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Constituted as V Air Support Command on 21 Aug 1941. Activated on 1 Sep 1941. Redesignated Ninth AF in Apr 1942. Moved to Egypt and began operations on 12 Nov 1942, participating in the Allied drive across Egypt and Libya, the campaign in Tunisia, and the invasions of Sicily and Italy.
- Dedicated Ground Support
- HALPRO and Aquila
- Strategic Strike on Ploesti
- Preparations For Operation Torch
- Changes in IX Bomber Command
- Three Heavy Bomber Groups
- Target: Europe
- “Combined Bomber Offensive”
- Ninth Air Force in England
- Operating Under The Eighth Air Force
Along with the British Second Tactical Air Force, the Ninth Air Force was formed specifically to support the ground forces whose lot was to fight in Western Europe. The D-Day landings commenced the final and best-known period of Ninth Air Force’s wartime service, but by June 6, 1944, it had been in combat almost two years and was in the second phas...
The first American air unit to serve in the Middle East was a special project under the command of Colonel Harry Halverson known as the Halverson Project, HALPRO for short. HALPRO was made up of a squadron of Consolidated B-24D Liberator bombers whose original mission had been to serve as the nucleus of a heavy bomber force based in China to begin ...
The changing military situation in Libya and Egypt led to a change of heart; the War Department decided to establish an air force in the Middle East with one heavy bomber group, two of medium bombers, and six pursuit groups. Brereton’s new command was initially organized as the Middle Eastern Air Force, but plans were laid for it to become the Nint...
The original comprehensive War Department plans for air strength in the Middle East were never reached, although heavy bomber strength would increase to twice that originally planned. Political maneuvering cost the Middle Eastern Air Forces some of its projected assets when newly promoted Brig. Gen. James H. Doolittle, who enjoyed star status in Wa...
Throughout the summer of 1942, the formal organization of the Middle Eastern Air Forces was limited. In October the IX Bomber Command was staffed, although the command itself remained in an unofficial status. Colonel Patrick Timberlake of Brereton’s staff took issue with British claims to control of the American heavy bombers, asserting that it was...
After the Casablanca landings, two B-17 groups left the Eighth Air Force in England and moved to North Africa to join Doolittle’s Twelfth Air Force. In December the 93rd Bombardment Group, one of two B-24 groups in the Eighth Air Force, was deployed under temporary duty orders to North Africa with three of its four squadrons to supplement XII Bombe...
After the capture of Tripoli, IX Bomber Command turned its attention toward targets in Europe, specifically Naples, Messina, and Palermo. The three cities were important links in the Axis supply chain to Tunisia. The B-24s were still based in the Nile Delta but staged out of a forward base at Gambut near Tobruk, where the bombers were refueled befo...
Once Allied troops were ashore in Sicily and Italy, the Army Air Forces began a massive reorganization in preparation for the invasion of Normandy. At the Casablanca Conference in early 1943, the Allied leaders agreed to conduct a “combined bomber offensive” against Germany from British and Italian bases. The Eighth Air Force in England would be th...
On October 15, four medium bomber and two troop carrier groups transferred from the Eighth to the Ninth Air Force to became its first operational units in England. The 322nd, 323rd, 386th, and 387th Bombardment Groups were equipped with Martin B-26 medium bombers, while the troop carrier groups flew Douglas C-47s. The first fighter group to join th...
Throughout the winter months of 1943-1944, the Ninth Air Force was augmented. The four B-26 groups of IX Bomber Command were beefed up with the addition of four more medium bomber groups of B-26s and three light bombardment groups equipped with Douglas A-20s. One of the missions of the Ninth Air Force would be to provide troop carrier support for a...
The Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is the Air Force Service Component of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), a joint Department of Defense combatant command responsible for U.S. security interests in 27 nations that ...
Jun 7, 2022 · Formation note: the 9th Air Force (US Army Air Force, Ninth Air Force) was formed on 8 April 1942 at the New Orleans Army Air Base in Louisiana. The Force served as the US Army Middle East Air Force. Medium bombers and fighters of 9th Air Force supported the British 8th Army (Eighth Army) across North Africa.
9th Air Force. 9af.org is a project of the Army Air Corps Library and Museum. Volunteers are transcribing servicemen names and their awards from General Orders that we are publishing on this website for enthusiasts, families and researchers of genealogy and World War II history.
Updated Aug 2023. Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is the air component of United States Central Command, a regional unified command. 9AF (AFCENT) is responsible for air operations, either unilaterally or in concert with regional partners, and developing contingency,
9th Air Force. The 9th Air Force was the tactical arm of the USAAF in western Europe from 1943 to the end of the war in 1945. The aircrews of the 9th Air Force “softened” the enemy before the invasion of Normandy, supported ground forces on D-Day, and made possible their rapid advance through France to the Nazi heartland. (U.S. Air Force photo)
