: 28 May 1952 ? 20 June 1960
[1]
(attached to
21st Air Division
until 4 September 1952; 7th Air Division 10 March 1955 ? 8 June 1955 and 3 October 1956 ? 9 January 1957)
[4]
Groups
[
edit
]
- 802d Air Base Group (later 802d Combat Support Group), 28 May 1952 ? 20 June 1960
- 802d Medical Group, 1 February 1959 ? 20 June 1960
Squadrons
[
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]
Other
[
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]
- 4166th USAF Hospital, 15 February 1954 ? 1 February 1959 (attached to 802d Air Base Group after April 1954)
[10]
Aircraft
[
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]
Commanders
[
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]
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
Notes
[
edit
]
- Explanatory notes
- ^
Approved 27 August 1954. Description:
Per fess
reverse arched and enhanced
azure
and
gules
, on a
plate
winged to chief
or
two
hurts
conjoined
palewise
between two olive branches
vert
, in pale overall a falling bomb gray tarnished with two
mullets
palewise
argent
, in
chief
in
dexter
a dexter mailed hand of the last [color mentioned] grasping a lightning flash fesswise of the second [color mentioned] and in sinister a scroll surmounted by a quill pen
saltirewise
of the sixth [color mentioned] all within a diminished border of the fifth [color mentioned].
- Citations
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
"Factsheet 802 Air Division"
. Air Force Historical Research Agency. 11 October 2007. Archived from
the original
on 30 October 2012
. Retrieved
22 March
2014
.
- ^
"Abstract, History 802 Air Division May 1958"
. Air Force History Index
. Retrieved
3 April
2014
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Ravenstein, pp. 68?69
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
Ravenstein, pp. 158?159
- ^
Mueller, p. 103
- ^
"Abstract, History 802 Air Division Mar 1957"
. Air Force History Index
. Retrieved
3 April
2014
.
- ^
Newlon, Lt Col Clarke (January 1957).
"The Man Who Gave Us a SAC-full of Fighters"
. Air Force Magazine Vol. 40 No. 1
. Retrieved
14 March
2014
.
,
- ^
Ravenstein, pp. 123?125
- ^
"Abstract, History 802 Air Division"
. Air Force History Index. 1 March 1954
. Retrieved
3 April
2014
.
- ^
"Abstract, History 802 Air Division Nov 1955"
. Air Force History Index
. Retrieved
3 April
2014
.
Bibliography
[
edit
]
This article incorporates
public domain material
from the
Air Force Historical Research Agency