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Introduced into active service in 1951, the B-47 was the first jet aircraft employed by SAC. Despite having a limited range, by the end of LeMay’s command in 1957, the B-47 had become the backbone of SAC, comprising over half of its total aircraft and eighty percent of its bomber capacity.<ref name = "Boyne" />{{rp |104}} A key factor enabling the B-47 to become the mainstay of SAC (and to fulfill LeMay’s desire for a long range bomber) was the development of in-flight refueling. In addition, "Reflex" operations based in forward countries such as Morocco, Spain and Turkey provided infra-structure for temporary duty ([[TDY]]) assignment of US-based B-47 bomb wings. [[Sixteenth Air Force]] managed SAC operations in Morocco and Spain from 1957 to 1966.
Introduced into active service in 1951, the B-47 was the first jet aircraft employed by SAC. Despite having a limited range, by the end of LeMay’s command in 1957, the B-47 had become the backbone of SAC, comprising over half of its total aircraft and eighty percent of its bomber capacity.<ref name = "Boyne" />{{rp |104}} A key factor enabling the B-47 to become the mainstay of SAC (and to fulfill LeMay’s desire for a long range bomber) was the development of in-flight refueling. In addition, "Reflex" operations based in forward countries such as Morocco, Spain and Turkey provided infra-structure for temporary duty ([[TDY]]) assignment of US-based B-47 bomb wings. [[Sixteenth Air Force]] managed SAC operations in Morocco and Spain from 1957 to 1966.

From 1946/47 to 1957, SAC also incorporated fighter escort wings and later strategic fighter wings. Intended to escort bombers to their targets in a continuation of World War II practice, they were equipped with F-51s and later [[F-84]]s. There were a total of ten. [[Eighth Air Force]] was assigned the 12th, 27th, and 33rd Wings, and [[Fifteenth Air Force]] the 56th, 71st, 82nd, 407th Wings. They were phased out in 1957-58.<ref>See also Robert J Boyd, 'SAC's fighter planes and their operations', Offutt AFB, NE : Office of the Historian, Headquarters Strategic Air Command ; Washington, D.C. : Supt. of Docs, U.S. G.P.O., [1988]</ref>


====In-flight refuling====
====In-flight refuling====

Revision as of 15:02, 28 January 2013

Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command emblem
ActiveUS Army Air Forces
(15 December 1944-18 September 1947)
US Air Force
(18 September 1947-1 June 1992)
Country United States
Branch United States Air Force
TypeMajor Command
Garrison/HQOffutt Air Force Base, Nebraska
Motto(s)"Peace is our Profession"
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Curtis LeMay
For history of this organization after 1992, see Air Force Global Strike Command.
For the film, see Strategic Air Command (film).

Strategic Air Command (SAC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command. Established in 1944 under the United States Army Air Forces, its mission was the command and control of the United States' land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) strategic nuclear arsenal.

SAC also controlled the infrastructure necessary to support the strategic bomber and ICBM operations, such as aerial refueling tanker aircraft to refuel the bombers in flight, strategic reconnaissance aircraft, command post aircraft, and, until 1957, fighter escorts.

It was inactivated on 1 June 1992 and its personnel and equipment were absorbed by Air Combat Command and Air Mobility Command. Its direct successor, Air Force Global Strike Command was activated on 7 August 2009 to meet the needs of the Air Force to develop and provide combat-ready forces for nuclear deterrence and global strike operation.

Overview

Following the fall of the Soviet Union, the Air Force instituted a comprehensive reorganization of its major commands. As part of this reorganization, SAC was disestablished on 1 June 1992. As part of the reorganization, SAC's bomber aircraft, ICBMs, strategic reconnaissance aircraft, and command post aircraft were merged with USAF fighter and other tactical aircraft assets and reassigned to the newly established Air Combat Command (ACC). This included B-52 and B-1 bomber aircraft assigned to the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard, respectively.

At the same time, most of SAC's aerial refueling tanker aircraft, including those in the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard, were reassigned to the new Air Mobility Command (AMC). Tankers based in Europe were reassigned to United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE), while regular air force tankers in the Pacific, as well as Alaska Air National Guard tankers, were reassigned to Pacific Air Forces (PACAF).

The ICBM force was later transferred from ACC to the Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) on 1 July 1993. Another change in late 2009 and early 2010 resulted in the transfer of the ICBM force from AFSPC and the B-52 and B-2 strategic bomber force from ACC to the newly established Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC), which is a direct descendant of SAC.[1]

History

On 21 March 1946, Continental AIr Forces (CAF) was disestablished as part of a major reorganization of the USAAF. Within the United States, the USAAF was divided into three separate commands: Tactical Air Command (TAC), Air Defense Command (ADC), and Strategic Air Command (SAC). Airfields formerly assigned to CAF were reassigned to one of these three major commands.

SAC's original headquarters was located at Bolling Field in Washington, DC, the headquarters of the disestablished Continental Air Forces, with the headquarters organization of CAF being redesignated as Strategic Air Command. Its first commander was General George C. Kenney.[2]: 29–30  Ten days later, Fifteenth Air Force was assigned to the command as its first Numbered Air Force. There were thirteen bombardment groups assigned to Continental Air Forces just before its redesignation as SAC. These included the 40th (effectively became 43rd), 44th, the 93rd, 444th, 448th (became 92nd), 449th, 467th (effectively became 301st), 485th, and 498th (became 307th). There was also the 58th Bombardment Wing, Very Heavy, which supervised the Silverplate atomic-capable 509th Composite Group.[3] Also active was the 73rd Bombardment Wing, Very Heavy, transferred from Third Air Force. However several of these units were quickly disbanded, or renumbered to preserve the heritage of other units. In June 1946 Eighth Air Force was also assigned. SAC HQ then moved to Andrews AFB, MD on 20 October 1946.

Strategic Air Command was created with the stated mission of providing long range bombing capabilities anywhere in the world. But due to the massive post-World War II demobilization of the U.S. armed forces, Kenney's position at the UN Military Staff Committee in New York, and Kenney's unhappiness with being assigned to SAC, for the first two years of its existence, there was some lack of urgency. Kenney's deputy, Maj. Gen. St. Clair Streett, wrote in July 1946: "No major strategic threat or requirement now exists, in the opinion of our country’s best strategists nor will such a requirement exist for the next three to five years."[4]

Cold War

The situation began to change on 19 October 1948, when Lieutenant General Curtis LeMay assumed leadership of the Strategic Air Command, a position he held until June 1957, the longest tenure for any United States armed forces commander since Winfield Scott.[2]: 99  Soon after taking command, on 9 November, LeMay relocated SAC to Offutt AFB south of Omaha. It was under the leadership of LeMay that SAC developed the technical capability, strategic planning, and operational readiness to carry out its strategic mission anywhere in the world. Among the technological developments that made this possible were the widescale use of in-flight refueling, jet engines, and intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Strategic Bombing

The development of jet aircraft, specifically the B-47 Stratojet, was a key component in building the Strategic Air Command’s bombing capacity. When LeMay assumed command of SAC, his vision was to create a force of nuclear-armed long-range bombers with the capability to devastate the Soviet Union within a few days of the advent of war.[2]: 102  But the reality when LeMay assumed command was that SAC had only sixty nuclear capable aircraft, none of which had the long-range capabilities he desired.[5]

Introduced into active service in 1951, the B-47 was the first jet aircraft employed by SAC. Despite having a limited range, by the end of LeMay’s command in 1957, the B-47 had become the backbone of SAC, comprising over half of its total aircraft and eighty percent of its bomber capacity.[2]: 104  A key factor enabling the B-47 to become the mainstay of SAC (and to fulfill LeMay’s desire for a long range bomber) was the development of in-flight refueling. In addition, "Reflex" operations based in forward countries such as Morocco, Spain and Turkey provided infra-structure for temporary duty (TDY) assignment of US-based B-47 bomb wings. Sixteenth Air Force managed SAC operations in Morocco and Spain from 1957 to 1966.

From 1946/47 to 1957, SAC also incorporated fighter escort wings and later strategic fighter wings. Intended to escort bombers to their targets in a continuation of World War II practice, they were equipped with F-51s and later F-84s. There were a total of ten. Eighth Air Force was assigned the 12th, 27th, and 33rd Wings, and Fifteenth Air Force the 56th, 71st, 82nd, 407th Wings. They were phased out in 1957-58.[6]

In-flight refuling

In-flight refueling, long a dream of airmen, became a reality in 1954 with the introduction of the KC-97 Stratotanker into active service. The primary reason it became essential to SAC was the limited range of about 2000 miles of the B-47.[5]: 108  In-flight fueling gave the B-47 unlimited range and the ability to fly for extended periods of time. This new ability was openly demonstrated to the USSR with several well publicized non-stop flights around the world. The development meant that SAC was no longer dependent on stationing nuclear capable bombers in foreign countries like Spain and Britain, which proved to be politically sensitive in the late 1940s/early 1950s.[5]: 108 

Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles

Along with in-flight refueling, another important element in the growth of SAC was the development of ballistic missiles. The rapid development of ballistic missiles in the 1950s provided SAC with another means of carrying out its mission of being able to strike anywhere in the world. While the U.S. Air Force had started a missile development program in 1946, it was not seriously pursued until reports surfaced about the progress of Soviet Union rocket technology and the threat it posed to the US.[2]: 112–13  The perceived threat motivated the Eisenhower administration to make ballistic missiles a top priority and tasked Air Force Brigadier General Bernard Schriever with leading the development program. By 1958, roughly four years after Schriever had initiated his ballistic missile program, SAC activated the 704th Strategic Missile Wing to operate first the intermediate range Thor missile and then a year later the first true ICBM, the Atlas missile.[2]: 117–18  Schriever followed up his quick development of the two missile systems with the development of the Titan II and Minuteman missile systems shortly thereafter.

Lineage

  • Established as Continental Air Forces on 13 December 1944
Activated on 15 December 1944
Re-designated: Strategic Air Command on 21 March 1946
Inactivated on 1 Jun 1992
  • Re-designated as Air Force Global Strike Command, and activated, on 7 August 2009.

Assignments

Components

Air Forces
  • First Air Force: 16 Apr 1945-21 Mar 1946
  • Second Air Force: 16 Apr 1945-30 Mar 1946; 1 Nov 1949-1 Jan 1975
  • Third Air Force: 16 Apr 1945-21 Mar 1946
  • Fourth Air Force: 16 Apr 1945-21 Mar 1946
  • Eighth Air Force: 7 Jun 1946-1 Jun 1992
  • Fifteenth Air Force: 31 Mar 1946-1 Jun 1992
  • Sixteenth Air Force: 1 Jul 1957-15 Apr 1966
Commands
  • I Troop Carrier Command: 16 Apr-4 Nov 1945
  • IX Troop Carrier Command: c. 5 Sep 1945-31 Mar 1946
Air Divisions
  • 1st (later, 1st Missile Division; 1 Strategic Aerospace Division): 15 Apr 1955-20 May 1956; 1 Jan 1958-1 Sep 1988
  • 3d Air Division: 18 Jun 1954-1 Apr 1970; 1 Jan 1975-31 Jan 1982
  • 5th Air Division: 14 Jan 1951-1 Jul 1957
  • 7th Air Division: 20 Mar 1951-30 Jun 1965; 1 Jul 1978-31 Jan 1982
  • 21st Air Division: 16 Feb 1951-8 Apr 1952; 8 Apr-16 Jul 1952
  • 58th Air Division: 1 Mar-16 Oct 1948
  • 73d Air Division: 21-31 Mar 1946
  • 311th Air Division: 31 Mar 1947-1 Nov 1949.

Stations

  • Washington, DC, 15 Dec 1944
  • Bolling Field, DC, by 1946
  • Andrews Field (later, AFB), MD, 21 Oct 1946
  • Offutt AFB, NE, 9 Nov 1948-1 Jun 1992
  • Barksdale AFB, LA, 7 Aug 2009-Present

Aircraft

Combat aircraft

Support aircraft

Missiles

References

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

  1. ^ "AIR FORCE GLOBAL STRIKE COMMAND (USAF)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. 17 July, 2009. Retrieved 17 January 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ a b c d e f Boyne, Walter J (1997), Beyond The Wild Blue: A History of the United States Air Force 1947–1997, New York: St. Martin's Press.
  3. ^ See Walton S. Moody, 'Building a Strategic Air Force,' Air Force History and Museums Program, 1995, pp 60, 62. The 40th and 444th Groups were also earmarked for assignment to the 58th Wing. See also 'Air Force Combat Units of World War II' and 'Air Force Combat Wings: Lineage and Honors Histories, 1947-1977,' USAF books accessible via the Air Force Historical Studies Office index of titles.
  4. ^ Walton S. Moody, 'Building a Strategic Air Force,' 1995, 78, drawing on Ltr, Maj Gen St. C. Streett, Dep CG SAC, to CG AAF, subj: Operational Training and Strategic Employment of Strategic Air Command, Jul 25, 1946, SAC/HO.
  5. ^ a b c Tillman, Barrett (2007), LeMay, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, p. 94.
  6. ^ See also Robert J Boyd, 'SAC's fighter planes and their operations', Offutt AFB, NE : Office of the Historian, Headquarters Strategic Air Command ; Washington, D.C. : Supt. of Docs, U.S. G.P.O., [1988]
Bibliography
  • Boyne, Walter, Beyond The Wild Blue: A History of the United States Air Force 1947–1997, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1997.
  • Moody, Walton S. Dr., Building a Strategic Air Force, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1998.
  • Rosenberg, David A (June 1979), "American Atomic Strategy and the Hydrogen Bomb Decision", The Journal of American History, pp. 62–87
  • Tillman, Barrett, LeMay, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.

Further reading

  • Adams, Chris, Inside The Cold War; A Cold Warrior's Reflections, Air University Press, 1999; 2nd printing 2004; 3rd printing 2005.
  • Adams, Chris, "Ideologies in Conflict; A Cold War Docu-Story,Writers' Showcase, New York, 2001.
  • Clark, Rita F. Major, From Snark to Peacekeeper, Office of the Historian, HQ. SAC, Offutt AFB. NE. 1990.
  • Clark, Rita F. Major, SAC Missile Chronology 1939–1988, Office of the Historian, HQ. SAC, Offutt AFB. NE. 1988.
  • Clark, Rita F. Major, Strategic Air Command, U.S. Government Printing Office.
  • Goldberg, Sheldon A., The Development of the Strategic Air Command, Office of the Historian, HQ. SAC, Offutt AFB. NE. 1986.
  • Knaack, Marcelle Size, Post-World War II Bombers 1945–1973, Office of Air Force History, United States Air Force, Washington DC 1988.
  • Knaack, Marcelle Size, Post-World War II Fighters 1945–1973, Office of Air Force History, United States Air Force, Washington DC 1986.
  • Lloyd, Alwyn T., B-47 Stratojet in detail & scale, TAB Books, 1988.
  • Lloyd, Alwyn T. A Cold War Legacy: A Tribute to Strategic Air Command, 1946-1992. Missoula, Mont: Pictorial Histories Pub, 2000. ISBN 1-57510-052-5.
  • Mixer, Ronald E., Genealogy of the Strategic Air Command, Battermix Publishing Company, 1999
  • Mixer, Ronald E., Strategic Air Command, An Organizational History, Battermix Publishing Company, 2006.
  • Narducci, Henry M (1 April 1988). Strategic Air Command and the Alert Program: A Brief History (PDF) (Report). Offutt Air Force Base: Office of the Historian, Headquarters Strategic Air Command. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
  • Polmar, Norman, Strategic Air Command, 1st Edition, Nautical & Aviation Publishing, 1954
  • Polmar, Norman, Strategic Air Command, 2nd Edition, Nautical & Aviation Publishing, 1996.
  • Ravenstein, Charles, A., Air Force Combat Wings 1947–1977, Office of Air Force History, USAF, 1984.
  • Yenne, Bill, History of the U.S. Air Force, Exeter Books, 1990.
  • Yenne, Bill, SAC, A Primer of Modern Strategic Airpower, Presido Press, 1992.
Media
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