338th Bombardment Group
The 338th Bombardment Group was a United States Air Force reserve unit preceded by a World War II fighter-training group.
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Overview
The 338th Bombardment Group was a disbanded United States Air Force unit with two distinct periods of service. It originated during World War II as the 338th Fighter Group, a replacement-training organization established in Florida in 1942. Rather than serving primarily as an overseas combat group, it prepared individual fighter pilots and aircrews for assignment to operational units. Its aircraft inventory included the Bell P-39 Airacobra, Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, and North American P-51 Mustang, with training increasingly centered on the P-47 during the later part of its first activation. The group was organized under III Fighter Command at Dale Mabry Field, near Tallahassee, Florida. Its initial operational elements were the 305th, 306th, and 312th Fighter Squadrons. The 441st Fighter Squadron joined in February 1943, after which the organization operated in a split arrangement: the group headquarters and two squadrons remained at Dale Mabry, while the 312th and 441st operated from Perry Army Air Field. In 1944, the Army Air Forces replaced many inflexible wartime training formations with functional base units. The 338th Fighter Group was consequently disbanded in May 1944, and its personnel, equipment, and training responsibilities were transferred to numbered Army Air Forces base units. The organization was reconstituted in 1947 as the 338th Bombardment Group, Very Heavy, and activated in the Air Force Reserve at Orchard Place Airport in Illinois, the facility later developed as O'Hare International Airport. It was assigned bombardment squadrons and supervised within the postwar reserve-training structure. The 42d Fighter Squadron was also attached during the reserve period, while the 560th Bombardment Squadron joined the group later in 1947. The group’s reserve aircraft were primarily intended to maintain flying proficiency rather than provide an immediately deployable combat capability; postwar reserve forces generally received surplus or training-oriented equipment after the active force and National Guard had been equipped. Continental Air Command assumed responsibility for reserve and Air National Guard administration from Air Defense Command in 1948. That same year, the 561st Bombardment Squadron moved to General Mitchell Field in Wisconsin while remaining assigned to the group. The group was inactivated on 27 June 1949 as part of a broader reorganization of the Air Force Reserve under the wing-base system. The reduction was also shaped by the defense economies associated with President Harry S. Truman’s 1949 budget, which reduced the number of reserve training centers and units. At O’Hare, much of the group’s personnel moved to the 437th Troop Carrier Wing. The 338th Bombardment Group was formally disbanded in 1992 and has not been reactivated.
History
The 338th Bombardment Group’s history began with its constitution as the 338th Fighter Group on 16 July 1942 and activation at Dale Mabry Field, Florida, six days later. It was assigned to III Fighter Command and formed around the 305th, 306th, and 312th Fighter Squadrons. The group’s wartime purpose was replacement training: it provided an intermediate stage for pilots and aircrews who had completed flight school but needed experience on operational fighter types before being sent to combat formations. The group trained with several aircraft types, including the P-39 Airacobra, P-40 Warhawk, P-47 Thunderbolt, and P-51 Mustang. In February 1943, the 441st Fighter Squadron was added. The resulting organization divided its activities between Dale Mabry Field and Perry Army Air Field, with headquarters, the 305th, and the 306th at Dale Mabry and the 312th and 441st at Perry. From September 1943 onward, the training program concentrated mainly on the P-47, although P-40s were again present during 1944. The wartime Army Air Forces increasingly concluded that conventional military formations were poorly suited to large-scale replacement training. Its response was a functional system in which training installations were operated through numbered base units rather than traditional combat-style groups. The 338th Fighter Group and its squadrons were disbanded in May 1944. At Dale Mabry, the group’s mission, people, and equipment passed to the 335th Army Air Force Base Unit, while the Perry operations were absorbed into the 342d Army Air Force Base Unit. The unit was reconstituted and redesignated the 338th Bombardment Group, Very Heavy, on 5 May 1947. It was activated in the Air Force Reserve on 12 June at Orchard Place Airport, Illinois, later known as O’Hare International Airport. The reserve group was assigned the 561st, 562d, and 563d Bombardment Squadrons. The 560th Bombardment Squadron, already operating at Orchard Place, joined the group at the end of September. The 42d Fighter Squadron was activated and assigned in October. During this period, the group operated under the postwar reserve-training framework rather than as a fully equipped front-line bombardment formation. Its training was supervised first through Air Defense Command organizations and later through Continental Air Command. Reserve aircraft were generally used to sustain flying proficiency, and reserve units received fewer resources than active-duty formations and the National Guard. The 561st Bombardment Squadron relocated to General Mitchell Field, Wisconsin, in September 1948 but remained assigned to the group. The postwar reserve structure was substantially reduced in 1949. Continental Air Command reorganized operational reserve forces around a smaller number of wings and training centers, while reductions in defense spending further limited the number of units that could be maintained. The 338th Bombardment Group was inactivated at O’Hare on 27 June 1949, and many of its personnel transferred to the 437th Troop Carrier Wing. The 561st Squadron was also inactivated, temporarily ending reserve flying operations at its Wisconsin location. Although the group was formally disbanded on 9 September 1992, it remained an inactive historical lineage rather than an operating Air Force organization.
- 1992
Formally disbanded
[1]The inactive unit was formally disbanded on 9 September.
- 1949
Inactivated at O’Hare
[1]The group ceased operations on 27 June during Air Force Reserve reductions and reorganization.
- 1947
Reconstituted as a reserve bombardment group
[1]The unit was redesignated the 338th Bombardment Group, Very Heavy, and activated in the Air Force Reserve at Orchard Place Airport.
- 1944
World War II group disbanded
[1]The 338th Fighter Group was disbanded on 4 May as training responsibilities moved to numbered base units.
- 1943
441st Fighter Squadron added
[1]The fourth fighter squadron joined the group, supporting its split-site training operation.
- 1942
Constituted as the 338th Fighter Group
[1]The Army Air Forces constituted the group as a World War II fighter organization on 16 July.
- 1942
Activated at Dale Mabry Field
[1]The group was activated in Florida on 22 July under III Fighter Command and began replacement training.
Products and positioning
A military aviation training and reserve organization rather than a commercial brand. Its historical roles were fighter replacement training during World War II and reserve bombardment training in the early postwar United States Air Force.
Military training · 1942
Replacement fighter training
During World War II, the group’s principal function was to train individual fighter pilots and aircrews after flight-school graduation. Training covered several aircraft types and was especially focused on the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt during the later phase of the group’s activation.
Reserve aviation training · 1947
Air Force Reserve bombardment training
After its 1947 reconstitution, the group provided postwar reserve flying activity through assigned bombardment squadrons. The mission emphasized maintaining proficiency with available aircraft rather than operating as a fully equipped, immediately deployable combat formation.
Brand decisions
1949
Reduce and reorganize the Air Force ReserveStrategyBackground
Postwar defense reductions and the Air Force’s decision to consolidate reserve training centers reduced the number of units that could be supported.
Action taken
Continental Air Command reorganized reserve forces under the wing-base system and inactivated the 338th Bombardment Group at O’Hare.
Aftermath
Most of the group’s personnel transferred to the 437th Troop Carrier Wing, while reserve flying operations in Wisconsin were temporarily ended.
1944
Transfer wartime training functions to base unitsStrategyBackground
The Army Air Forces determined that conventional group structures were not sufficiently flexible for large-scale replacement training.
Action taken
The 338th Fighter Group was disbanded and its personnel, equipment, and responsibilities were transferred to the 335th and 342d Army Air Force Base Units.
Aftermath
The change became part of a broader functional reorganization of Army Air Forces training installations.
Recent events
- 1949
338th Bombardment Group inactivated during reserve-force reductions[1]
Other
The group was inactivated at O’Hare as the Air Force reorganized reserve units under the wing-base system and reduced the number of reserve training centers.
- 1947
338th Bombardment Group activated in the Air Force Reserve[1]
Other
The reconstituted group began reserve operations at Orchard Place Airport in Illinois with bombardment squadrons and a postwar flying-proficiency mission.
- 1944
338th Fighter Group disbanded during Army Air Forces training reorganization[1]
Other
The World War II training group and its squadrons were disbanded, with their personnel, equipment, and mission transferred to numbered Army Air Forces base units.
- 1942
338th Fighter Group activated for replacement training[1]
Other
The organization was activated at Dale Mabry Field, Florida, under III Fighter Command and began preparing fighter pilots and aircrews for later assignments.
Sources1 sources
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