56th Fighter Group

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56th Fighter Group (Specials 6172)

By Larry Davis

Publisher: Squadron/Signal Publications 1991 64 Pages

ISBN: 0897472403

PDF 28 MB

How do you spell "air superiority?" During the Second World War the USAAF spelled it: Z-E-M-K-E. The 56th Fighter Group, commonly known as "Zemke's Wolfpack" (after their commander, COL Hubert Zemke) had cut a wide swath through the Luftwaffe from the very beginning. By the time the war ended the 56th was the top scoring Fighter Group in the 8th Air Force with a total of 665 1/2 air-to-air victories. There were forty-two air-to-air aces in the 56th. plus seven air-to-ground aces, for a total of forty-nine men with the title "Ace." more than any other unit in the entire U.S. Army Air Force. Two of these were the top scoring aces in the European Theater. The Luftwaffe had learned to believe the motto of the 56th -Cave Tonitrum —Beware The Thunderbolt!

When the war ended, many Army Air Force units with dis­tinguished wartime records were disbanded during the post-war force reduction. The 56th was not one of these. In fact, they were one of the first units to transition to jet fighters. They were the first jet fighter unit to cross the Atlantic as part of a show of force for the Russians during the Berlin Blockade. Although the 56th did not par­ticipate, as a Group, in the Korean War, they sent many pilots to units that were fighting there. The mission of the 56th during that war was the air defense of the United States. This remained their mission until 1967 when they again went to war in a little Asian country called Vietnam.

During the Vietnam War. the 56th left their jets behind and once again flewpropeller aircraft in some of the strangest missions in that strange conflict. The 56th was a Special Operations unit, flying B-26s, C-47s, T-28s and A-Is. Their missions ranged from truck-busting on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, to air rescue deep inside North Vietnam. The 56th SOW added thirteen more campaign streamers to their flag during the Vietnam War.

Following their second war, the 56th made the transition back to jets, this time as a Tactical Fighter Wing flying F-4 Phantoms. Today the 56th is responsible for training air and ground crews for Tactical Air Command units in the F-16 Fighting Falcon. This, then, is the story of the 56th Fighter Group, from the Second World War until today. It is the story of dedicated people — dedicated to freedom and willing to fight for it wherever and whenever it becomes necessary. The men and women of the 56th are and always have been — Ready and Waiting.