389th Fighter Squadron

The 389th Fighter Squadron is part of the 366th Fighter Wing at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. It operates McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft conducting close air support.

389th Fighter Squadron
389th Squadron F-15E
Active1943–1946; 1953–1959; 1962–1991; 1992–present
Country United States
Branch United States Air Force
RoleFighter
Part ofAir Combat Command
Garrison/HQMountain Home Air Force Base
Nickname(s)Thunderbolts
EngagementsEuropean Theater of Operations of World War II
Vietnam War
War in Afghanistan (2001-2021)[1]
DecorationsDistinguished Unit Citation
Presidential Unit Citation
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Combat "V" Device
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award
Belgian Fourragère
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm[1]
Commanders
Current
commander
Lt Col Randy Webb
Insignia
389th Fighter Squadron emblem (approved 15 September 1993)[1]
Original 389th Fighter Squadron emblem (approved 13 February 1945)[2]

History

World War II

389th Fighter Squadron Republic P-47D Thunderbolt[note 1]

The 389th flew combat in the European Theater of Operations from 14 March 1943 to 3 May 1945.[1]

An accident occurred on July 9th, 1943 at Rome Field, NY. A P-47D Thunderbolt of the 389th Fighter Squadron, 366th Fighter Group, 1st Air Force was involved in a landing accident-Republic P-47D-5-RE Thunderbolt USAAF Serial 42-8583 (MSN 731)

89th Ferrying Squadron, 2nd Ferrying Group,

       New Castle Field, Wilmington, DE; 

Accident 9Jul43 landing at Rome Field, NY; 389th FS, 366th FG, 1st AF,

       Bluethenthal Field, Wilmington, NC;

Crashed 19Sep43 after engine failure and destroyed by fire 15 miles N of Jacksonville, FL.

Lt. Col. John B. England, who was commander of the 389th Fighter-Bomber Squadron from Alexandria AFB, was killed when his F-86 crashed into the woods near Toul. He was returning from gunnery practice near Tripoli, Libya. The fog was very thick and visibility was near zero. After several attempts to locate the runway his plane suffered fuel starvation. At this moment he sighted a portion of the runway and was in a glide with a high probability of a successful landing. But his glide path took him over the barracks where his men were housed. He calmly stated on the radio that this was not an acceptable risk. He turned and crashed into a wooded area outside the base perimeter. In his honor, Alexandria AFB was renamed England Air Force Base, and retained that name until its closure in 1993.

Vietnam War

389th Tactical Fighter Squadron F-4D[note 2]

The squadron flew combat operations in Southeast Asia from 14 March 1966 to 8 October 1971.[1]

Recent operations

The squadron trained F-111 Aardvark aircrews from 30 September 1979 to 26 June 1991. It rotated aircraft and personnel to Southwest Asia throughout the 1990s in support of Operation Southern Watch. It furnished resources for units participating in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Noble Eagle following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States. Pilots and aircraft deployed from unit conducted close air support mission after 2005, although the unit itself remained in the United States.[1]

Lineage

  • Constituted as the 389th Fighter Squadron (Single-Engine) on 24 May 1943
Activated on 1 June 1943
Redesignated 389th Fighter Squadron, Single-Engine on 20 August 1943
Inactivated on 20 August 1946
  • Redesignated 389th Fighter-Bomber Squadron on 15 August 1952
Activated on 1 January 1953
Redesignated 389th Tactical Fighter Squadron 1 July 1958
Inactivated on 1 April 1959
  • Activated on 30 April 1962 (not organized)
Organized on 8 May 1962
Redesignated 389th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron on 30 September 1979
Inactivated on 22 July 1991
  • Redesignated 389th Fighter Squadron on 1 March 1992
Activated on 11 March 1992[1]

Assignments

Stations

Aircraft

References

Notes

  1. Aircraft is Republic P-47D-15-RE Thunderbolt serial 42-76347 nicknamed "Jenny Rebel"
  2. Aircraft is McDonnell F-4D-33-MC Phantom II serial 66-8820.

Citations

  1. Dollman, TSG David (4 October 2016). "Factsheet 389 Fighter Squadron (ACC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  2. Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 477–478
  3. Station number in Anderson.
  4. Station number in Johnson.

Bibliography

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