340th Flying Training Group
A United States Air Force Reserve group that provides reserve instructor pilots to Air Education and Training Command flight-training organizations.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
The 340th Flying Training Group is a unit of the United States Air Force Reserve assigned to the Twenty-Second Air Force within Air Force Reserve Command. Its headquarters is at Randolph Air Force Base, part of Joint Base San Antonio in Texas. Rather than operating as a consumer-facing commercial brand, the group is a military organization whose identity reflects a long lineage of United States Army Air Forces and United States Air Force bomber, air-refueling, and training units. The group’s present mission is to administer and execute the Air Education and Training Command and Air Force Reserve Command Associate Instructor Pilot Program. Through this arrangement, reserve personnel—including Active Guard Reserve and Traditional Reserve instructor pilots—augment the active-duty instructor cadre responsible for undergraduate and advanced pilot training. The group’s reserve flying-training squadrons operate in association with active Air Education and Training Command training squadrons and support instruction involving the Northrop T-38 and AT-38, Beechcraft T-1, and Beechcraft T-6 aircraft. Its historical lineage begins with the 340th Bombardment Group, constituted in August 1942 and activated later that month for World War II service. Equipped with North American B-25 Mitchell medium bombers, the group trained in the United States before deploying to the Mediterranean Theater of Operations in 1943. It flew air-support and air-interdiction missions across North Africa, Sicily, Italy, southern France, the Balkans, Austria, and Greece. Its wartime operations included attacks on airfields, railways, bridges, supply facilities, troop concentrations, ports, and other military targets, as well as leaflet-dropping missions. The group received two Distinguished Unit Citations, including one for operations supporting Allied forces in Tunisia and Sicily and another connected with the attack on the Italian cruiser Taranto at La Spezia in September 1944. The World War II group returned to the United States after the European war and was inactivated in November 1945. It was briefly reactivated in the Air Force Reserve from 1947 to 1949, although it apparently lacked the personnel and aircraft required for a fully operational flying organization. A separate but related lineage was established through the 340th Bombardment Wing, activated at Sedalia Air Force Base, Missouri, in 1952. The wing operated Boeing B-47 Stratojets and later assumed the B-52 Stratofortress mission at Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas. During the Strategic Air Command period, it supported strategic bombardment, air refueling, alert duties, and associated weapons and maintenance activities. The wing was inactivated in 1966 as the strategic force was reorganized and resources were redirected toward other missions. The group was reactivated at Carswell Air Force Base in 1968 for FB-111A crew training. In 1971, that training organization was inactivated as FB-111 aircraft were distributed to operational squadrons. The lineage returned to an air-refueling role in 1977, when the 340th Air Refueling Group was activated with Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers. It later became a wing and continued the air-refueling mission until its inactivation in 1992 during an Air Mobility Command reorganization. The current flying-training organization was activated in 1998. Its role reflects the Air Force Reserve’s associate-unit model: reserve aviators work alongside active-duty training organizations rather than operating an entirely separate fleet and training pipeline. The group now consists of a headquarters element and reserve flying-training units associated with Air Education and Training Command locations, supporting the production and development of military pilots for the United States Air Force.
History
The 340th Flying Training Group carries the lineage of several United States military aviation organizations. Its earliest predecessor, the 340th Bombardment Group, was constituted on 10 August 1942 and activated on 20 August of that year. The group trained in the United States with B-25 Mitchell medium bombers and deployed to the Mediterranean Theater in March 1943. It first served under Ninth Air Force and later under Twelfth Air Force after the Ninth Air Force’s main European headquarters moved to England. From April 1943 through April 1945, the group conducted combat operations in support of Allied advances. Its missions included close air support, air interdiction, attacks on transportation networks and supply infrastructure, and occasional strikes against strategic targets. It operated over Tunisia, Sicily, Italy, France, Austria, Bulgaria, Albania, Yugoslavia, and Greece. It participated in operations connected with the reduction of Pantelleria and Lampedusa, the Allied campaign in Sicily, the Salerno landings, the advance toward Rome, Operation Dragoon in southern France, and attacks against communications routes through northern Italy. The group also distributed propaganda leaflets behind enemy lines. The unit experienced unusually severe aircraft losses. In March 1944, the eruption of Mount Vesuvius damaged or destroyed many aircraft while the group was based near Pompeii. On 13 May 1944, a German air raid on Alesani Airfield in Corsica caused further substantial losses. These events occurred in addition to normal combat attrition. The group received a Distinguished Unit Citation for its April–August 1943 operations in Tunisia and Sicily, conducted under difficult weather and living conditions. It received a second citation for the destruction of the Italian cruiser Taranto in the heavily defended harbor of La Spezia on 23 September 1944. After the end of the European war, the group returned to the United States during July and August 1945 and was inactivated at Columbia Army Air Base, South Carolina, on 7 November 1945. It was reactivated in the reserve at Tulsa Municipal Airport, Oklahoma, in October 1947, but was inactivated again in August 1949 during postwar force reductions. A related 340th Bombardment Wing was activated at Sedalia Air Force Base, Missouri, on 20 October 1952. The base was undergoing extensive modernization, and the wing initially concentrated on installation development and infrastructure while its operational elements were minimally staffed. It received B-47 Stratojets in 1954 and reached combat readiness in 1955. Sedalia was renamed Whiteman Air Force Base in December 1955. The wing participated in Strategic Air Command’s strategic deterrence mission and was associated with air-refueling and airborne command-post operations. In September 1963, the wing moved on paper to Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas, without personnel or equipment and replaced the 4130th Strategic Wing. It assumed B-52 Stratofortress resources and continued strategic bombardment and air-refueling activities. Some aircraft were placed on alert, and B-52s were later modified for a larger conventional-bomb load under the Big Belly program. The wing was inactivated on 2 October 1966 as the strategic force was reorganized, intercontinental ballistic missiles expanded, older bomber resources were retired, and resources were redirected to other defense requirements. The 340th Bombardment Group was reactivated at Carswell Air Force Base, Texas, on 2 July 1968. Its primary task was initial qualification training for FB-111A aircrews. That organization was inactivated in December 1971 as the FB-111 fleet was assigned to operational units. In June 1977, the lineage returned to the reserve through activation of the 340th Air Refueling Group, equipped with KC-135 Stratotankers. The organization was expanded to wing status in 1984 and continued air-refueling duties until its inactivation in 1992 during an Air Mobility Command restructuring. The current 340th Flying Training Group was activated in 1998. Based at Randolph Air Force Base, it became the headquarters for reserve flying-training squadrons operating as associate units with Air Education and Training Command training squadrons. Its continuing mission is to provide reserve instructor pilots and related support for Air Force pilot training, linking the group’s long bomber and tanker heritage with the modern reserve-associate training system.
- 1998
Modern flying-training group activated
[1]The present 340th Flying Training Group was activated to provide reserve instructor-pilot support to Air Education and Training Command.
- 1992
Air-refueling wing inactivated
[1]The air-refueling wing was inactivated during an Air Mobility Command reorganization.
- 1984
Expanded to wing status
[1]The air-refueling organization was expanded into the 340th Air Refueling Wing.
- 1977
Air-refueling group activated
[1]The 340th Air Refueling Group was activated with KC-135 Stratotankers.
- 1968
FB-111A training mission
[1]The group was reactivated at Carswell Air Force Base to conduct initial qualification training for FB-111A aircrews.
- 1966
Strategic wing inactivated
[1]The 340th Bombardment Wing was inactivated as strategic-force requirements and Air Force priorities changed.
- 1963
Transfer to Bergstrom and B-52 mission
[1]The wing moved without personnel or equipment to Bergstrom Air Force Base and assumed the resources and mission of the discontinued 4130th Strategic Wing, including B-52 operations.
- 1954
B-47 operations begin
[1]The wing received its first Boeing B-47 Stratojet and subsequently became combat ready with the type.
- 1952
340th Bombardment Wing activated
[1]A related lineage-bearing wing was activated at Sedalia Air Force Base, Missouri, beginning its Strategic Air Command period.
- 1945
World War II group inactivated
[1]After returning to the United States, the 340th Bombardment Group was inactivated at Columbia Army Air Base on 7 November.
Products and positioning
A specialized Air Force Reserve training organization that integrates reserve instructor pilots with active-duty Air Education and Training Command flying-training units.
Military training
Associate Instructor Pilot Program
The group administers and executes the Air Education and Training Command and Air Force Reserve Command Associate Instructor Pilot Program. Reserve instructor pilots serve alongside active-duty training cadres, increasing the capacity and continuity of Air Force flying instruction without requiring a wholly separate reserve training system.
Pilot training · 1998
Reserve flying-training support
The group provides Active Guard Reserve and Traditional Reserve instructor pilots to associated Air Education and Training Command flying-training squadrons. Its associated units support instruction involving T-38 and AT-38 aircraft, T-1 aircraft, and T-6 aircraft at multiple Air Force installations.
Brand decisions
1998
Adoption of the reserve-associate flying-training modelStrategyBackground
The Air Force Reserve established the group in a role centered on supporting active Air Education and Training Command pilot-training organizations.
Action taken
The group was activated as a headquarters for reserve flying-training squadrons and assigned responsibility for reserve instructor-pilot augmentation.
Aftermath
The organization continues to support Air Force pilot training through integrated reserve and active-duty flying-training units.
Recent events
- 1998
340th Flying Training Group activated in its modern flying-training role[1]
Other
The lineage-bearing organization was activated to support Air Education and Training Command through the Air Force Reserve’s associate instructor-pilot model.
Sources1 sources
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