88th Bombardment Group

The 88th Bombardment Group was a United States Army Air Forces heavy-bomber training organization active during World War II. Although designated a bombardment group and initially constituted as the 88th Bombardment Group (Heavy), it did not serve as an overseas combat group. Its principal function was to train personnel for Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress operations, first through an operational training role and subsequently as a replacement training unit. In that capacity, it helped prepare individual airmen and aircrews for assignment to other heavy-bomber organizations. The group was constituted on 28 January 1942 and activated on 15 July 1942 at Salt Lake City Army Air Base, Utah. It was initially an administrative activation and was organized in practice at Geiger Field, Washington, on 1 September 1942. Four bombardment squadrons formed its operational core: the 316th, 317th, 318th, and 399th Bombardment Squadrons. The group moved to Walla Walla Army Air Base, Washington, later in September, where it received B-17 aircraft and began its training mission. The 88th initially operated as an Operational Training Unit. The OTU system used comparatively large parent organizations to establish and support smaller satellite groups by providing trained cadres. Within approximately a month of its organization, however, the 88th was redesignated in practice as a Replacement Training Unit. RTUs were also oversized organizations, but their purpose was to train replacement pilots, aircrew members, and other personnel individually or in crew formations for existing operational units. This reflected the Army Air Forces’ rapidly expanding wartime training requirements and the heavy losses and personnel demands associated with the strategic bombing campaign. The group’s assignments placed it within the heavy-bomber training structure of the Army Air Forces. It served under II Bomber Command and was associated with the 17th Bombardment Wing and its successor training designations. On 6 October 1943, it came under Second Air Force, remaining attached to the 17th Bombardment Operational Training Wing. As the Army Air Forces adjusted its training priorities, Second Air Force increasingly concentrated on Boeing B-29 Superfortress training. The 88th consequently moved from Washington to Avon Park Army Air Field, Florida, in November 1943 and became associated with III Bomber Command. The group’s final phase coincided with a broader reorganization of Army Air Forces training administration. Standard groups and squadrons were built around relatively fixed tables of organization, but these structures were considered poorly suited to the flexible, function-based requirements of training bases. The Army Air Forces therefore replaced many conventional training formations with numbered base units whose responsibilities were organized around the functions performed at each installation. At Avon Park, the 88th Bombardment Group and related supporting organizations were inactivated on 1 May 1944. The 325th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Replacement Training, Bombardment, Heavy) replaced them. The 88th’s historical importance lies primarily in its role within the training infrastructure that sustained American heavy-bomber operations. It operated the B-17 during the period from 1942 to 1944, trained replacement personnel rather than conducting a documented combat campaign, and was dissolved as part of an institutional transition in wartime base management. The unit has remained inactive since its inactivation.

The 88th Bombardment Group was constituted as the 88th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 January 1942 and activated on 15 July 1942 at Salt Lake City Army Air Base, Utah. It was part of the rapid wartime expansion of the United States Army Air Forces, which required a large training system to supply pilots, aircrew members, and replacement personnel to heavy-bomber units. The group did not become an overseas combat formation; instead, its principal assignment was the preparation of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress personnel. The organization was initially activated administratively and was organized at Geiger Field, Washington, on 1 September 1942. Its constituent units were the 316th, 317th, 318th, and 399th Bombardment Squadrons. On 21 September, the group moved to Walla Walla Army Air Base, where it equipped with B-17s. It initially functioned as an Operational Training Unit. Under the OTU system, a large parent organization trained cadres who could then establish or reinforce smaller satellite groups. The 88th’s role soon shifted toward Replacement Training Unit work, in which pilots and aircrews were prepared to replace personnel in existing operational organizations. The group operated within the Army Air Forces’ heavy-bomber training hierarchy. It was assigned to II Bomber Command and associated with the 17th Bombardment Wing, later known under several training-related designations. The group also spent a short period at Rapid City Army Air Base, South Dakota, around October 1942 before returning to Walla Walla in November. On 6 October 1943, it was assigned to Second Air Force and remained attached to the 17th Bombardment Operational Training Wing. By late 1943, training priorities were changing. Second Air Force, which had conducted much of the Army Air Forces’ heavy-bomber preparation, increasingly focused on Boeing B-29 Superfortress training. The 88th therefore transferred to Avon Park Army Air Field, Florida, around 9 November 1943 and came under III Bomber Command. Its work continued as part of the replacement-training system for heavy-bomber personnel. The group’s inactivation resulted from an administrative reform rather than a combat defeat or a documented scandal. Army Air Forces planners concluded that conventional groups and squadrons, whose personnel and equipment were organized under comparatively rigid tables of organization, were not sufficiently adaptable to the functional needs of training bases. The service began replacing such formations with numbered base units designed around specific installation functions. At Avon Park, the 88th and its supporting organizations were inactivated on 1 May 1944. The 325th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Replacement Training, Bombardment, Heavy) assumed the relevant replacement-training responsibilities. The 88th Bombardment Group’s active existence therefore lasted from July 1942 to May 1944. Its historical contribution was as a component of the domestic training network that supported American heavy-bomber operations during World War II. The group operated B-17 aircraft, trained operational and replacement personnel, moved between several Army airfields as command priorities changed, and disappeared when the Army Air Forces adopted a more flexible base-unit system.

• 1944

  Inactivated and replaced by a base unit

  [1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The 88th was inactivated on 1 May 1944 and its training responsibilities were transferred to the 325th Army Air Forces Base Unit.

• 1943

  Transfers to Avon Park

  [1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The group moved to Avon Park Army Air Field, Florida, in November 1943 and became part of III Bomber Command.

• 1942

  Constituted as a heavy bombardment group

  [1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The organization was constituted as the 88th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 January 1942.

• 1942

  Activated at Salt Lake City

  [1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The group was activated on 15 July 1942 at Salt Lake City Army Air Base, Utah.

• 1942

  Organized at Geiger Field

  [1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The group was organized at Geiger Field, Washington, on 1 September and included four bombardment squadrons.

• 1942

  Begins B-17 training at Walla Walla

  [1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  After moving to Walla Walla Army Air Base, the group equipped with Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and conducted heavy-bomber training.

A wartime United States Army Air Forces training formation rather than a commercial brand or an overseas combat organization. Its operational identity centered on preparing B-17 heavy-bomber crews and replacements for other Army Air Forces units.

• Heavy bomber aircraft · 1942

  Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress

  The B-17 Flying Fortress was the group’s identified aircraft from 1942 through 1944. The 88th used the type as the platform for operational and replacement training, preparing pilots and aircrews for heavy-bomber assignments elsewhere in the Army Air Forces.

• 1944

  Inactivation during conversion to functional base unitsStrategy

  Background

  Army Air Forces planners found that conventional groups organized under rigid tables of organization were not well suited to the flexible requirements of training bases.

  Action taken

  The 88th Bombardment Group and supporting organizations at Avon Park were inactivated on 1 May 1944 and replaced by the 325th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Replacement Training, Bombardment, Heavy).

  Aftermath

  The group became inactive, while its relevant training functions continued under the numbered base-unit system.

  Source

• 1943

  Relocation as heavy-bomber training priorities changedStrategy

  Background

  Second Air Force increasingly concentrated on Boeing B-29 Superfortress training, changing the distribution of heavy-bomber training responsibilities.

  Action taken

  The 88th moved from Washington to Avon Park Army Air Field, Florida, around 9 November 1943 and became part of III Bomber Command.

  Aftermath

  The group continued replacement training in Florida until its inactivation during the following year’s organizational reform.

  Source

• 1942

  Shift from operational training to replacement trainingStrategy

  Background

  The Army Air Forces used large training groups both to establish cadres for new satellite units and to prepare replacement personnel for existing units. The 88th moved from an initial Operational Training Unit role toward Replacement Training Unit duties shortly after organization.

  Action taken

  The group focused on preparing individual pilots and aircrews for assignment to operational heavy-bomber organizations.

  Aftermath

  The change aligned the group with the Army Air Forces’ expanding demand for trained B-17 replacement personnel.

  Source

• 1944

  Group inactivated during Army Air Forces training reorganization[1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The 88th was inactivated at Avon Park on 1 May 1944 and replaced by the 325th Army Air Forces Base Unit, reflecting the move from conventional group structures to functional base units.

• 1943

  88th Bombardment Group relocates to Florida[1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The group moved to Avon Park Army Air Field in November 1943 as responsibility for heavy-bomber training shifted within the Army Air Forces command structure.

• 1942

  88th Bombardment Group activated for heavy-bomber training[1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The group was activated at Salt Lake City Army Air Base and subsequently organized at Geiger Field, Washington, with four bombardment squadrons.

• 1942

  Group begins B-17 training operations in Washington[1]88th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Other · Product generation

  After moving to Walla Walla Army Air Base, the 88th received Boeing B-17 aircraft and undertook operational and replacement training duties.

1. 188th Bombardment Groupen.wikipedia.org