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556th Strategic Missile Squadron

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556th Strategic Missile Squadron
Squadron Convair SM-65F Atlas No. 100 at Site 6 Au Sable Forks NY
Active1942–1945; 1957–1959; 1961–1965
Country United States
Branch United States Air Force
Roleintercontinental ballistic missile
Motto(s)In Utumque Paratus Latin Ready for Anything[1][note 1]
EngagementsEuropean Theater of Operations
DecorationsDistinguished Unit Citation
Insignia
Patch with 556th Strategic Missile Squadron emblem (approved 25 April 1962)
Patch with 556th Bombardment Squadron emblem[2]
World War II fuselage code[2]FW

The 556th Strategic Missile Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 820th Strategic Aerospace Division at Plattsburgh Air Force Base, New York, where it was inactivated in 1965 with the withdrawal of the Atlas missile from operations.

The squadron was first activated during World War II as the 556th Bombardment Suadron, a Martin B-26 Marauder unit. After training in the southeastern United States, it deployed to the European Theater of Operations, where it conducted operations until April 1945, earning a Distinguished Unit Citation during the Battle of the Bulge. Following V-E Day the squadron remained in Europe until the fall of 1945, returning to the United States for inactivation in November.

The squadron became a missile unit in 1957, when it conducted tests with the SM-62 Snark in Florida. Later moving to Maine as an operational unit, it was inactivated in 1959 with the removal of the Snark from service. The squadron was activated again and equipped with the SM-65F Atlas Intercontinental ballistic missile, with a mission of nuclear deterrence. It was the only ICBM squadron east of the Mississippi River. The squadron was inactivated as part of the phaseout of the Atlas ICBM on 25 June 1965.

History

World War II

Squadron B-26 "Short Snorter", showing mission markings[note 2]

The 556th Bombardment Squadron was activated at MacDill Field, Florida on 1 December 1942 as one of the four squadrons of the 387th Bombardment Group and trained at bases in the southeastern United States with Martin B-26 Marauder medium bombers until June 1943, when it deployed to the European Theater of Operations. The squadron's ground echelon departed for the Port of Embarkation on 10 June and sailed on the RMS Queen Mary on 23 June, while the air echelon ferried its Marauders to England via the northern ferrying route.[1][3][4]

The squadron established itself at its first base in Europe, RAF Chipping Ongar at the beginning of July 1943. Although the squadron initially trained for low level attacks, VIII Air Support Command, in consultation with the Royal Air Force, decided to employ its B-26 units in attacks at medium altitude, mirroring a decision made earlier in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations. The squadron flew its first combat mission on 15 August,[4] with initial operations focusing on German airfields near the coast of France, in an effort to force the Luftwaffe to withdraw its interceptors from the coastal belt, reducing their effectiveness against heavy bombers passing through on their way to strike targets deeper in occupied Europe.[5] By early September, the squadron adopted a tactic first employed by the 386th Bombardment Group, where all bombers in a formation dropped their bombs based on the lead aircraft, rather than individually, to achieve a greater concentration of bombs on the intended target. September 1943 would prove the busiest while the squadron was part of Eighth Air Force as B-26s made heavy attacks on airfields and communications sites near Boulogne as part of Operation Starkey, an attempt to make the Germans believe an invasion of France was imminent.[6] On 9 October 1943, the squadron flew what would prove to be the last B-26 mission flown by Eighth Air Force.[7]

In October, Ninth Air Force moved to England to take over tactical operations operating from England, building on the core of B-26 units already there. During the winter of 1943-1944, the squadron made numerous attacks on V-1 flying bomb and V-2 rocket sites. During Big Week, the squadron attacked Leeuwarden and Venlo Airfields. In the spring of 1944, the squadron attacked coastal defenses and bridges prior to Operation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy. On D-Day, it attacked targets along the coast, and supported ground forces during June 1944 by attacking line of communication targets and fuel dumps. In late July, the squadron supported Operation Cobra, the breakout at Saint Lo. During August, it attacked German forces at Brest, France.[3]

The squadron moved to France in September, when it began operations from Maupertuis Airfield. For the rest of the war, it operated from Advanced Landing Grounds in Europe, advancing eastward with Allied ground forces. Its operations from advanced fields permitted its first attacks directly on targets in Germany by the fall of 1944. During the Battle of the Bulge, it attacked strongly defended communications and transportation targets at Mayen and Pruem, for which it was awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation. It continued to support the Allied advance into Germany, flying its last combat mission in April 1945.[3]

After V-E Day the squadron moved to Rosieres-en-Santerre Airfield, France, where it remained until returning to the United States for inactivation in November 1945.[1]

Missile operations

Snark missiles

The squadron was redesignated the 556th Strategic Missile Squadron and reactivated in 1957 as a Strategic Air Command (SAC) strategic missile squadron. It initially performed testing on the SM-62 Snark intercontinental cruise missile. It also carried out testing at the Atlantic Missile Range in Florida; moving to Presque Isle Air Force Base, Maine for operational deployment in 1959. It was inactivated in 1959.

Atlas missiles

The squadron was reactivated as a SAC SM-65F Atlas ICBM launch squadron at Plattsburgh Air Force Base, New York and assigned to the 820th Air Division on 1 July 1961. The 556th was the only Atlas ICBM squadron east of the Mississippi River. The squadron was assigned twelve missiles, based in a 1 x 12 configuration: twelve independent widely dispersed launch sites comprised the missile squadron. The first missile arrived in April 1962, the silos were declared operational in December. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, the 556th received orders to maintain all 12 missiles on alert status.

The Atlas F was the final and most advanced version of the Atlas ICBM and was stored in a vertical position inside underground concrete and steel silos. When stored, the Atlas F sat atop an elevator. If a missile was placed on alert, it was fueled with RP-1 (kerosene) liquid fuel, which could be stored inside the missile for extended periods. If a decision was made to launch the missile, ít was raised to the surface and the liquid oxygen tank was filled. The launch would occur shortly after completion of this process. The exposure on the surface that this procedure entailed was the great weakness of the Atlas F. It was exposed and vulnerable during this time. Titan II and Minuteman missiles could be launched from within their silos, thereby eliminating this vulnerability. Also, since the Titan did not use a cryogenic fuel or oxidizer, and the Minuteman was a solid fuel rocket, they could be stored fully fueled and ready to launch within a few minutes.

The first Atlas F missile was removed from alert status in favor of the more advanced LGM-25C Titan II on 1 December 1964; the squadron was inactivated on 25 June 1965. Missile sites were subsequently sold off to private ownership after demilitarization.

Lineage

  • Constituted as the 556 Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 25 November 1942
Activated on 1 December 1942
Redesignated 556 Bombardment Squadron, Medium on 9 October 1944
Inactivated on 12 November 1945
  • Redesignated 556th Strategic Missile Squadron on 22 November 1957
Activated on 15 December 1957
  • Redesignated 556th Strategic Missile Squadron (ICM-Snark) on 1 April 1958[8]
Inactivated on 16 July 1959
  • Redesignated 556th Strategic Missile Squadron (ICBM-Atlas)[8] and activated on 26 April 1961 (not organized)
Organized on 1 October 1961[9]
Inactivated on 25 June 1965[10]

Assignments

  • 387th Bombardment Group, 1 December 1942 – 12 November 1945
  • Strategic Air Command, 15 December 1957
  • 702d Strategic Missile Wing, 1 April–16 July 1959
  • Strategic Air Command, 26 April 1961 (not organized)
  • 820th Air Division (later 820th Strategic Aerospace Division), 1 October 1961 – 25 June 1965[9][11]

Stations

Missile sites

SM-65F Atlas Missile Sites
  • Operated twelve missile sites of one missile at each site (12 total):
556–1 5.2 mi W of Rouses Point, NY 45°00′04″N 073°28′18″W / 45.00111°N 73.47167°W / 45.00111; -73.47167 (556-1)
556–2 1.0 mi E of Alburg, VT 44°59′14″N 073°17′18″W / 44.98722°N 73.28833°W / 44.98722; -73.28833 (556-2)
556–3 1.3 mi SSW of Swanton, VT 44°54′08″N 073°08′17″W / 44.90222°N 73.13806°W / 44.90222; -73.13806 (556-3)
556–4 6.4 mi S of Willsboro Point, NY 44°20′33″N 073°22′11″W / 44.34250°N 73.36972°W / 44.34250; -73.36972 (556-4)
556–5 8.2 mi NNE of Elizabethtown, NY 44°19′55″N 073°33′13″W / 44.33194°N 73.55361°W / 44.33194; -73.55361 (556-5)
556–6 2.1 mi NE of Au Sable Forks, NY 44°27′36″N 073°38′33″W / 44.46000°N 73.64250°W / 44.46000; -73.64250 (556-6)
556–7 4.1 mi E of Loon Lake, NY 44°32′30″N 073°58′31″W / 44.54167°N 73.97528°W / 44.54167; -73.97528 (556-7)
556–8 6.6 mi WSW of Saranac, NY 44°36′04″N 073°51′24″W / 44.60111°N 73.85667°W / 44.60111; -73.85667 (556-8)
556–9 5.9 mi NW of Dannemora, NY 44°46′15″N 073°49′20″W / 44.77083°N 73.82222°W / 44.77083; -73.82222 (556-9)
556–10 7.3 mi SE of Chateaugay, NY 44°50′36″N 073°59′17″W / 44.84333°N 73.98806°W / 44.84333; -73.98806 (556-10)
556–11 14.0 mi WNW of Ellenburg, NY 44°54′44″N 073°49′04″W / 44.91222°N 73.81778°W / 44.91222; -73.81778 (556-11)
556–12 10.7 mi WNW of Mooers, NY 44°58′03″N 073°37′29″W / 44.96750°N 73.62472°W / 44.96750; -73.62472 (556-12)[citation needed]

Aircraft and missiles

  • Martin B-26 Marauder, 1942–1945
  • Northrop SM-62 Snark, 1958–1959
  • General Dynamics SM-65F (later HGM-16F) Atlas, 1962–1964[9]

See also

Map all coordinates using OpenStreetMap

Download coordinates as:

References

Notes

Explanatory notes
  1. ^ Literal translation is "ready in either case." Maurer, Combat Squadrons, p. 658.
  2. ^ Aircraft is Martin B-26B Marauder, serial 41-31900, fuselage code FW-T.
Citations
  1. ^ a b c Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 657-658
  2. ^ a b Watkins, pp. 74-75
  3. ^ a b c Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 274-275
  4. ^ a b Freeman, p. 254
  5. ^ Freeman, pp. 59-60
  6. ^ Freeman, p. 60
  7. ^ Freeman, p. 62
  8. ^ a b See Mueller, p. 478 (Parenthetical designation)
  9. ^ a b c d Lineage information, including assignments and stations, through March 1963 in Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 657-658, except as noted.
  10. ^ See Factsheet, 820th Strategic Aerospace Division (end of assignment to division), Mueller, p. 478 (end date of time stationed at Plattsburgh)
  11. ^ "Factsheet 820 Strategic Aerospace Division". Air Force Historical Research Agency. 11 October 2007. Archived from the original on 30 October 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2014.
  12. ^ a b Station number in Anderson.
  13. ^ a b c d e Station number in Johnson.
  14. ^ Mueller, p. 478

Bibliography

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

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