642d Bombardment Squadron

642d Bombardment Squadron
642d Bombardment Squadron
	Douglas A-26 Invaderof the 409th Bombardment Group
Active	1943-1945
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Role	Light bombardment
Engagements	European Theater of Operations

The642d Bombardment Squadronis an inactiveUnited States Army Air Forcesunit. After training withDouglas A-20 Havocsin the United States the squadron deployed to theEuropean Theater of World War II,where it engaged in combat until theSurrender of Germany.It was last assigned to the409th Bombardment GroupatWestover Field,Massachusetts, where it was inactivated on 7 November 1945.

History

The642d Bombardment Squadronwas activated in June 1943 atWill Rogers Field,Oklahoma as one of the four original squadrons of the409th Bombardment Group.The squadron trained underThird Air Forcein Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana withA-20 Havoclight bombardment aircraft.^[1]^[2]

The squadron deployed to theEuropean Theater of Operationsin March 1944, where it became part ofIX Bomber CommandofNinth Air Force.^[2]

The 642d initially flew sweeps overOccupied Francefrom its base in England, attackingcoastal defenses,V-1 flying bombandV-2 rocketsites,airfields,and other targets in France in preparation forOperation Overlord,the invasion of Normandy. AfterD-Day,the squadron supported ground forces during the Battle of Normandy by hitting gun batteries, rail lines, bridges, communications, and other objectives. During July 1944, it aided the Allied offensive atCaenandOperation Cobra,the breakthrough atSaint-Lôwith attacks on enemy troops,flak positions,fortified villages, and supply dumps.^[2]

The squadron moved toAdvanced Landing Groundsin France in September 1944, providingThird Armywithclose air supportin its advance toward Germany through November.^[2]

In December, the squadron converted toDouglas A-26 Invaders.It then participated in theBattle of the Bulgeby attacking lines of communications andlogistics.The squadron continued combat operations until May, flying its last combat mission against anammunition dumpin Czechoslovakia on 3 May.^[2]

The unit returned to the United States and initially was stationed atSeymour Johnson Field,North Carolina where it prepared to deploy to thePacific Theater of Operationsfor operations against theJapanese Home Islands.The deployment to the Pacific Theater was cancelled with theSurrender of Japanin August.^{[citation needed]}The 642d was inactivated atWestover Field,Massachusetts in early November.^[1]

Lineage

Constituted as the642d Bombardment Squadron(Light) and activated on 1 June 1943

Redesignated642d Bombardment Squadron,Light in 1944

Inactivated on 7 November 1945^[1]

Assignments

409th Bombardment Group, 1 June 1943 – 7 November 1945^[1]

Stations

Will Rogers Field, Oklahoma, 1 June 1943
Woodward Army Air Field,Oklahoma, 2 October 1943
Pounds Army Air Field,Texas, 1 December 1943
DeRidder Army Air Base,Louisiana, 17 December 1943 - 10 February 1944
RAF Little Walden(AAF-165),^[3]England, 7 March 1944

Bretigny Airfield(A-48),^[4]France, 18 September 1944
Laon-Couvron Airfield(A-70),^[4]12 February 1945 - 25 June 1945
Seymour Johnson Field,North Carolina, 15 August 1945
Westover Field,Massachusetts, 6 October 1945 - 7 November 1945^[5]

Aircraft

Douglas A-20 Havoc, 1943–1945
Douglas A-26 Invader, 1945^[1]

Campaigns

Campaign	Dates	Notes
Air Offensive, Europe	7 March 1944 – 5 June 1944	^[1]
Normandy	6 June 1944 – 24 July 1944	^[1]
Northern France	25 July 1944 – 14 September 1944	^[1]
Rhineland	`5 September 1944 – 21 March 1945	^[1]
Ardennes-Alsace	16 December 1944 – 25 January 1945	^[1]
Central Europe	22 March 1944 – 21 May 1945	^[1]
Air Combat, EAME Theater	7 March 1944 – 11 May 1945	^[1]

References

Notes

^^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^lMaurer,Combat Squadrons,p. 690
^^a ^b ^c ^d ^eMaurer,Combat Units,pp. 294–295
^Station number in Anderson.
^^a ^bStation number in Johnson.
^Station information in Maurer,Combat Units,pp. 294–295, except as noted

Bibliography

This article incorporatespublic domain materialfrom theAir Force Historical Research Agency

Anderson, Capt. Barry (1985).Army Air Forces Stations: A Guide to the Stations Where U.S. Army Air Forces Personnel Served in the United Kingdom During World War II(PDF).Maxwell AFB, AL: Research Division, USAF Historical Research Center. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 4 March 2016.Retrieved7 July2012.
Johnson, 1st Lt. David C. (1988).U.S. Army Air Forces Continental Airfields (ETO) D-Day to V-E Day(PDF).Maxwell AFB, AL: Research Division, USAF Historical Research Center. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 17 September 2016.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1983) [1961].Air Force Combat Units of World War II(PDF)(reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. pp. 294–295.ISBN 0-912799-02-1.LCCN 61060979.
Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969].Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II(PDF)(reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History.ISBN 0-405-12194-6.LCCN 70605402.OCLC 72556.

[Maurer642BS-1] ^^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^lMaurer,Combat Squadrons,p. 690

[Maurer409BG-2] Maurer,Combat Units,pp. 294–295

[3] Station number in Anderson.

[Johnson-4] Station number in Johnson.

[5] Station information in Maurer,Combat Units,pp. 294–295, except as noted

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