68th Airlift Squadron

68th Airlift Squadron
200px 68th Airlift Squadron Patch
Active	22 January 1943 - 15 January 1946 3 August 1947 - 14 July 1952 18 May 1955 - Present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Airlift
Part of	Air Force Reserve Command 4th Air Force 433d Airlift Wing 433d Operations Group
Garrison/HQ	Kelly Field Annex
Decorations	Air Force Outstanding Unit Award Philippine Presidential Unit Citation

The 68th Airlift Squadron (68 AS) is a United States Air Force Reserve squadron, assigned to the 433d Operations Group, stationed at Kelly Field Annex, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas.

Overview

The squadron operates C-5 Galaxy aircraft providing global airlift.

History

The 68th flew troop carrier missions in New Guinea, Philippines, and the western Pacific from 1943 to 1945 and participated in the airborne assault at Aparri, Luzon, 23 June 1945.

It has conducted worldwide airlift since 1955. Specific contributions have included the 68th flying medical supplies, tanks, and field rations to Panama in 1989 and 1990 and airlifting personnel and materiel destined for southwestern Asia, 1990-1991.

Operations

• World War II
• Operation Just Cause
• Operation Desert Shield

Lineage

• 68th Troop Carrier Squadron (1943–1949)
• 68th Troop Carrier Squadron, Medium (1949–1967)
• 68th Tactical Airlift Squadron (1967–1985)
• 68th Military Airlift Squadron (1985–1992)
• 68th Airlift Squadron (1992–Present)

Assignments

• 433d Troop Carrier Group (1943–1946, 1947–1952)
• 433d Troop Carrier Wing (1955–1963)
• 433d Airlift Wing (1974–Present)
• 921st Tactical Airlift Group, 30 June-1 November 1974
• 922d Tactical Airlift Group, 17 January 1963 – 30 June 1974

Bases stationed

• Florence Army Air Field, South Carolina (1943)
• Sedalia Army Air Field, Missouri (1943)
• Laurinburg-Maxton Army Air Field, North Carolina (1943)
• Baer Field Indiana (1943)
• New Guinea (1943–1944)
• Biak (1944–1945)
• Tanauan, Leyte (1945)
• Clark Field, Luzon (1945)

• Iwo Jima (1945)
• Iejima (1945)
• Tachikawa, Japan (1945–1946)
• Cleveland Municipal Airport, Ohio (1947–1950)
• Greenville Air Force Base, South Carolina (1950–1951)
• Rhein-Main Air Base, Germany (1951–1952)
• Brooks Air Force Base, Texas (1955–1960)
• Kelly Field Annex, Texas (1992–Present)

Aircraft operated

• C-47 Skytrain (1943–1945)
• B-17 Flying Fortress (1944)
• C-46 Commando (1944–1945, 1949–1950, 1955–1958)
• T-11 Kansan (1948–1951)
• T-7 Navigator (1949–1951)
• C-119 Flying Boxcar (1950–1952, 1958–1971)
• T-28 Trojan (1955)
• C-45 Expeditor (1955–1958)
• C-130 Hercules (1971–1985)
• C-5 Galaxy (1985 – Present)

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

• USAF 68th Airlift Squadron History