483rd Airlift Group
The 483rd Airlift Group was a United States Air Force unit that served successively as a World War II heavy-bomber group, a Korean War troop-carrier group, and a short-lived VIP airlift organization.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
The 483rd Airlift Group was a United States Air Force unit with three principal identities across almost five decades of American military aviation. Constituted in September 1943 as the 483rd Bombardment Group (Heavy), it was formed during World War II as a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress organization. After training in the United States, the group deployed to southern Italy and joined the Fifteenth Air Force in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations. From April 1944 through the end of the European war, it conducted long-range bombing missions against military, industrial, transportation, petroleum, and aircraft-related targets across Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, and the Balkans. Its crews also supported Allied ground operations, including preparations for the invasion of southern France and the spring 1945 offensive in northern Italy. The group received two Distinguished Unit Citations for particularly difficult missions, including attacks on Memmingen in July 1944 and Berlin in March 1945. It flew 215 combat missions and lost 75 aircraft. After German surrender, its modified B-17s participated in the Green Project, carrying personnel from Italy to North Africa for onward transport to the United States. The group was inactivated in Italy in September 1945. It was reconstituted during the Korean War as the 483rd Troop Carrier Group, Medium, and activated at Ashiya Air Base, Japan, on 1 January 1953. Assigned to the 483rd Troop Carrier Wing, it operated Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars in the Far East. Its responsibilities included moving troops and cargo into forward areas, transporting airborne forces and equipment, evacuating casualties, and supporting United Nations operations in Korea. It earned a Korean Presidential Unit Citation and was among the early recipients of an Air Force Outstanding Unit Award. From 1953 to 1954, the organization also supported the French effort in Indochina by training personnel and hauling supplies. As the Far East Air Forces adopted a dual-deputy structure, the group became non-operational in 1956 and was formally inactivated in December 1958. The lineage was revived again around September 1991 as the 483rd Airlift Group under Military Airlift Command and later Twenty-Second Air Force at Osan Air Base in South Korea. In this final incarnation it served as a VIP transport unit supporting Headquarters, Seventh Air Force. The group was inactivated around 1 June 1992 and has not been reactivated according to the cited reference.
History
The unit was constituted as the 483rd Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 14 September 1943 and activated six days later. Its initial organization included the 815th, 816th, and 817th Bombardment Squadrons and the 818th Bombardment Squadron, whose lineage had included antisubmarine work. The group trained with B-17 Flying Fortresses under the Fourth and Third Air Forces, moving through Ephrata Army Air Base in Washington and MacDill Field in Florida before deploying to Italy in March 1944. It operated first from Tortorella Airfield and later Sterparone Airfield, joining the Fifteenth Air Force's strategic bombing campaign. Its targets included oil facilities, factories, airfields, rail and transport installations, and other military infrastructure. On 18 July 1944, during an attack on the Memmingen airfield and associated installations, the group continued toward its objective despite strong enemy fighter opposition and the absence of fighter cover; it lost 15 bombers and received a Distinguished Unit Citation. A second Distinguished Unit Citation recognized its 24 March 1945 attack on tank-production facilities in Berlin under intense fighter and antiaircraft resistance. The group also bombed southern France in support of Operation Dragoon and assisted Allied forces during the final offensive in northern Italy. It continued operations until the German surrender in May 1945. After V-E Day, the group took part in the Air Transport Command's Green Project. Its bombers were stripped of armament and fitted with seats and flooring for approximately 25 passengers. These aircraft moved personnel from Pisa to Port Lyautey in French Morocco, where passengers continued by transatlantic or South Atlantic routes. The group was inactivated at Pisa on 25 September 1945 after 215 combat missions and the loss of 75 aircraft. The lineage returned on 1 January 1953, when the organization was activated at Ashiya Air Base as the 483rd Troop Carrier Group, Medium. It replaced the 403rd Troop Carrier Group and assumed its mission, personnel, and equipment under the 483rd Troop Carrier Wing. Flying C-119 aircraft, the group transported troops and supplies into forward areas, supported airborne operations, evacuated casualties, and performed broader air-transport duties in the Far East during the Korean War. Its Korean service was recognized with a Korean Presidential Unit Citation and an Air Force Outstanding Unit Award. Between April 1953 and September 1954, it additionally trained French air force personnel and delivered supplies in support of French operations in Indochina. Organizational changes made the group non-operational in 1956, with its squadrons attached directly to the wing; the group was finally inactivated on 8 December 1958. Around September 1991, the designation was revived as the 483rd Airlift Group at Osan Air Base, Korea. Assigned initially through Military Airlift Command and then to Twenty-Second Air Force, this final version supported VIP transportation for Headquarters, Seventh Air Force. It was inactivated around 1 June 1992.
- 1992
Final inactivation
[1]The 483rd Airlift Group was inactivated around 1 June 1992.
- 1991
Reactivated as an airlift group
[1]The designation was revived at Osan Air Base, Korea, for VIP airlift duties.
- 1958
Second inactivation
[1]The troop-carrier group was inactivated on 8 December after the reorganization was completed.
- 1956
Became non-operational
[1]Organizational restructuring attached the group's squadrons directly to the 483rd Troop Carrier Wing.
- 1953
Reactivated as a troop-carrier group
[1]The organization was activated at Ashiya, Japan, as the 483rd Troop Carrier Group, Medium, replacing the 403rd Troop Carrier Group.
- 1953
Korean War airlift service
[1]The group transported personnel and cargo, supported airborne units, and evacuated casualties in the Far East.
- 1953
Indochina support begins
[1]The wing and group supported the French Air Force with training and supply transport from April 1953 through September 1954.
- 1945
Second Distinguished Unit Citation
[1]A 24 March attack on Berlin tank factories earned the group a second Distinguished Unit Citation.
- 1945
Postwar transport mission
[1]Modified B-17s carried personnel from Pisa to French Morocco for onward movement under the Green Project.
- 1945
World War II inactivation
[1]The bombardment group was inactivated in Italy on 25 September after flying 215 combat missions.
Products and positioning
A United States Air Force operational group whose role evolved from strategic bombing to theater airlift, troop transport, humanitarian and casualty evacuation support, and VIP transport.
Strategic bombardment · 1943
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress operations
During World War II, the group operated B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers in the Fifteenth Air Force. Missions targeted military, industrial, petroleum, airfield, and transportation infrastructure across occupied and Axis-controlled Europe. After the war, several aircraft were adapted for passenger movement under the Green Project.
Troop and cargo airlift · 1953
Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar operations
During its Korean War-era existence, the group used C-119 transport aircraft for troop movement, delivery of cargo to forward areas, airborne-force support, and casualty evacuation. The aircraft supported operations in Korea and assistance to French forces in Indochina.
Executive and command transport · 1991
VIP airlift
The group's final incarnation provided VIP transportation for Headquarters, Seventh Air Force from Osan Air Base. This role formed part of a broader realignment of airlift organizations in the early 1990s.
Marketing campaigns
- 1953Korean War airlift operations
Korea · Japan
The troop-carrier group transported United Nations personnel and supplies, supported airborne units, landed cargo in forward areas, and evacuated casualties.
Outcome. The group received a Korean Presidential Unit Citation and an Air Force Outstanding Unit Award.
- 1953French Indochina support
Indochina
From April 1953 through September 1954, the organization helped train French air force personnel and transported supplies for French operations in Indochina.
Outcome. The support continued until September 1954.
- 1945Green Project
Italy · French Morocco
After the European war, the group's B-17s were modified with passenger seating and used to move personnel from Pisa to Port Lyautey for onward transportation.
Outcome. The operation contributed to the repatriation and redistribution of personnel after V-E Day.
- 1944Mediterranean strategic bombing campaign
Italy · France · Germany · Austria · Czechoslovakia · Balkans
The group conducted long-range bombing against military, industrial, petroleum, and transportation targets as part of the Fifteenth Air Force campaign in the Mediterranean and central Europe.
Outcome. The group completed 215 combat missions and received two Distinguished Unit Citations.
- 1944Operation Dragoon support
Southern France
The group attacked targets in southern France in preparation for the Allied invasion known as Operation Dragoon.
Outcome. The bombing effort supported the wider Allied invasion and liberation campaign in southern France.
Sources1 sources
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