377th Fighter Squadron


The 377th Fighter Squadron is a United States Air Force active duty unit stationed at Montgomery Air National Guard Base, Alabama. It is an Active Associate Unit administratively assigned to the 495th Fighter Group at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina and integrated operationally with the 100th Fighter Squadron of the Alabama Air National Guard’s 187th Fighter Wing. Prior to its reactivation in 2015, the unit was last stationed at Biggs Field, Texas, where as a subordinate unit of the 362d Fighter Group they flew the North American P-51H Mustang.

Current Operations

Active Associate Unit

The 377th Fighter Squadron was reactivated at Montgomery Air National Guard Base during a ceremony on 17 October 2014, replacing Detachment 100 of the 495th Fighter Group. As an Active Association Unit it is part of the Total Force Integration initiative whereby Regular Air Force personnel work side-by-side with host Air National Guard personnel in a mutually beneficial relationship to share resources, reduce duplications of effort, and ultimately, increase the Air Force's ability to provide dominant combat airpower for America.

History

World War II

The 377th Fighter Squadron was established on 1 March 1943 at Westover Field, Massachusetts as part of the 362nd Fighter Group, equipped with Republic P-47D Thunderbolt. A year later, on 8 February 1944 they deployed to the European Theater of Operations for combat as a part of the Ninth Air Force in England. There they remained engaged in combat operations until 1 May 1945.
On 9 September 1945 they were reassigned back to the United States and assigned to First Air Force at Seymour Johnson Field, North Carolina, while being programmed for deployment to Okinawa to take part in the planned Invasion of Japan. As a result of the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the sudden end of the Pacific War, the deployment plans were canceled, however the unit was retained as part of the Second Air Force under Continental Air Forces and reassigned to Biggs Field, Texas, where they were equipped with the North American P-51 Mustang. The 377th Fighter Squadron was later Inactivated on 1 August 1946 due to postwar budget restrictions.

Lineage

Decoration streamerDecorationDatesLocation
Presidential Unit Citation (formerly the Distinguished Unit Citation25 August 1944Brest France
Presidential Unit Citation (formerly the Distinguished Unit Citation16 March 1945Moselle-Rhine River Triangle