Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Ninth Air Force shopping experience:

1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Ninth Air Force offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Ninth Air Force at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.

2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about

3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Ninth Air Force? Wrong! If the Ninth Air Force is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.

4. Questions - Got a question about Ninth Air Force then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....

5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Ninth Air Force? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Ninth Air Force and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.

6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Ninth Air Force wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.

7. Feedback - happy with your Ninth Air Force then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.

8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Ninth Air Force site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site

9. Contact - got a question about Ninth Air Force, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.

10. Payment - ready to pay for your Ninth Air Force, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.

{{Infobox Military Unit|unit_name= 9th Air Force|image=|caption= Ninth Air Force|dates= 1942|allegiance=|branch= [United States Army Air Forces (1942-1945, 1946-1947)
United States Air Force (1947 - Present)]|current_commander=|garrison= Shaw Air Force Base
[Hoyt Vandenberg in [Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base in Sumter, South Carolina. It is an intermediate echelon responsible primarily for fighter units in the eastern United States.

Ninth Air Force also serves as headquarters for United States Central Command Air Forces component of the United States Central Command, serving as the air component for a 25-nation area within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.

Units The mission of Ninth Air Force is to project decisive air and space power for U.S. Central Command and America. It is responsible for five active-duty flying wings, as well as overseeing the operational readiness of 18 designated units of the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve.

Major units of Ninth Air Force are:



The 1st Fighter Wing at Langley AFB is the first operational F-22A wing. The 23d Fighter Group is scheduled to relocate to Moody AFB, Georgia in 2007

Non-Flying Units:



History Origins During World War II, the offensive air forces of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) came to be classified as strategic or tactical. A strategic air force was that with a mission to attack an enemy's war effort beyond his front-line forces. predominantly production and supply facilities, whereas a tactical air force supported ground campaigns, usually with objectives selected through co-operation with the armies.

In Europe, Eighth Air Force was the first USAAF strategic air force, with a mission to support an invasion of continental Europe from the British Isles. Originally equipped with tactical units, some of these units were transferred to the Twelfth Air Force which was formed in the United Kingdom in the fall of 1942. Twelfth Air Force was created to provide tactical air support for the Operation Torch later that year.

US Army Middle East Air Forces The USAAF began planning for a buildup of American air power in the Middle East in January 1942 in response to a request from the British Chief of the Air Staff. The initial unit to arrive was given the codename HALPRO (see Egypt-Libya Campaign). It was under the command of Col. Harry A. Halverson and consisted of twenty-three B-24D Liberator heavy bombers with hand-picked crews flown from Fort Myers, Florida.

On 12 June 1942, the HALPRO B-24s took off from Fayid, Egypt to bomb oilfields at Ploieşti, Romania. Only 12 aircraft were in the attack at dawn. 4 of the 13 landed at a base in Iraq which was designated for recovery of the flight, 3 landed at other Iraq fields, 2 landed in Syria, and 4 were interned in Turkey. Though damage to the target was negligible, the raid was significant because it was the first USAAF combat mission in the North African Theater of Operations and European Theater of Operations in World War II, and the first strike at a target which later will be famous.

On June 15, seven Halpro B-24s attacked units of the Italian fleet that were to intercept a convoy from Alexandria that was attempting to supply Malta. Though they score at least one direct hit on the battleship Littorio, the convoy ultimately failed to reach Malta under threat of the Italian ships.

One week later, on 17 June, the HALPRO mission was ordered to the vicinity of Cairo, Egypt to report to Brigadier General Russell L Maxwell, designated Commanding General U.S. Army Forces in the Middle East (USAMEAF). USAMEAF was comprised of the Halverson Detachment (HALPRO) and a detachment of B-17Ds from the 7th Bombardment Group (Heavy) at Allahabad, India led by Major General Lewis H Brereton, and other personnel which Brereton brought from India. The B-17Ds (some being Attack on Pearl Harbor and Battle of the Philippines (1941–42) survivors) were assigned to the China Burma India Theater to attack Japan from airfields in China, but after the fall of Rangoon the Burma Road was cut so the detachment could not be logistically supported in China and wound up in west India.

On 2 July 1942, additional B-17Es from the 7th Bomb Group arrived at Lydda, Palestine from India. On 20 July the B-24s and B-17s were formed into the 1st Provisional Group USAAF in Cairo.

Shortly afterward the USAAF deployed the 57th Fighter Group (P-40F); the 12th Bombardment Group (Medium) (B-25C), and the 98th Bombardment Group (Heavy) (B-24D) along with some Douglas C-47 Skytrain transports to bases in Egypt and Palestine. USAMEAF units took part in the British victory at the Second Battle of El Alamein in November 1942. Their operations demonstrated the importance of having heavy bombers in the theater as well as tactical air forces.

Activation Of Ninth Air Force On 12 November 1942 the USAMEAF was dissolved and replaced by HQ Ninth Air Force with the responsibility to (1) Gain air superiority; (2) Deny the enemy the ability to replenish or replace losses, and (3) Offer ground forces close support in North-East Africa.

Ninth Air Force in North Africa consisted of:







By the end of 1942 a total of 370 aircraft had been ferried to the Ninth Air Force. While the great majority were P-40's, B-24's, and B-25's, there were also more than 50 twin-engine transports, which made it possible to build an effective local air transport service. Ninth Air Force fighter supported the British Eighth Army's drive across Egypt and Libya, escorting bombers and flying strafing and dive-bombing missions against airfields, communications, and troop concentrations. Other targets attacked were shipping and harbor installations in Libya, Tunisia, Sicily, Italy, Crete, and Greece to cut enemy supply lines to Africa

In February 1943, after the Afrika Korps had been driven into Tunisia, the Germans took the offensive and pushed through Kasserine Pass before being stopped. With both Ninth and Twelfth Air Force units in the battle, the Allies drove the enemy back into a pocket around Bizerte and Tunis, where Axis forces surrendered in May Thus Tunisia became available for launching an attack on Sicily as a preliminary to an assault on Italy.

After the Allied victory in Tunisia, Ninth Air Force groups attacked airfields and rail facilities in Sicily and Italy. On one of these missions, the 376th Bomb Group B-24D Lady be Good (aircraft) Serial Number 41-24301, took off from the group's airfield at Benina Airfield in Soluch, Libya and failed to return to base. On 9 November 1958, British oil surveyors located the wreckage of the Lady Be Good 440 statute miles southeast of Soluch in the remote Libyan desert. It took several years for USAF personnel to recover the remains of all but one of the aircrew, some of which had walked nearly 100 miles from the crash site in an attempt to reach civilization. Pieces of the aircraft were recovered for evaluation and placed in various museums over the years, the rest of the aircraft being methodically stripped by souvenir hunters. However, in August 1994, the remains of the aircraft were recovered by a Libyan team led by Dr. Fadel Ali Mohammed and taken to a military base in Tobruk for safekeeping.

Ninth Air Force units took part in the Allied invasion of Sicily, the invasion of Sicily, carrying paratroopers and flew reinforcements to ground units on the island. Heavy bomb units of the Ninth participated in the famed Tidal Wave (1943) Romania on 1 August 1943.

In August and September 1943, Ninth Air Force units in North Africa were transferred to Twelfth Air Force in preparation for the move of the organization to the United Kingdom. The command was deactivated on 16 October 1943 in Egypt.

Pre-Invasion Buildup and Operations On 16 October 1943, Headquarters Ninth Air Force was reactivated at RAF Burtonwood, England and became the crucial and decisive tactical air force in Western Europe, under the command of USAAF General Hoyt S. Vandenberg. With the formation of Ninth Air Force in England, Ninth Air Force's mission became that of tactical support of ground units as part of the Operation Overlord, while Eighth Air Force retained the strategic bombing mission.

In the United Kingdom, the nucleus of the Ninth Air Force was formed in November 1943 by the transfer of some Eighth Air Force tactical bomber, fighter and troop carrier groups. These were designated as follows:







During the winter of 1943-44 Ninth Air Force expanded at an extraordinary rate, so that by the end of May, when the last combat group became operational, its complement ran to 45 flying groups operating some 5,000 aircraft (See Below). With the necessary ground support units, the total number of personnel assigned to Ninth Air Force was more than 200,000 - greater than that of Eighth Air Force.

The first mission for the Ninth was operation "Point Blank". Along with the Eighth Air Force, the Ninth was to smash the German Luftwaffe in the air and on the ground to bring about complete air supremacy prior to D-Day. In effect, the plan was to prepare the Ninth's units for their major role: that of direct tactical support for ground forces in the coming invasion. As part of this preparation, the 357th FG with its P-51 Mustangs, was transferred to the Eighth Air Force and the 358th FG and its P-47 Thunderbolts were transferred in. Operational missions involved attacks on rail marshaling yards, railroads, airfields, industrial plants, military installations, and other enemy targets in France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Other targets were German Atlantic Wall defenses along the English Channel coast of France.

Battle of Normandy On D-Day IX Troop Carrier Command units flew over 2000 sorties conducting combat parachute jumps and glider landings as part of American airborne landings in Normandy. Other Ninth Air Force units carried out massive air attacks with P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt fighter-bombers and B-25 Mitchell and B-26 Marauder medium bombers. Air cover during the morning amphibious assault by Allied forces on the beaches of France was flown by P-38 Lightnings.

With the beaches secure, its tactical air units then provided the air power for the Allied break-out from the Normandy beachhead in the summer of 1944 during the Battle of Cherbourg, Battle for Caen, and the ultimate breakout from the beachhead, Operation Cobra.

By early August most Ninth Air Force operational fighter and bomber groups were transferred to bases in France and assigned to the U. S. Twelfth Army Group. These groups were then assigned to Tactical Air Command (TAC) organizations which supported Army ground units. XXIX TAC supported the Ninth Army in the north; IX TAC supported the First Army in the center; and XIX TAC supported the Third Army in the south. Air cover over Allied-controlled areas on the continent was performed by the IX Air Defense Command. Ninth Air Force groups made numerous moves within France, the Low Countries and western Germany to keep within range of the advancing battle front before the end of hostilities in May 1945.

During Operation Dragoon, the invasion of Southern France in August 1944, two Ninth fighter groups were transferred to the provisional United States/Free French 1st Tactical Air Force supporting the invasion force's drive north. As part of Operation Market-Garden, Ninth Air Force transferred its entire IX Troop Carrier Command with its fourteen C-47 Skytrain groups to the 1st Allied Airborne Army in September 1944. Those troop carrier groups flew the many of the C-47s and towed CG-4 Waco gliders for the Allied airborne unit drops - Operation Market - to take the bridges northwest of Eindhoven at Son (mun. Son en Breugel), Veghel, Grave, Netherlands, Nijmegen and Arnhem in the Netherlands.

In December 1944 through January 1945, Ninth Air Force fighters and bombers were critical in defeating the Wehrmacht during the Battle of the Bulge. There was a noteworthy incident in which American, British, and Canadian air power was grounded by very bad winter weather, but then the bad weather broke, freeing those tactical air forces to help break the back of the Wehrmacht attack. For more information, see the film Patton (film), starring George C. Scott. The long smash across France, Belgium, and Luxembourg was the highlight of the existence of the 9th Air Force.

In the spring of 1945, Ninth Air Force troop carrier units flew airborne parachute and glider units again during Operation Varsity, the Allied assault over the Rhine River on 24 March 1945. Operation Varsity was the single largest airborne drop in history. The operation saw the first use of the C-46 transport in Europe, operating with the reliable C-47 Skytrain of previous airborne operations, an experiment which ended with the catastrophic loss of 28% of the C-46s participating.

Demobilization Ninth Air Force tactical air support operations were flown over western Germany until the end of hostilities on 7 May. However, once the victory had been gained, the United States plunged into demobilization, just as it had done at the end of the First World War.

Most officers and men were sent back to the United States and their units inactivated. Others were assigned to the new United States Air Forces in Europe and were moved to captured Luftwaffe airfields to perform occupation duties. Some transport units relocated to France. Finally, with the mission completed, on 2 December 1945 the Ninth Air Force was inactivated at USAFE Headquarters at Wiesbaden Germany.

Cold War

Following World War II, Ninth Air Force was reactivated on 28 March 1946 at Biggs Army Airfield, Texas. After several relocations, on 20 August 1954, Ninth Air Force Headquarters was assigned to Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, where it remains today. The postwar Numbered Air Forces were components of the new major command structure of the United States Air Force, and Ninth Air Force became one of the tactical air forces of the new Tactical Air Command. Ninth Air Force commanded TAC Wings east of the Mississippi River.

Initially being equipped with propeller-driven F-51, F-47 and F-82 aircraft during the postwar years, in the 1950s, Ninth Air Force units received the jet-powered P-80 Shooting Star, F-84 Thunderjet, F-86 Sabre, and F-100 Super Sabre aircraft. Ninth Air Force squadrons and wings were frequently deployed to NATO during the 1950s and 1960s as "Dual-Based" USAFE units, and reinforcing NATO forces in West Germany and France during the Lebanon crisis of 1958 and the 1961 Berlin Wall Crisis.

During the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, Ninth Air Force units went on war alert, deploying to bases in Florida, being able to respond to the crisis on a moments notice.

During the Vietnam War, detached Ninth Air Force units engaged in combat operations over Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. The practice of stripping away squadrons and aircraft from their home Tactical Air Command Wings and attaching them indefinitely to a new wing under PACAF was the method used for long-term deployments to the South Vietnam and Thailand air bases engaged in combat operations. In addition to these operational deployments, Ninth Air Force units performed a "backfilling" role in Japan and South Korea for PACAF as well as in Italy and Spain for USAFE to replace units whose aircraft and personnel were deployed to Southeast Asia. With the end of American involvement during the early 1970s, these units were returned in large part to their home Ninth Air Force units in the United States.

During the remainder of the 1970s, NATO deployments resumed supporting the COMET, CORONET and CRESTED CAP exercises. These deployments were designed to exercise CONUS based Air Force squadrons long range deployment capabilities and to familiarize the personnel with the European theatre of operations. During these NATO deployments, exercises with Army infantry and armored units were conducted to enhance the Close Air Support role in Europe.

Ninth Air Force Wings in 1979 were:



During the 1980s, Ninth Air Force wings upgraded from the Vietnam-Era F-4s and A-7s to newer F-15s, F-16 and A-10 aircraft. First-generation F-15A/B models were sent to Air National Guard units, being upgraded to the higher-capability F-15C/Ds and the new F-15E with the 4th TFW.

In 1980, Ninth Air Force units was allocated to President Carter Rapid Deployment Force, formally known as the Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force (RDJTF). In 1983 the RDJTF became a separate unified command known as the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), focusing on the Middle East. Ninth Air Force provided the aircraft, personnel and materiel to form United States Central Command Air Forces (CENTAF), the air power of CENTCOM, which is also headquarted at Shaw. Starting in 1981, Ninth Air Force aircraft and personnel were deployed to Egypt for BRIGHT STAR exercises.

During Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm, Ninth Air Force units deployed to the Middle East flew combat missions over Kuwait and Iraq. After the end of hostilities, units from the Ninth flew air missions over Iraq as part of Operation Deny Flight, Operation Northern Watch and Operation Southern Watch. Combat missions briefly resumed in 1998 during Operation Desert Fox.

With the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s, the 1991 Base Realignment and Closure Commission reductions meant the closing of Myrtle Beach and England AFB. MacDill AFB was realigned to be the headquarters of United States Central Command with tactical aircraft operations ended.

The restructuring of USAF CONUS forces by the deactivation of Tactical Air Command and subsequent creation of Air Combat Command realigned Ninth Air Force with new units and new missions. In addition, the effects of Hurricane Andrew at Homestead AFB on 24 August 1992 essentially destroyed the facility. Although both George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton promised to rebuild Homestead, the BRAC designated the installation for realignment to the Air Force Reserve, and on 1 April 1994, Headquarters, ACC inactivated its base support units, effectively ending ACC ownership of the base.

Global War On Terror Ninth Air Force units, flying as USCENTAF, flew operational missions during the 2002 Operation Enduring Freedom - Afghanistan (OEF-A) and the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The task of developing a comprehensive listing of Ninth Air Force/USCENTAF units present in the area is particularly difficult as the events of 11 September 2001 and the Global War on Terrorism has made such an effort significantly difficult. The USAF seeks to improve operational security (OPSEC) and to deceive potential enemies as to the extent of American operations, therefore a listing of which units deploying where and when is unavailable.

However, it is certain that CENTAF units are actively flying missions currently over both Afghanistan and Iraq.

Ninth Air Force Units During World War II This table shows the 1 June 1944 Order of Battle for the Ninth Air Force in the United Kingdom, prior to the deployment of units to the Continent. The United Kingdom airfield for the group is shown with the type aircraft used in parentheses.

Unlike Eighth Air Force, whose units stayed in the United Kingdom, Ninth Air Force units were very mobile, first deploying to France on 16 June 1944, ten days after the Normandy invasion by moving P-47 Thunderbolts to a beach-head landing strip.

Because of their short range, operational combat units would have to move to quickly-prepared bases close to the front as soon as the Allied ground forces advanced. The bases were called "Advanced Landing Grounds" or "ALGs". On the continent, many ALGs were built either from scratch or from captured enemy airfields throughout France, the Low Countries and Germany. Ninth Air Force units moved frequently from one ALG to another.

The Advanced Landing Grounds (ALG) on the continent for each group is included in the linked article about the unit.

IX Bomber Command (1943-45)





IX Bomber Command was headquartered at Marks Hall, England, 6 November 1943; Chartres, France, 18 September 1944; Reims, France, October 1944, and Namur, Belgium, April 1945.

It was inactivated on 20 November 1945.



IX Fighter Command (1943-45)
Direct Reporting Units



IX Tactical Air Command
Provided tactical air support in support of U.S. First Army.







Note: 71st Fighter Wing and subordinate groups transferred to IX Air Defense Command in September 1944, providing air defense for areas behind the advancing ground forces.

XIX Tactical Air Command)
Provided tactical air support in support of U.S. Third Army.





Note: 303d Fighter Wing and subordinate groups transferred to XXIX Tactical Air Command on 15 September 1944.

XXIX Tactical Air Command
(Activated 15 September 1944)
Provided tactical air support in support of U.S. Ninth Army.





Note: XXIX TAC established in France and initial activation Advanced Landing Ground shown for units assigned to command.IX Fighter Command was headquartered at Middle Wallop, England, 30 November 1943-July 1944; Les Obeaux, France, July 1944; Canisy, France, August 1944; Charleroi, Belgium, September 1944; Verviers, Belgium, October 1944; Bruhl, Germany, March 1945; Welmar, Germany, April 1945; Fritzlar, Germany, July 1945, and Erlangen, Germany, September 1945.

It was inactivated on 20 November 1945.



IX Troop Carrier Command (1943-45)
All Groups flew C-47/C-53 Aircraft, except as noted.







Notes:

IX Troop Carrier Command was headquartered at Cottesmore, England, 16 October 1943; Grantham, England, 1 December 1943; Ascot, England, 20 September 1944-5 September 1945. It returned to the United States and was headquartered at Stout AAF Indiana on 5 September 1945.

See also

References









External links

{{Infobox Military Unit|unit_name= 9th Air Force|image=|caption= Ninth Air Force|dates= 1942|allegiance=|branch= [United States Army Air Forces (1942-1945, 1946-1947)
United States Air Force (1947 - Present)]|current_commander=|garrison= Shaw Air Force Base
[Hoyt Vandenberg in [Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base in Sumter, South Carolina. It is an intermediate echelon responsible primarily for fighter units in the eastern United States.

Ninth Air Force also serves as headquarters for United States Central Command Air Forces component of the United States Central Command, serving as the air component for a 25-nation area within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.

Units The mission of Ninth Air Force is to project decisive air and space power for U.S. Central Command and America. It is responsible for five active-duty flying wings, as well as overseeing the operational readiness of 18 designated units of the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve.

Major units of Ninth Air Force are:



The 1st Fighter Wing at Langley AFB is the first operational F-22A wing. The 23d Fighter Group is scheduled to relocate to Moody AFB, Georgia in 2007

Non-Flying Units:



History Origins During World War II, the offensive air forces of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) came to be classified as strategic or tactical. A strategic air force was that with a mission to attack an enemy's war effort beyond his front-line forces. predominantly production and supply facilities, whereas a tactical air force supported ground campaigns, usually with objectives selected through co-operation with the armies.

In Europe, Eighth Air Force was the first USAAF strategic air force, with a mission to support an invasion of continental Europe from the British Isles. Originally equipped with tactical units, some of these units were transferred to the Twelfth Air Force which was formed in the United Kingdom in the fall of 1942. Twelfth Air Force was created to provide tactical air support for the Operation Torch later that year.

US Army Middle East Air Forces The USAAF began planning for a buildup of American air power in the Middle East in January 1942 in response to a request from the British Chief of the Air Staff. The initial unit to arrive was given the codename HALPRO (see Egypt-Libya Campaign). It was under the command of Col. Harry A. Halverson and consisted of twenty-three B-24D Liberator heavy bombers with hand-picked crews flown from Fort Myers, Florida.

On 12 June 1942, the HALPRO B-24s took off from Fayid, Egypt to bomb oilfields at Ploieşti, Romania. Only 12 aircraft were in the attack at dawn. 4 of the 13 landed at a base in Iraq which was designated for recovery of the flight, 3 landed at other Iraq fields, 2 landed in Syria, and 4 were interned in Turkey. Though damage to the target was negligible, the raid was significant because it was the first USAAF combat mission in the North African Theater of Operations and European Theater of Operations in World War II, and the first strike at a target which later will be famous.

On June 15, seven Halpro B-24s attacked units of the Italian fleet that were to intercept a convoy from Alexandria that was attempting to supply Malta. Though they score at least one direct hit on the battleship Littorio, the convoy ultimately failed to reach Malta under threat of the Italian ships.

One week later, on 17 June, the HALPRO mission was ordered to the vicinity of Cairo, Egypt to report to Brigadier General Russell L Maxwell, designated Commanding General U.S. Army Forces in the Middle East (USAMEAF). USAMEAF was comprised of the Halverson Detachment (HALPRO) and a detachment of B-17Ds from the 7th Bombardment Group (Heavy) at Allahabad, India led by Major General Lewis H Brereton, and other personnel which Brereton brought from India. The B-17Ds (some being Attack on Pearl Harbor and Battle of the Philippines (1941–42) survivors) were assigned to the China Burma India Theater to attack Japan from airfields in China, but after the fall of Rangoon the Burma Road was cut so the detachment could not be logistically supported in China and wound up in west India.

On 2 July 1942, additional B-17Es from the 7th Bomb Group arrived at Lydda, Palestine from India. On 20 July the B-24s and B-17s were formed into the 1st Provisional Group USAAF in Cairo.

Shortly afterward the USAAF deployed the 57th Fighter Group (P-40F); the 12th Bombardment Group (Medium) (B-25C), and the 98th Bombardment Group (Heavy) (B-24D) along with some Douglas C-47 Skytrain transports to bases in Egypt and Palestine. USAMEAF units took part in the British victory at the Second Battle of El Alamein in November 1942. Their operations demonstrated the importance of having heavy bombers in the theater as well as tactical air forces.

Activation Of Ninth Air Force On 12 November 1942 the USAMEAF was dissolved and replaced by HQ Ninth Air Force with the responsibility to (1) Gain air superiority; (2) Deny the enemy the ability to replenish or replace losses, and (3) Offer ground forces close support in North-East Africa.

Ninth Air Force in North Africa consisted of:







By the end of 1942 a total of 370 aircraft had been ferried to the Ninth Air Force. While the great majority were P-40's, B-24's, and B-25's, there were also more than 50 twin-engine transports, which made it possible to build an effective local air transport service. Ninth Air Force fighter supported the British Eighth Army's drive across Egypt and Libya, escorting bombers and flying strafing and dive-bombing missions against airfields, communications, and troop concentrations. Other targets attacked were shipping and harbor installations in Libya, Tunisia, Sicily, Italy, Crete, and Greece to cut enemy supply lines to Africa

In February 1943, after the Afrika Korps had been driven into Tunisia, the Germans took the offensive and pushed through Kasserine Pass before being stopped. With both Ninth and Twelfth Air Force units in the battle, the Allies drove the enemy back into a pocket around Bizerte and Tunis, where Axis forces surrendered in May Thus Tunisia became available for launching an attack on Sicily as a preliminary to an assault on Italy.

After the Allied victory in Tunisia, Ninth Air Force groups attacked airfields and rail facilities in Sicily and Italy. On one of these missions, the 376th Bomb Group B-24D Lady be Good (aircraft) Serial Number 41-24301, took off from the group's airfield at Benina Airfield in Soluch, Libya and failed to return to base. On 9 November 1958, British oil surveyors located the wreckage of the Lady Be Good 440 statute miles southeast of Soluch in the remote Libyan desert. It took several years for USAF personnel to recover the remains of all but one of the aircrew, some of which had walked nearly 100 miles from the crash site in an attempt to reach civilization. Pieces of the aircraft were recovered for evaluation and placed in various museums over the years, the rest of the aircraft being methodically stripped by souvenir hunters. However, in August 1994, the remains of the aircraft were recovered by a Libyan team led by Dr. Fadel Ali Mohammed and taken to a military base in Tobruk for safekeeping.

Ninth Air Force units took part in the Allied invasion of Sicily, the invasion of Sicily, carrying paratroopers and flew reinforcements to ground units on the island. Heavy bomb units of the Ninth participated in the famed Tidal Wave (1943) Romania on 1 August 1943.

In August and September 1943, Ninth Air Force units in North Africa were transferred to Twelfth Air Force in preparation for the move of the organization to the United Kingdom. The command was deactivated on 16 October 1943 in Egypt.

Pre-Invasion Buildup and Operations On 16 October 1943, Headquarters Ninth Air Force was reactivated at RAF Burtonwood, England and became the crucial and decisive tactical air force in Western Europe, under the command of USAAF General Hoyt S. Vandenberg. With the formation of Ninth Air Force in England, Ninth Air Force's mission became that of tactical support of ground units as part of the Operation Overlord, while Eighth Air Force retained the strategic bombing mission.

In the United Kingdom, the nucleus of the Ninth Air Force was formed in November 1943 by the transfer of some Eighth Air Force tactical bomber, fighter and troop carrier groups. These were designated as follows:







During the winter of 1943-44 Ninth Air Force expanded at an extraordinary rate, so that by the end of May, when the last combat group became operational, its complement ran to 45 flying groups operating some 5,000 aircraft (See Below). With the necessary ground support units, the total number of personnel assigned to Ninth Air Force was more than 200,000 - greater than that of Eighth Air Force.

The first mission for the Ninth was operation "Point Blank". Along with the Eighth Air Force, the Ninth was to smash the German Luftwaffe in the air and on the ground to bring about complete air supremacy prior to D-Day. In effect, the plan was to prepare the Ninth's units for their major role: that of direct tactical support for ground forces in the coming invasion. As part of this preparation, the 357th FG with its P-51 Mustangs, was transferred to the Eighth Air Force and the 358th FG and its P-47 Thunderbolts were transferred in. Operational missions involved attacks on rail marshaling yards, railroads, airfields, industrial plants, military installations, and other enemy targets in France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Other targets were German Atlantic Wall defenses along the English Channel coast of France.

Battle of Normandy On D-Day IX Troop Carrier Command units flew over 2000 sorties conducting combat parachute jumps and glider landings as part of American airborne landings in Normandy. Other Ninth Air Force units carried out massive air attacks with P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt fighter-bombers and B-25 Mitchell and B-26 Marauder medium bombers. Air cover during the morning amphibious assault by Allied forces on the beaches of France was flown by P-38 Lightnings.

With the beaches secure, its tactical air units then provided the air power for the Allied break-out from the Normandy beachhead in the summer of 1944 during the Battle of Cherbourg, Battle for Caen, and the ultimate breakout from the beachhead, Operation Cobra.

By early August most Ninth Air Force operational fighter and bomber groups were transferred to bases in France and assigned to the U. S. Twelfth Army Group. These groups were then assigned to Tactical Air Command (TAC) organizations which supported Army ground units. XXIX TAC supported the Ninth Army in the north; IX TAC supported the First Army in the center; and XIX TAC supported the Third Army in the south. Air cover over Allied-controlled areas on the continent was performed by the IX Air Defense Command. Ninth Air Force groups made numerous moves within France, the Low Countries and western Germany to keep within range of the advancing battle front before the end of hostilities in May 1945.

During Operation Dragoon, the invasion of Southern France in August 1944, two Ninth fighter groups were transferred to the provisional United States/Free French 1st Tactical Air Force supporting the invasion force's drive north. As part of Operation Market-Garden, Ninth Air Force transferred its entire IX Troop Carrier Command with its fourteen C-47 Skytrain groups to the 1st Allied Airborne Army in September 1944. Those troop carrier groups flew the many of the C-47s and towed CG-4 Waco gliders for the Allied airborne unit drops - Operation Market - to take the bridges northwest of Eindhoven at Son (mun. Son en Breugel), Veghel, Grave, Netherlands, Nijmegen and Arnhem in the Netherlands.

In December 1944 through January 1945, Ninth Air Force fighters and bombers were critical in defeating the Wehrmacht during the Battle of the Bulge. There was a noteworthy incident in which American, British, and Canadian air power was grounded by very bad winter weather, but then the bad weather broke, freeing those tactical air forces to help break the back of the Wehrmacht attack. For more information, see the film Patton (film), starring George C. Scott. The long smash across France, Belgium, and Luxembourg was the highlight of the existence of the 9th Air Force.

In the spring of 1945, Ninth Air Force troop carrier units flew airborne parachute and glider units again during Operation Varsity, the Allied assault over the Rhine River on 24 March 1945. Operation Varsity was the single largest airborne drop in history. The operation saw the first use of the C-46 transport in Europe, operating with the reliable C-47 Skytrain of previous airborne operations, an experiment which ended with the catastrophic loss of 28% of the C-46s participating.

Demobilization Ninth Air Force tactical air support operations were flown over western Germany until the end of hostilities on 7 May. However, once the victory had been gained, the United States plunged into demobilization, just as it had done at the end of the First World War.

Most officers and men were sent back to the United States and their units inactivated. Others were assigned to the new United States Air Forces in Europe and were moved to captured Luftwaffe airfields to perform occupation duties. Some transport units relocated to France. Finally, with the mission completed, on 2 December 1945 the Ninth Air Force was inactivated at USAFE Headquarters at Wiesbaden Germany.

Cold War

Following World War II, Ninth Air Force was reactivated on 28 March 1946 at Biggs Army Airfield, Texas. After several relocations, on 20 August 1954, Ninth Air Force Headquarters was assigned to Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, where it remains today. The postwar Numbered Air Forces were components of the new major command structure of the United States Air Force, and Ninth Air Force became one of the tactical air forces of the new Tactical Air Command. Ninth Air Force commanded TAC Wings east of the Mississippi River.

Initially being equipped with propeller-driven F-51, F-47 and F-82 aircraft during the postwar years, in the 1950s, Ninth Air Force units received the jet-powered P-80 Shooting Star, F-84 Thunderjet, F-86 Sabre, and F-100 Super Sabre aircraft. Ninth Air Force squadrons and wings were frequently deployed to NATO during the 1950s and 1960s as "Dual-Based" USAFE units, and reinforcing NATO forces in West Germany and France during the Lebanon crisis of 1958 and the 1961 Berlin Wall Crisis.

During the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, Ninth Air Force units went on war alert, deploying to bases in Florida, being able to respond to the crisis on a moments notice.

During the Vietnam War, detached Ninth Air Force units engaged in combat operations over Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. The practice of stripping away squadrons and aircraft from their home Tactical Air Command Wings and attaching them indefinitely to a new wing under PACAF was the method used for long-term deployments to the South Vietnam and Thailand air bases engaged in combat operations. In addition to these operational deployments, Ninth Air Force units performed a "backfilling" role in Japan and South Korea for PACAF as well as in Italy and Spain for USAFE to replace units whose aircraft and personnel were deployed to Southeast Asia. With the end of American involvement during the early 1970s, these units were returned in large part to their home Ninth Air Force units in the United States.

During the remainder of the 1970s, NATO deployments resumed supporting the COMET, CORONET and CRESTED CAP exercises. These deployments were designed to exercise CONUS based Air Force squadrons long range deployment capabilities and to familiarize the personnel with the European theatre of operations. During these NATO deployments, exercises with Army infantry and armored units were conducted to enhance the Close Air Support role in Europe.

Ninth Air Force Wings in 1979 were:



During the 1980s, Ninth Air Force wings upgraded from the Vietnam-Era F-4s and A-7s to newer F-15s, F-16 and A-10 aircraft. First-generation F-15A/B models were sent to Air National Guard units, being upgraded to the higher-capability F-15C/Ds and the new F-15E with the 4th TFW.

In 1980, Ninth Air Force units was allocated to President Carter Rapid Deployment Force, formally known as the Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force (RDJTF). In 1983 the RDJTF became a separate unified command known as the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), focusing on the Middle East. Ninth Air Force provided the aircraft, personnel and materiel to form United States Central Command Air Forces (CENTAF), the air power of CENTCOM, which is also headquarted at Shaw. Starting in 1981, Ninth Air Force aircraft and personnel were deployed to Egypt for BRIGHT STAR exercises.

During Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm, Ninth Air Force units deployed to the Middle East flew combat missions over Kuwait and Iraq. After the end of hostilities, units from the Ninth flew air missions over Iraq as part of Operation Deny Flight, Operation Northern Watch and Operation Southern Watch. Combat missions briefly resumed in 1998 during Operation Desert Fox.

With the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s, the 1991 Base Realignment and Closure Commission reductions meant the closing of Myrtle Beach and England AFB. MacDill AFB was realigned to be the headquarters of United States Central Command with tactical aircraft operations ended.

The restructuring of USAF CONUS forces by the deactivation of Tactical Air Command and subsequent creation of Air Combat Command realigned Ninth Air Force with new units and new missions. In addition, the effects of Hurricane Andrew at Homestead AFB on 24 August 1992 essentially destroyed the facility. Although both George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton promised to rebuild Homestead, the BRAC designated the installation for realignment to the Air Force Reserve, and on 1 April 1994, Headquarters, ACC inactivated its base support units, effectively ending ACC ownership of the base.

Global War On Terror Ninth Air Force units, flying as USCENTAF, flew operational missions during the 2002 Operation Enduring Freedom - Afghanistan (OEF-A) and the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The task of developing a comprehensive listing of Ninth Air Force/USCENTAF units present in the area is particularly difficult as the events of 11 September 2001 and the Global War on Terrorism has made such an effort significantly difficult. The USAF seeks to improve operational security (OPSEC) and to deceive potential enemies as to the extent of American operations, therefore a listing of which units deploying where and when is unavailable.

However, it is certain that CENTAF units are actively flying missions currently over both Afghanistan and Iraq.

Ninth Air Force Units During World War II This table shows the 1 June 1944 Order of Battle for the Ninth Air Force in the United Kingdom, prior to the deployment of units to the Continent. The United Kingdom airfield for the group is shown with the type aircraft used in parentheses.

Unlike Eighth Air Force, whose units stayed in the United Kingdom, Ninth Air Force units were very mobile, first deploying to France on 16 June 1944, ten days after the Normandy invasion by moving P-47 Thunderbolts to a beach-head landing strip.

Because of their short range, operational combat units would have to move to quickly-prepared bases close to the front as soon as the Allied ground forces advanced. The bases were called "Advanced Landing Grounds" or "ALGs". On the continent, many ALGs were built either from scratch or from captured enemy airfields throughout France, the Low Countries and Germany. Ninth Air Force units moved frequently from one ALG to another.

The Advanced Landing Grounds (ALG) on the continent for each group is included in the linked article about the unit.

IX Bomber Command (1943-45)





IX Bomber Command was headquartered at Marks Hall, England, 6 November 1943; Chartres, France, 18 September 1944; Reims, France, October 1944, and Namur, Belgium, April 1945.

It was inactivated on 20 November 1945.



IX Fighter Command (1943-45)
Direct Reporting Units



IX Tactical Air Command
Provided tactical air support in support of U.S. First Army.







Note: 71st Fighter Wing and subordinate groups transferred to IX Air Defense Command in September 1944, providing air defense for areas behind the advancing ground forces.

XIX Tactical Air Command)
Provided tactical air support in support of U.S. Third Army.





Note: 303d Fighter Wing and subordinate groups transferred to XXIX Tactical Air Command on 15 September 1944.

XXIX Tactical Air Command
(Activated 15 September 1944)
Provided tactical air support in support of U.S. Ninth Army.





Note: XXIX TAC established in France and initial activation Advanced Landing Ground shown for units assigned to command.IX Fighter Command was headquartered at Middle Wallop, England, 30 November 1943-July 1944; Les Obeaux, France, July 1944; Canisy, France, August 1944; Charleroi, Belgium, September 1944; Verviers, Belgium, October 1944; Bruhl, Germany, March 1945; Welmar, Germany, April 1945; Fritzlar, Germany, July 1945, and Erlangen, Germany, September 1945.

It was inactivated on 20 November 1945.



IX Troop Carrier Command (1943-45)
All Groups flew C-47/C-53 Aircraft, except as noted.







Notes:

IX Troop Carrier Command was headquartered at Cottesmore, England, 16 October 1943; Grantham, England, 1 December 1943; Ascot, England, 20 September 1944-5 September 1945. It returned to the United States and was headquartered at Stout AAF Indiana on 5 September 1945.

See also

References









External links



 

Ninth Air Force



 
Copyright © 2008 Hintcenter.com - All rights reserved.
Home | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
All Trademarks belong to their repective owners. Many aspects of this page are used under
commercial commons license from Yahoo!