3rd Wing History

3rd Wing History. . , The 3rd Wing, in one form or another, has served the United States on a continuing basis since its activation as the US Army Surveillance Group on 1 July 1919. Including squadrons active in World War I (the 19th and 90th Fighter Squadrons), the wing and its organizations have participated in every major US conflict of the 20th century. As the first organized attack group to form within the Army Air Service, the 3rd Attack Group was instrumental in developing close air support doctrine during the inter-war period. The group pioneered low-level surface attack tactics during the 1920s and 1930s, employing dive, skip, and fragmentation bombing, and strafing attacks. The group employed these tactics with deadly efficiency during World War II. Today, the wing remains at the leading edge of precision-guided weaponry as we move into the 21st century., Nicknamed the "Grim Reapers," the group forged a peerless record in World War II. In attacks on Japanese freighters and troop transports in the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, the 3rd Bomb Group's aircraft scored one of the most decisive aerial victories of all time, sinking an entire convoy of Japanese ships on the way to relieve beleaguered New Guinea garrisons., With the birth of the Air Force, the group became the 3rd Bombardment Wing. Flying Douglas B-26 Invaders, the 3rd Wing flew the first bombing sortie of the Korean War, and due to their outstanding record of service throughout that conflict, was honored with flying the last sortie just hours before the armistice went into effect. Transitioning to jets in the mild-1950s, the wing stood nuclear alert in Japan and Korea for 10 years during the height of the Cold War. As the Vietnam War escalated in 1964, the 3rd Wing transformed to a light-attack unit flying primarily F-100 Supersabres from Ben Hoa AB, South Vietnam., After its withdrawal from Southeast Asia in 1971, the wing transitioned to F-4 Phantoms and moved to Kunsan AB, Korea, the scene of much of its success during the Korean War. In 1975, the wing moved to Clark AB, Republic of the Philippines, helping that nation transform into a stable democracy. The wing deployed six-4GS to Turkey for Operation DESERT STORM in early 1991, where they flew some of the F-4Gs last combat sorties. The 3rd Wing remained at Clark AB until the Mt Pinatubo eruption in 1991 forced its hasty relocation to Elmendorf., The wing's winning streak has continued in the 1990s with successes around the world. In recent years, our presence has been felt on every continent , from tactical airlift missions throughout Alaska and the Pacific Rim, airborne command and control supporting the drug war in South and Central America, and our most recent over-the-pole combat deployment with F-15s supporting Operation ALLIED FORCE in the skies over Kosovo. In 1998, the 3rd Wing was selected to serve as one of the ten designated "lead wings" under the Air Force's new Expeditionary Aerospace Force concept. In that role, the wing serves as the core of a multi-airframe, composite force designed to unite and deploy on short notice for combat operations anywhere in the world., Pioneering skip-bombing and preempting enemy airpower in World War II; relentlessly attacking in daring, low-level missions from the start to finish of the Korean War, undertaking hazardous and disparate ground-support missions in Vietnam; deploying non-stop, over the polar ice cap to combat operations in Europe , the 3rd Wing's lasting legacy exceeds the limits of abridgement. We look forward to the challenges of the future and to building on this already superb legacy in the 21st Century., 3RD WING CAMPAIGN STREAMERS. , World War II , . Antisubmarine, American Theater (7 December 1941-2 September 1945) , . East Indies (1 January 1943-22 July 1944) , . Air Offensive, Japan (17 April 1942-2 September 1945) , . Papua (28 July 1942-23 January 1943) , . New Guinea (24 January 1943-31 December 1944) , . Bismarck Archipelago (15 December 1943-27 November 1944) , . Western Pacific (17 April 1944-1 July 1945) , . Leyte (17 October 1944-1 July 1945) , . Luzon (15 December 1944-4 July 1945) , . Southern Pacific (27 February 1945-4 July 1945), Korea , . UN Defense (16 September 1950-2 November 1950) , . CCF Intervention (3 November 1950-24 January 1951) , . First UN Counteroffensive (25 January 1951-21 April 1951) , . CCF Spring Offensive (22 April 1951-8 July 1951) , . UN Summer-Fall Offensive (9 July 1951-27 November 1951) , . Second Korean Winter (28 November 1951-30 April 1952) , . Korean Summer-Fall, 1952 (1 May 1952-30 November 1952) , . Third Korean Winter (1 December 1952-30 April 1053) , . Korean Summer-Fall, 1953 (1 May 1953-27 July 1953), Vietnam , . Vietnam Defensive (2 March 1965-30 January 1966) , . Vietnam Air Offensive (31 January 1966-28 June 1966) , . Vietnam Air Offensive (29 June 1966-8 March 1967) , . Vietnam Air Offensive, Phase II (9 March 1967-31 March 1968) , . Vietnam Air/Ground (22 January 1968-7 July 1968) , . Vietnam Air Offensive, Phase III (1 April 1968-31 October 1968) , . Vietnam Air Offensive, Phase IV (1 November 1968-22 February 1969) , . TET 69/Counteroffensive (23 February 1969-8 June 1969) , . Vietnam Summer-Fall, 1969 (9 June 1969-31 October 1969) , . Vietnam Winter-Spring 1970 (1 November 1969-30 April 1970) , . Sanctuary Counteroffensive (1 May 1970-30 June 1970) , . Southwest Monsoon (1 July 1970-30 November 1970), Persian Gulf , . Defense of Saudi Arabia (2 August 1990-16 January 1991) , . Liberation and Defense of Kuwait (17 January 1991-11 April 1991)