97th Operations Group
The 97th Operations Group is the flying and operational training component of the United States Air Force's 97th Air Mobility Wing at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma.
Last updated August 26, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
The 97th Operations Group is a United States Air Force operational and training organization assigned to the 97th Air Mobility Wing and based at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma. It operates within Air Education and Training Command and is responsible for preparing aircrews to fly major United States mobility aircraft, including the C-17 Globemaster III, KC-46A Pegasus, and KC-135R Stratotanker. Its mission combines formal initial qualification, advanced upgrade training, operational support, and the maintenance of airlift and aerial-refueling capabilities used in combat and contingency operations worldwide. The group is the modern organizational successor to the historically important 97th Bombardment Group. That predecessor was constituted in January 1942 and activated at MacDill Field, Florida, during the Second World War. Equipped with B-17 Flying Fortresses, it deployed to the United Kingdom and flew the first heavy-bomber mission conducted by an operational Eighth Air Force B-17 group from Britain on 17 August 1942. The target was the railway marshalling complex at Sotteville-lès-Rouen, France. The mission was commanded by Colonel Frank A. Armstrong Jr.; among the participating airmen was Captain Paul W. Tibbets, who later commanded the Enola Gay mission against Hiroshima. The group subsequently moved to the Mediterranean theater, where it attacked shipping, airfields, ports, rail facilities, aircraft factories, oil refineries, and other Axis targets across southern Europe. It received Distinguished Unit Citations for actions at Steyr, Austria, during the 1944 campaign against German aircraft production, and at Ploiești, Romania, in August 1944. It also participated in the first shuttle-bombing operation to the Soviet Union and supported Allied operations in Italy and southern France. During the war it flew hundreds of combat missions and suffered substantial aircraft losses before being inactivated in Italy in October 1945. The lineage continued after the war under Strategic Air Command. Reactivated in 1946 with B-29 Superfortresses, the group later converted to B-50 aircraft, deployed to Alaska and the United Kingdom, and participated in readiness exercises and overseas rotations. It became non-operational in 1951 and was inactivated in 1952 as the Air Force reorganized its wing structure. The 97th Operations Group designation was created in 1991 as the Air Force adopted the objective-wing organization. It briefly supported Strategic Air Command's bomber and aerial-refueling functions, including B-52 and KC-135 operations. The group was inactivated in April 1992, then reactivated at Altus in October of that year with personnel and aircraft associated with the former 443d Operations Group. It was assigned first to Air Mobility Command and transferred to Air Education and Training Command in 1993. Today, the group plans and executes formal-school training for C-17, KC-46, and KC-135 aircrews. It supports initial qualification and advanced specialty instruction for pilots, loadmasters, and other mobility personnel, serving active-duty, reserve, Guard, and international students. Its 97th Training Squadron administers a large contracted aircrew-training program, while the 58th Airlift Squadron operates the United States' formal C-17 combat-crew training school. The 54th and 56th Air Refueling Squadrons provide KC-135R and KC-46 qualification training respectively. The 97th Operations Support Squadron supplies air traffic control, weather, airfield management, intelligence, scheduling, life-support, flight-records, tactics, and administrative services. Through these activities, the group contributes both to the readiness of deployed mobility forces and to the long-term development of the Air Force's airlift and refueling workforce.
History
The lineage associated with the 97th Operations Group began with the 97th Bombardment Group, constituted on 28 January 1942 and activated on 3 February at MacDill Field, Florida. The group initially trained B-17 Flying Fortress crews and conducted antisubmarine patrols. It moved to England during Operation Bolero and became the first operational Eighth Air Force B-17 group to conduct a combat mission from the United Kingdom. On 17 August 1942, it attacked the railway marshalling yards at Sotteville-lès-Rouen, France, in a mission involving eighteen bombers and fighter escort supplied by the Royal Air Force. After sixteen missions from England, the group moved to the Mediterranean theater in October 1942. It operated first under Twelfth Air Force and later under Fifteenth Air Force. Its missions included attacks on Mediterranean shipping, ports, airfields, transportation networks, and industrial targets in North Africa, Italy, France, the Balkans, Austria, Germany, and other areas controlled or occupied by Axis forces. It helped isolate Pantelleria, supported the invasions of Sicily and southern Italy, assisted Allied armies at Anzio and Cassino, and supported the advance through the Po Valley. In 1944 it took part in Operation Frantic, the first shuttle-bombing mission to the Soviet Union. The group received Distinguished Unit Citations for the raid on the aircraft factory at Steyr on 24 February 1944 and the attack on the Ploiești oil complex on 18 August 1944. It was inactivated in Italy on 29 October 1945. The organization was reactivated at Smoky Hill Army Air Field, Kansas, on 4 August 1946 as a very-heavy bombardment group and was assigned to Strategic Air Command. It inherited B-29 Superfortresses from the inactivated 485th Bombardment Group, later converting to B-50 Superfortresses. The group conducted readiness activity and overseas deployments, including a deployment to northern Alaska and rotations to the United Kingdom. It was redesignated as a medium bombardment group in 1948 and became non-operational in 1951. SAC inactivated it on 16 June 1952 after assigning its squadrons directly to the 97th Bombardment Wing. The 97th Operations Group was redesignated and activated on 1 September 1991 when the 97th Wing adopted the Air Force objective-wing structure. The group inherited the history, lineage, and honors of the earlier 97th Bombardment Group. During its initial modern period it supported Strategic Air Command operations, including bomber and aerial-refueling activity. It was inactivated on 1 April 1992, then reactivated on 1 October 1992 at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma, absorbing personnel and aircraft associated with the 443d Operations Group. At Altus, the group became an airlift and aerial-refueling training organization. It was assigned to Air Mobility Command during the initial transition and moved to Air Education and Training Command in 1993. Its contemporary mission centers on formal-school instruction for C-17, KC-46, and KC-135 aircrews, while also sustaining operational mobility capabilities. The group provides initial qualification and advanced training for United States active-duty, reserve, and Guard personnel, as well as international students. Its support functions include air traffic services, weather forecasting, airfield management, intelligence, scheduling, tactics, life support, flight records, and current-operations coordination.
- 1993
Transferred to Air Education and Training Command
[1]The group moved from Air Mobility Command to Air Education and Training Command while continuing mobility aircrew training.
- 1992
Reactivated at Altus Air Force Base
[1]After a brief inactivation, the group was reactivated at Altus and assumed an airlift and aerial-refueling training mission.
- 1991
97th Operations Group activated
[1]The modern operations group was activated under the objective-wing structure and inherited the earlier group's lineage and honors.
- 1952
Cold War-era group inactivated
[1]The Strategic Air Command bombardment group was inactivated as the command reorganized its wing structure.
- 1946
Postwar Strategic Air Command reactivation
[1]The group was reactivated at Smoky Hill Army Air Field with B-29 aircraft and assigned to Strategic Air Command.
- 1945
World War II group inactivated
[1]The wartime 97th Bombardment Group was inactivated in Italy on 29 October.
- 1944
Distinguished Unit Citation for the Steyr raid
[1]The group received a Distinguished Unit Citation for leading an attack on an aircraft factory at Steyr, Austria, during the Big Week offensive.
- 1944
Participation in Operation Frantic
[1]The group participated in the first shuttle-bombing mission to the Soviet Union.
- 1944
Distinguished Unit Citation for the Ploiești raid
[1]A second Distinguished Unit Citation recognized the group's attack on a Ploiești oil refinery in Romania.
- 1942
97th Bombardment Group activated
[1]The 97th Bombardment Group was activated at MacDill Field, Florida, after being constituted as a heavy bombardment group.
Products and positioning
A United States Air Force mobility-training organization combining formal aircrew qualification with operational support and readiness for global airlift and aerial-refueling missions.
Aircrew training
C-17 Globemaster III training
The 58th Airlift Squadron conducts formal C-17 combat-crew training, including initial qualification and advanced upgrades for pilots and loadmasters serving active-duty, Reserve, and Air National Guard organizations.
Air-refueling aircrew training
KC-46A Pegasus training
The 56th Air Refueling Squadron provides initial and advanced flight qualification for KC-46 crews, supporting the development of personnel for the Air Force's next-generation aerial-refueling fleet.
Air-refueling aircrew training
KC-135R Stratotanker training
The 54th Air Refueling Squadron delivers initial and advanced qualification training for KC-135R crews, preserving operational proficiency for a long-serving strategic tanker fleet.
Flying operations support
Operational support services
The 97th Operations Support Squadron supports the wing's flying units through air traffic control, weather, airfield management, intelligence, scheduling, tactics, life support, flight records, current operations, and administrative services.
Sources1 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/97th-operations-group · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled