53rd Airlift Squadron

53rd Military Airlift Squadron  

53rd Troop Carrier Squadron

53rd Transport Squadron

53rd Transport Squadron  

53rd Troop Carrier Squadron 

53rd Military Airlift Squadron

53rd Airlift Squadron Patch

53rd Airlift Squadron Desert Storm

Click Here to read: Noteables(s) Worthy of notice; remarkable or outstanding.  

53rd Airlift Squadron History and Lineage  

 

Constituted as 53 Transport Squadron on 30 May 1942. Activated on 1 Jun 1942. Redesignated 53 Troop Carrier Squadron on 4 Jul 1942. Inactivated on 31 Jul 1945. Activated on 30 Sep 1946. Redesignated: 53 Troop Carrier Squadron, Medium, on 1 Jul 1948; 53 Troop Carrier Squadron, Heavy, on 15 Aug 1948; 53 Military Airlift Squadron on 8 Jan 1966. Discontinued, and inactivated, on 8 Jul 1966. Activated on 8 Jan 1972. Redesignated 53 Airlift Squadron on 1 Jan 1992. Inactivated on 30 Apr 1993. Activated on 1 Oct 1993. Inactivated on 11 Jan 2008. Activated on 15 May 2008. 

Additional History:

Blackjacks at War: WWII & The 53rd Troop Carrier Squadron

by Steven C. Franklin, Major, USAF

View via the WWW @:  http://www.pegasusarchive.org/arnhem/RepBlackjacks.htm


Assignments: 61 Transport (later, 61 Troop Carrier) Group, 1 Jun 1942-31 Jul 1945. 61 Troop Carrier Group, 30 Sep 1946 (attached to the Airlift Task Force, Provisional, Aug 1958-Feb 1959, Feb-Jul 1960, and 5 Jan 1961-Apr 1962); 63 Troop Carrier Group, 8 Oct 1959; 63 Troop Carrier (later, 63rd Military Airlift) Wing, 18 Jan 1963-8 Jul 1966. 63 Military Airlift Wing, 8 Jan 1972; 63 Military Airlift Group, 1 Oct 1978; 63 Military Airlift Wing, 1 Jul 1980; 63 Operations Group, 1 Jan 1992-30 Apr 1993. 314 Operations Group, 1 Oct 1993-11 Jan 2008. 463 Airlift Group, 15 May 2008; 19 Operations Group, 1 Oct 2008 -

Stations: Pope Field, NC, 1 Jun 1942-3 May 1943; Lourmel, Algeria, 15 May 1943; Kairouan, Tunisia, Jun 1943; Licata, Sicily, 6 Aug 1943; Sciacca, Sicily, 6 Oct 1943-12 Feb 1944; Barkston, England, 18 Feb 1944; Abbeville, France, 13 Mar-18 May 1945; Waller Field, Trinidad, 29 May-31 Jul 1945. Orly Field, France, 30 Sep 1946; Eschborn AB, Germany, 14 Dec 1946; Rhein-Main AB, Germany, 8 Aug 1947; Templehof AB, Germany, 20 Jan 1948; Rhein-Main AB, Germany, 22 Apr 1948-21 Jul 1950; McChord AFB, WA, 26 Jul-12 Dec 1950; Ashiya AB, Japan, 13 Dec 1950; Johnson AB, Japan, 13 Sep-18 Nov 1952; Larson AFB, WA, 21 Nov 1952; Donaldson AFB, SC, 21 Aug 1954 (deployed at Rhein-Main AB, Germany, Aug 1958-Feb 1959, Feb-Jul 1960, and 5 Jan 1961-Apr 1962); Hunter AFB, GA, 1 Apr 1963-8 Jul 1966. Norton AFB, CA, 8 Jan 1972-30 Apr 1993. Little Rock AFB, AR, 1 Oct 1993-11 Jan 2008. Little Rock AFB, AR, 15 May 2008-

Commanders: 2 Lt Glen A. Myers, 1 Jun 1942; Capt Richard P. Carr, 2 Jul 1942; Capt S. W. Tobiason, 22 Oct 1942; Capt Howard M. Betts, 10 Jan 1943; Maj Charles L. Haruff, 24 Oct 1944; 1 Lt Harry W. Know Jr., 1-31 Jul 1945. Maj Ralph P. Gentry, 5 Sep 1947-unkn; Maj Albert H. Schneider, c. 1 Aug 1948; Maj William B. Colson, 9 Aug 1949; Lt Col Andrew E. McDavid, 3 Oct 1949; Maj Arthur L. Ethridge Jr., c. 1 Aug 1951; Lt Col Andrew E. McDavid, Oct 1951-unkn; Lt Col John A. Briggs, c. Feb 1952-unkn; Lt Col Ernest W. Burton, unkn-unkn; Lt Col Robert E. Harrington, unkn-Oct 1952; Maj Frank E. Tarasko, Oct 1952; Lt Col Norman R. Crosson, 1955; Maj Dan L. Collie, 1956; Maj Dixon J. Arnold, 1957; Maj Lawrence F. Uebel, 1958; Maj James S. Liptak, Apr 1959; Lt Col Sidney G. Smith, Mar 1960; Lt Col William E. Kunz, Jun-c. 20 Dec 1960; Lt Col Donald L. Brooks, Dec 1960-unkn; Lt Col Sidney G. Smith, 23 Jan 1961; Lt Col Donald L. Brooks, 3 Apr 1961; Lt Col David B. Smith, 20 Jul 1961; Lt Col William T. Johnson, 12 Mar 1962; Lt Col Carlton W. Winchester Jr., 17 Jun 1962-unkn; Lt Col Sidney G. Smith, Jun 1962; Lt Col W. Daniels, Jan 1963; Lt Col Sidney G. Smith, Apr 1963; Lt Col James S. Liptak, 1964; Lt Col Charlton W. Winchester Jr., 1964; Lt Col James S. Liptak, 1965; Lt Col Charlton W. Winchester Jr., 17 Feb 1965; Lt Col Gerald Linscheid, 1965-1966. Lt Col George B. Powers, 8 Jan 1972; Lt Col Frederick L. Breitinger, 27 Jun 1973; Lt Col Allan R. Christensen, 9 Apr 1975; Lt Col William J. Roth Jr., 2 Jul 1976; Lt Col Donald G. Lawson, 1 Nov 1976; Lt Col Herbert K. Bevelhymer, 26 Mar 1979; Lt Col James L. Cole, Unkn; Lt Col Albert W. Estes, 17 Aug 1981; Lt Col Allen A. Pichon, 26 Jul 1982; Lt Col Robert D. German, 21 Feb 1984; Lt Col Leonard C. Lyle Jr., 20 Jun 1986; Lt Col Arthur S. Irwin, 1 Jul 1987; Lt Col Robert M. Zeluff, 1 Mar 1989; Lt Col Gary L. Pudwill, 16 Nov 1990; Lt Col William H. Mills, 17 Jun 1991-30 Apr 1993. Lt Col Keith A. Feigh, 1 Oct 1993; Lt Col Leslie L. Chapman, 25 Aug 1994; Lt Col John A. Tappan, 29 May 1996; Lt Col Dale D. Wyant, 29 May 1997; Lt Col John C. Sleight, 20 Nov 1998; Lt Col Carl E. McDaniel Jr., 27 Jul 2000; Lt Col Jeffrey Hoffer, 10 Nov 2001; Lt Col Brian E. O'Connor, 15 Nov 2002; Lt Col Paul M. Kucharek, 27 May 2004; Lt Col Thomas C. Gilster, 2 Jun 2006-11 Jan 2008. Lt Col Sean S. Bordenave, 16 May 2008; Lt Col Ken W. Kopp, 21 May 2011; Lt Col Brian K. Watkins, 20 Dec 2011; Lt Col James W. Wall, 11 Oct 2013-

Aircraft: C-47, 1942-1945. C-47, 1946-1948; C-54, 1948-1952; C-124, 1952-1966. C-141, 1972-1993. C-130, 1993-2008.

Operations: World War II: Included airborne assaults on Sicily, Normandy, Holland, and Germany; aerial transportation in Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) and European Theater of Operations (ETO). Berlin Airlift, 1948-1949. Korean War: Aerial transportation from US to Japan, Aug-Dec 1950, and between Japan and Korea, 13 Dec 1950-Nov 1952. Airlift, 1953-1966, including resupply to the Antarctic, (Project Deep Freeze), 1957-1958, and missions to Southeast Asia during the conflict in Vietnam. Worldwide airlift, 1972-1993, into Grenada, 23 Oct-9 Nov 1983, during the invasion of Panama, 20 Dec 1989, and to Southwest Asia, Aug 1990-Jun 1991. Conducted C-130 aircrew training for active duty USAF, Air Force Reserve (USAFR), Air National Guard (ANG), US Navy, US Marine Corps and selected allied nations, 1993-2008.

Honors: 

Service Streamers: World War II American Theater. 

Campaign Streamers: World War II: Sicily; Naples-Foggia; Normandy; Northern France; Rhineland; Central Europe. Korea: CCF Intervention; First UN Counteroffensive; CCF Spring Offensive; UN Summer-Fall Offensive; Second Korean Winter; Korea Summer-Fall, 1952. 

Armed Forces Expeditionary Streamers: Panama, 1989-1990. 

Decorations: Distinguished Unit Citations: Sicily, 11 Jul 1943; France, [6-7] Jun 1944; Korea, 13 Dec 1950-21 Apr 1951. Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards: 1 Jul 1957-10 Dec 1962; 1 Jun 1978-31 May 1980; 1 Jan-31 Dec 1983; 1 Jan-31 Dec 1987; 1 Jan 1990-30 Apr 1991; 1 Jul 1993-30 Jun 1995; 1 Jul 1995-31 Mar 1997; 1 Jul 1997-30 Jun 1999; 1 Jul 1999-30 Jun 2001; 1 Jul 2001-30 Jun 2003; 1 Jul 2003-30 Jun 2004; 1 Jul 2005-30 Jun 2006; 1 Jul 2006-30 Jun 2007. 

Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation: 1 Jul 1951-18 Nov 1952. 

Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm: 1 Apr 1966-[8 Jul 1966].