12th Air Force, USAAF, 1942-1946

History - Commanders - Time Line - Component Units

History

 

14th March 1943 for China

six groups

1943 - one fresh unit and two from 10th AF, 1944 gained new fighter wing, one fresh two from 10th

51st FG October 1943-Autumn 1945- 51st FG, defending hump, supporting Chinese ground troops, attacking Japanese shipping in Red River delta

33rd FG - brief spell in 1944 as fighter

81st FG - The group arrived in India by March 1944, where it swapped its P-39s for P-40 Warhawks and P-47 Thunderbolts. After a period training with its new aircraft, the group moved to China, joining the Fourteenth Air Force. There it performed a variety of roles, amongst then ground attack in support of the Chinese army and providing fighter escort for the bomber groups operating from China.

341st BG - Mitchells against Japanese shipping, at sea and in China's inland waterways plus indo-china

Commanders (with date of appointment)

Colonel W Newsome & General Charles B. Stone III, Kunming, 1945
Colonel W Newsome & General Charles B. Stone III, Kunming, 1945

Major General Claire L. Chennault: 10 March 1943
Major General Charles B Stone III: 10 August-31 December 1945

Time Line

5 March 1943 Constituted as Fourteenth Air Force
10 March 1943 Activated in China
March 1943-end of war Operated against Japanese in China
December 1945 Begins to return to United States
Inactivated 6 January 1946

Component Units

12th Air Force, 1942-1945
XII Bomber Command: 1942-1944
5th Bombardment Wing: 1943
42nd Bombardment Wing: 1943, 1944
47th Bombardment Wing (formerly 7th Fighter) : 1943
57th Bombardment Wing: 1944
XII Tactical Air: 1942-1944
5th Bombardment Wing: 1942
7th Fighter Wing: 1942
42nd Bombardment Wing: 1945
57th Bombardment Wing: 1943-1944
63rd Bombardment Wing: 1945
64th Fighter Wing (formerly 3rd Air Defence): 1943-44; 1945-1947
70th Fighter Wing: 1945-1947
71st Fighter Wing: 1945-1944
87th Fighter Wing
XII Fighter Command/ XXII Tactical Air Command: 1942-1945
3rd Air Defense: 1943
62nd Fighter Wing (formerly 1st Air Defense): 1943-1945
63rd Fighter Wing (formerly 2nd Air Defense): 1943-1944
87th Fighter Wing (1944-1945)
How to cite this article: Rickard, J (14 December 2007), 14th Air Force, USAAF, 1943-1946, http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/USAAF/12th_Air_Force.html

Help - F.A.Q. - Contact Us - Search - Recent - About Us - Privacy