531st Bombardment Squadron
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The 531st Bombardment Squadron was a unit of the US Air Force, first activated during World War II. After training as a heavy bomber unit in the United States, it moved to the Southwest Pacific Theater, entering combat in May 1943, flying combat missions from Australia while attached to the Royal Australian Air Force, earning two Distinguished Unit Citations and a Philippine Presidential Unit Citation. In 1945 it moved forward to the Philippines, then to Okinawa. Following V-J Day, the squadron returned to the Philippines and was inactivated there in February 1946.
531st Bombardment Squadron | |
---|---|
Active | 1942–1946; 1947–1951; 1959–1962 |
Country | United States |
Branch | United States Air Force |
Role | Medium bomber |
Mascot(s) | Donald Duck |
Engagements | Southwest Pacific Theater |
Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation Philippine Presidential Unit Citation |
The squadron was activated in the reserves in 1947, becoming a corollary unit in 1949. The squadron was called to active service in May 1951 for the Korean War and its personnel used to fill out other units.
The squadron was activated at Plattsburgh Air Force Base in May 1959 as a Strategic Air Command bomber unit when Strategic Air Command (SAC) reorganized its Boeing B-47 Stratojet wings to meet increased alert standards. It was inactivated in 1962, when SAC's alert program again changed.