Authorized as 19th Observation Group on 18 Oct 1927. Redesignated
19th
Bombardment Group in 1929. Activated on 24 Jun 1932. Redesignated
19th
Bombardment Group (Heavy) in 1939. Equipped first with B-10's,
later with
B-18's, and still later (in 1941) with B-17's. Moved to the
Philippine
Islands, Sep-Nov 1941.
On 7 Dec 1941 (8 Dec in the Philippines), when the Japanese
first
attacked Clark Field, the group suffered numerous casualties and
lost many
planes. The 93rd squadron, however, was on maneuvers at Del
Monte and
therefore missed the attack. Supplies and headquarters were
hastily moved
from Clark Field to comparatively safe points nearby, and
planes that had not
been too heavily damaged were given emergency
repairs and dispatched to Del
Monte. There the 19th began
reconnaissance and bombardment operations against
Japanese shipping and
landing parties. Sustaining heavy losses, the group
ceased these
actions after about two weeks, and the ground personnel joined
infantry
units in fighting the invaders. Some of the men were evacuated,
some
escaped, but most were either killed or captured. Meanwhile, late
in Dec 1941
the air echelon moved to Australia to transport medical and
other supplies to
the Philippine Islands and evacuate personnel from
that area. The men in
Australia moved to Java at the end of 1941 and,
flying B-17, LB-30, and B-24
aircraft, earned a DUC for the group by
attacking enemy aircraft, ground
installations, warships, and
transports during the Japanese drive through the
Philippines and
Netherlands Indies early in 1942. The men returned to
Australia from
Java early in Mar 1942, and later that month the group
evacuated Gen
Douglas MacArthur, his family, and key members of his staff from
the
Philippines to Australia. After a brief rest the group resumed
combat
operations, participating in the Battle of the Coral Sea and
raiding Japanese
transportation, communications, and ground forces
during the enemy's invasion
of Papua. From 7 to 12 Aug 1942 the 19th
bombed airdromes, ground
installations, and shipping near Rabaul, New
Britain, being awarded another
DUC for these missions. Capt Harl Pease
Jr was posthumously awarded the Medal
of Honor for his actions during
6-7 Aug 1942: when one engine of his bomber
failed during a mission
over New Britain, Capt Pease returned to Australia to
obtain another
plane; unable to find one fit for combat, he selected the
most
serviceable plane at the base and rejoined his squadron for an
attack on a
Japanese airdrome near Rabaul; by skillful flying lie
maintained his position
in the formation and withstood enemy attacks
until his bombs had been released
on the objective; in the air battle
that continued after the bombers left the
target, Capt Pease's aircraft
fell behind the formation and was lost. The
group returned to the US
late in 1942 and served as a replacement training
unit. Inactivated on
1 Apr 1944.
Redesignated 19th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy). Activated on 1
Apr
1944. Trained for combat with B-29's. Moved to Guam, Dec 1944-Feb
1945, for
duty with Twentieth AF. Entered combat on 12 Feb 1945 with an
attack against
a Japanese airfield on Rota. Flew its first mission
against the Japanese home
islands by striking Tokyo on 25 Feb 1945.
Conducted daylight raids against
strategic objectives, bombing aircraft
factories, chemical plants, oil
refineries, and other targets in Japan.
Participated in incendiary
operations, receiving one DUC for its
low-altitude attacks on the urban
industrial areas of Tokyo, Nagoya,
Kobe, and Osaka, in Mar 1945, and another
DUC for striking the
industrial section of Kobe on 5 Jun. Struck airfields
from which the
enemy was launching kamikaze planes against the invasion force
at
Okinawa, Apr-May 1945. Dropped supplies to Allied prisoners and took
part
in show-of-force missions over Japan after the war. Remained
overseas as part
of Far East Air Forces. Trained, participated in
sea-search operations, and
flew photographic-mapping missions.
Redesignated 19th Bombardment Group
(Medium) in Aug 1948.
On 28 Jun 1950 the group flew its first mission against the North
Korean
forces that had invaded the Republic of Korea. It moved to
Okinawa early in
Jul 1950 and continued operations against the enemy
until 1953. Targets
included troops, supply dumps, airfields, steel
mills, hydroelectric plants,
and light metal industries. Inactivated on
Okinawa on 1 Jun 1953.
Squadrons. 14th: 1941-1942. 23d: 1935-1938. 28th:
1941-1944;
1944-1953. 30th: 1932-1944; 1944-1953. 32d: 1932-1941. 76th:
1932-1936.
93d: 1939-1944; 1944-1953. 435th: (formerly 40th):
1941-1944.
Stations. Rockwell Field, Calif, 24 Jun 1932; March Field, Calif, 25
Oct
1935; Albuquerque, NM, 7 Jul-29 Sep 1941; Clark Field, Luzon, 23
Oct 1941;
Batchelor, Australia, 24 Dec 1941; Singosari, Java, 30 Dec
1941; Melbourne,
Australia, 2 Mar 1942; Garbutt Field, Australia, 18
Apr 1942; Longreach,
Australia, 18 May 1942; Mareeba, Australia, 24
Jul-23 Oct 1942; Pocatello,
Idaho, 9 Dec 1942; Pyote AAB, Tex, 1 Jan
1943-1 Apr 1944. Great Bend AAFld,
Kan, 1 Apr-7 Dec 1944; North Field,
Guam, 16 Jan 1945; Kadena, Okinawa, 5 Jul
1950-1 Jun 1953.
Commanders. Lt Col Harold M McClelland, c. 24 Jun 1932-1934; Col
Harvey
S Burwell, 1939; Col Eugene L Eubank, 2 Apr 1940; Maj David R
Gibbs, 10 Dec
1941; Maj Emmett O'Donnell Jr, 12 Dec 1941; Lt Col Cecil
E Combs, Jan 1942; Lt
Col Kenneth B Hobson, 14 Mar 1942; Lt 67 Col
James T Connally, 15 Apr 1942; Lt
Col Richard N Carmichael, 10 Jul
1942; Lt Col Felix M Hardison, 1 Jan 1943; Lt
Col Elbert Helton, 13 Feb
1943; Col Louie P Turner, 5 May 1943; Lt Col Frank P
Sturdivant, 27 Jan
1944; Col Bernard T Castor, 11 Feb-1 Apr 1944. Maj Joseph
H Selliken,
28 Apr 1944; Col John G Fowler, 20 May 1944; Lt Col John C Wilson,
29
May 1944; Lt Col Philip L Mathewson, 30 Jun 1944; Col John A Roberts Jr,
16
Jul 1944; Lt Col George T Chadwell, Sep 1945; Col Vincent M Miles
Jr, 1 Mar
1946; Col Elbert D Reynolds, 13 Apr 1946; Col David Wade, 26
Apr 1947; Col
Francis C Shoemaker, 8 Nov 1947; Col Robert V DeShazo, 2
Dec 1947; Lt Col
Clarence G Poff, 1949; Col Theodore Q Graff, 17 Sep
1949; Col Payne Jennings,
26 Sep 1950; Col Donald O Tower, 29 Mar 1951;
Col Adam K Breckenridge, 26 Jul
1951; Col Julian M Bleyer, 6 Feb 1952;
Col Willard W Smith, 8 Jul 1952; Col
Harvey C Dorney, 24 Dec 1952-1 Jun
1953.
Campaigns. World War II: American Theater; Philippine Islands;
East
Indies; Air Offensive, Japan; Papua; Guadalcanal; Western Pacific.
Korean
War: UN Defensive; UN Offensive; CCF Intervention; 1st UN
Counteroffensive;
CCF Spring Offensive; UN Summer-Fall Offensive;
Second Korean Winter; Korea
Summer-Fall, 1952; Third Korean Winter;
Korea Summer-Fall, 1953.
Decorations. Distinguished Unit Citations: Philippine Islands, 7
Dec
1941-10 May 1942; Philippine Islands, 8-22 Dec 1941; Philippine
Islands and
Netherlands Indies, 1 Jan-1 Mar 1942; Philippine Islands, 6
Jan-8 Mar 1942;
Papua, 23 Jul-[Oct 1942]; New Britain, 7-12 Aug 1942;
Japan, 9-19 Mar 1945;
Kobe, Japan, 5 Jun 1945; Korea, 28 Jun-15 Sep
1950. Philippine Presidential
Unit Citation. Republic of Korea
Presidential Unit Citation: 7 Jul
1950-[1953].
Insigne. Shield: Azure, within the square of the constellation
of
Pegasus, a winged sword, point to base, all or. Crest: On a wreath
of the
colors (or and azure) an osprey guardant, rising, wings elevated
and addorsed
proper. Motto: In Alis Vincimus - On Wings We Conquer.
(Approved 19 Oct
1936.) Data from Air Force Combat Units of World War II By Maurer, Maurer, Published 1986
|
