Air Force Combat Units of WWII

284 AIR FORCE COMBAT UNITS OF WORLD WAR I1Oct 1943; Hunter Field, Ga, I Nov 1943-13 Mar 1944; Gosfield, England, 5 Apr1944; Rivenhall, England, 15 Apr 1944;Hurn, England, 5 Aug 1944; Gorges,France, Aug 1944; Dreux, France, c. 11Sep 1944; Peronne, France, 6 Oct 1944;Venlo, Holland, 25 Apr 1945; Peronne,France, c. 24 May-c. Dec 1945; CampKilmer, N J, 5-6 Jan 1946.COMMANDERS. Maj Rollin M Winingham,c. May 1943; Lt Col John F Batjer,18 Jul 1943; Col Richard T Coiner Jr, 5Oct 1943; Lt Col Jimmie W Britt, 23 Jul1945-unkn.CAMPAIGNS. Air Offensive, Europe;Normandy; Northern France; Rhineland;Ardennes-Alsace; Central Europe.DECORATIONS. Distinguished Unit Citation:Eller, Germany, 23 Dec 1944.INSIGNE. None.398th BOMBARDMENT GROUPConstituted as 398th BombardmentGroup (Heavy) on 15 Feb 1943. Activatedon I Mar 1943. Prepared for combat withB-I~’s, but interrupted these activitiesfrom Jul to Dec 1943 to train replacementcrews for other organizations. Moved toEngland in Apr 1944 and assigned toEighth AF. Entered combat in May 1944,and until V-E Day operated primarilyagainst strategic objectives in Germany,attacking targets such as factories in Berlin,warehouses in Munich, marshallingyards in Saarbrucken, shipping facilitiesin Kiel, oil refineries in Merseburg, andaircraft plants in Munster. Temporarilysuspended strategic missions to attackcoastal defenses and enemy troops on theCherbourg peninsula during the Normandyinvasion in Jun 1944; strike gunpositions neur Eindhoven in support ofthe air attack on Holland in Sep 1944; raidpower stations, railroads, and bridges duringthe Battle of the Bulge, Dec 1944-Jan1945; and attack airfields to aid the Alliedassault across the Rhine in Mar 1945.Flew last combat mission, attacking anairfield in Pilsen, Czechoslovakia, on 25Apr 1945. Transported liberated prisonersfrom Germany to France after V-EDay. Returned to the US, May-Jun 1945.Inactivated on I Sep 1945.SQUADRONS. 600th: 1943-1945. 6ozst:1943-1945. 602d: 1943-1945. 603d: 1943-I945STATIONS. Ephrata AAB, Wash, I Mar1943; Blythe AAFld, Calif, 5 Apr 1943;Geiger Field, Wash, 29 Apr 1943; RapidCity AAB, SD, 20 Jun 1943-4 Apr 1944;Nuthampstead, England, 22 Apr 1944-26May 1945; Drew Field, Fla, 3 Jul-1 Sep1945-COMMANDERS. Col Frank P Hunter Jr,I Mar 1943; Lt Col Lewis P Ensign, 29Jan 1945; Lt Col Arthur F Briggs, 18 Apr1945-unkn.CAMPAIGNS. American Theater; AirOffensive, Europe; Normandy; NorthernFrance; Rhineland ; Ardennes-Alsace;Central Europe.DECORATIONS. None.INSIGNE. None.