364th Bombardment Squadron


The 364th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 305th Bombardment Wing at Bunker Hill Air Force Base, Indiana.

History

World War II

The squadron was established in June 1942 as a B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombardment unit; it trained as part of the Second Air Force. It was deployed to the European Theater of Operations in September 1942, being assigned to VIII Bomber Command in England. The unit began flying long-range strategic bombardment missions on 17 November 1942 and attacked such targets as submarine pens, docks, harbours, shipyards, motor works and marshalling yards in France, Germany and the Low Countries. The squadron continued its attacks on enemy cities, manufacturing centers, transportation links and other targets until the German Capitulation in May 1945.
After combat missions ended, it moved to St Trond Air Base in Belgium in July 1945 where it conducted photo-mapping and intelligence-gathering flights called Project 'Casey Jones' over Europe and North Africa. On 15 December 1945 the squadron moved to Lechfeld Airfield, Germany which it had bombed on 18 March 1944 and now used as an occupation base.
The 364th Bomb Squadron was inactivated on December 1946 in Germany.

Strategic Air Command

Reactivated under Strategic Air Command in 1951 with B-47A Stratojet medium jet bombers, it began flying operational strategic bombardment and refueling missions from MacDill AFB, Florida. In 1955, SAC upgraded the squadron to the B-47E, the major production version of the Stratojet. The squadron, with B-47s, was reassigned to Bunker Hill AFB, Indiana in May 1959 and in September 1960, it was upgraded to the B-58 Hustler supersonic medium bomber; it was declared operationally ready in August 1962. The squadron began phasing down B-58 operations in 1969, before being inactivated in 1970.

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