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44th Bomb Group 8th AAF | 66th BS; 67th BS; 68th BS; 404th BS & 506th BS


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44th Bombardment Group | Eighth Air Force

 

66th Bomb Squadron; 67th Bomb Squadron; 68th Bombardment Squadron; 404th Bombardment Squadron & 506th Bombardment Squadron

 

Constituted as 44th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 20 Nov 1940. Activated on 15 Jan 1941. Trained with B-24’s. Became an operational training unit in Feb 1942. Also served on antisubmarine duty. In Jul 1942 began intensive preparations for combat. Moved to England, Aug-Oct 1942, for service with Eighth AF.

Operations consisted primarily of assaults against strategic targets in France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Italy Rumania, Austria, Poland, and Sicily.

Pounded submarine installations, industrial establishments, airfields, harbors, shipyards, and other objectives in France and Germany, Nov 1~2-Jun 1943. Received a DUC for an extremely hazardous mission against naval installations at Kiel on 14 May 1943: with its B-24’s carrying incendiaries to be dropped after three B-17 groups had released high explosive bombs, the 44th flew in the wake of the main formation; thus the B-24’s were particularly vulnerable because they had no protection from fire power of the main force, and this vulnerability increased when the group had to open its own formation for the attack; but the 44th blanketed the target with incendiaries in spite of the concentrated flak and continuous interceptor attacks it encountered. Late in Jun 1943 a large detachment moved to North Africa to help facilitate the invasion of Sicily by bombing airfields and marshalling yards in Italy. The detachment also participated in the famous low-level raid on the Ploesti oil fields on I Aug 1943.

The group was awarded a DUC for its part in this raid and its commander, Col Leon Johnson, was awarded the Medal of Honor for his daring and initiative in leading his men into smoke, flame, and alerted fighter and antiaircraft opposition over the target, which already had been bombed in error by another group. Before returning to England at the end of Aug, the detachment bombed an aircraft factory in Austria and supported ground forces in Sicily. In Sep the group struck airfields in Holland and France and convoys in the North Sea. Also in Sep, a detachment was sent to North Africa to support the Salerno operations. The detachment returned to England in Oct and from Nov 1943 to Apr 1945, the entire group carried out operations against targets in western Europe, concentrating on airfields, oil installations, and marshalling yards. Took part in the intensive campaign of heavy bombers against the German aircraft industry during Big Week, 20-25 Feb 1944.

Sometimes flew support and interdictory missions. Struck airfields, railroads, and V-weapon sites in preparation for the Normandy invasion; supported the invasion in Jun 1944 by attacking strong points in the beachhead area and transportation targets behind the front lines. Aided the Caen offensive and the St Lo breakthrough in Jul. Dropped food, ammunition, and other supplies to troops engaged in the airborne attack on Holland in Sep.

Helped to check the enemy offensive during the Battle of the Bulge, Dec 1944-Jan 1945, by striking bridges, tunnels, choke points, rail and road junctions, and communications in the battle area. Attacked airfields and transportation in support of the advance into Germany, and flew a resupply mission during the airborne assault across the Rhine in Mar 1945. Flew last combat mission on 25 Apr 1945. Returned to the US in Jun 1945. Redesignated 44th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy) in Aug 1945.

Squadrons. 66th: 1941-1946; 67th: 1941-1946; 68th: 1941-1946; 404th: 1942; 506th: 1943-1946.

Stations. MacDill Field, Fla, 15 Jan 1941; Barksdale Field, La, Feb 1942; Will Rogers Field, Okla, Jul-c. 28 Aug 1942; Shipham, England, Oct 1942-c. 15 Jun 1945; Sioux Falls AAFld, SD, c. 27 Jun 1945; Great Bend AAFld, Kan, 25 Jul 1945.

Campaigns. Antisubmarine, American Theater; Air Combat, EAME Theater; Air Offensive, Europe; Sicily; Naples-Foggia; Normandy; Northern France; Rhineland ; Ardennes-Alsace; Central Europe.

 

 

66th Bomb Squadron

 

Theater made. Multi-piece wool.

66bs44bg8aaf-2-500e.jpg

 

 

67th Bomb Squadron | Walt Disney Productions.

 

Embroidered on wool.

67bs44bg8aaf-600e.jpg

EMBLEM. Over and through a medium blue disc, a caricatured pelican light blue, white, and black, bill and feet yellow, wearing brown aviator's goggles, diving toward sinister base, dumping out one of three red aerial bombs trimmed black, held in pouch of bill, all emitting white speed lines to rear. (Approved 12 Jul 1943.) Walt Disney Productions.

 

 

68th Bomb Squadron

 

Embroidered on wool.

68bs44bg8aaf-2-500a.jpg

 

 

 

404th Bomb Squadron [8th AAF & 11th AAF]

LINEAGE. Constituted 14th Reconnaissance Squadron (Heavy) on 20 Nov 1940. Activated on 15 Jan 1941. Redesignated 404th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 22 Apr 1942.

ASSIGNMENTS. 44th Bombardment Group, attached on 15 Jan 1941, and assigned on 25 Feb 1942; 28th Composite (later Bombardment ) Group, air echelon attached c. 12 Jul 1942, squadron assigned c. 21 Sep 1942; Eleventh Air Force (later Alaskan Air Command), 20 Oct 1945-5 Jan 1947

STATIONS. Miami Mun Aprt, Fla, 15 Jan 1941; MacDill Field, Fla, 11 Jun 1941; Barksdale Field, La, 7 Feb 1942 (operated from Ladd Field, Alaska, beginning 12 Jul 1942, and from Nome, Alaska, beginning c. 18 Ju1 1942); Will Rogers Field, Okla, 25 Ju1 1942 (operated from Umnak beginning 24 Aug 1942); Ft Lewis, Wash, 30 Aug-10 Sep 1942 (operated from Adak beginning 13 5 Jan 1942-Sep 1942); Elmendorf Field, Alaska, 21 Sep 1942; Adak, 22 Mar 1943 (operated from Amchitka beginning 4 Jun 1943); Shemya, c. 26 Feb 1944-5 Jan 1947.

 

AIRCRAFT. B-24, 1941-1947.

OPERATIONS. Antisubmarine patrols in Gulf of Mexico, Feb-Jun 1942; combat in Aleutian Islands, Bering Sea, and Northern Pacific, 18 Jul 1942-13 Aug 1945. Radar mapping of Aleutians and Alaska, 1945-1946.

CAMPAIGNS. Antisubmarine, American Theater; Air Offensive, Japan; Aleutian Islands; Air Combat, Asiatic-Pacific Theater.

 

Silkscreened on leather.

404bs44bg8aaf-500.jpg

EMBLEM. Over and through a light green disc, bordure black, piped white, a caricatured white elephant running, wearing aviator’s goggles with gold rim trimmed black, black belt about the waist, holding two machine guns pointing to rear, grasping a large yellow aerial bomb upraised in trunk, having two black machine guns for tusks and ears in shape of wings, soles of hind feet brown. (Approved 21 Nov 1942.)

 

 

506th Bomb Squadron

 

Silkscreened on leather.

506bs44bg8aaf-4-500.jpg

 

 

Theater made. Multi-piece wool.

506bs44bg8aaf-2-500e.jpg506bs44bg8aaf-500.jpg

 

 

506bs44bg8aaf-3-500e.jpg\

 

 

44th Bomb Group | Flying Control

 

Each of the four colors on the nose represent the squadron by its assigned markings color.

Red: 66th | Yellow: 67th | White: 68th | Green: 506th

 

 

Theater made. Multi-piece wool.

44th%20BG%20Flying%20Control-2-500.JPG

 

 

Theater made. Multi-piece muslin.

44bg8aaf-500.jpg

 

 

 

 

Sources:

Maurer. Combat Squadrons of World War II.

 

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68bs44bg8aaf

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506bs44bg8aaf

 

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Johnny Signor
On 8/29/2022 at 5:54 AM, greek5bc said:

Yeah what’s the donkey ?

Ditto , I'd also appreciate an ID on the Donkey one, I've had an image of this one in my unknowns for quite some time and would really like to gte it nailed down Please .......

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