The 393rd Bomb Squadron
No squadron in the USAF played a more dynamic role in causing a decisive victory and lasting peace from World War II than the 393d Bomb Squadron (BS). The squadron has a proud history that started in 1944.
The formation of the 393 BS began when the Army Air Forces (AAF) constituted the squadron as the 393d Bombardment Squadron on 28 February 1944. The AAF then activated the 393 BMS on 11 March 1944 and assigned it to the 504th Bombardment Group at Dalhart Army Air Field (AAFld), Texas. Lieutenant Colonel Thomas J. Classen became the first commander. However, fate intervened as Colonel Paul W. Tibbets, Jr., selected the newly formed unit to participate in a very special mission. Thus, on 14 September 1944, the squadron moved to Wendover Field, Utah, and began training on the massive B-29. On 8 October 1944, Colonel Tibbets took formal command of the unit and began preparing it for its unique mission. On 17 December 1944, the Army Air Forces created the 509th Composite Group and assigned the squadron to this new unit. Colonel Tibbets became commander of the group after turning command of the squadron back to Colonel Classen. Meanwhile, training on the B-29s had progressed enough that the squadron began moving to its new overseas home. Accordingly, the unit moved to North Field, Tinian, the Marianas, on 26 April 1945. The squadron officially arrived at the field on 30 May 1945. Soon, it began flying a series of missions consisting of two or three B-29s. Each bomber carried one large, orange colored bomb that they dropped on targets throughout Japan. These projectiles added realism to the missions as they emulated the flight characteristics of an atomic bomb.
By early August 1945, the group and the squadron were ready to perform their special mission. In the early morning hours of 6 August 1945, Colonel Tibbets took off from North Field flying the B-29 the Enola Gay. The aircraft flew over Hiroshima, Japan, and released a very large bomb. Within seconds, a huge mushroom cloud engulfed the city. The Atomic Age had begun. Even after this startling show of power, the Japanese Empire still refused to surrender. Hence, three days later, another 393 BMS B-29 took off loaded with a second special bomb. Major Charles W. Sweeney, the 393 BMS Commander, flew the B-29 Bock's Car, over Nagasaki to deliver another devastating blow. A few short days later, the Japanese sued for peace. In short order, the greatest conflict in mankind's history had ended. The squadron remained at North Field until 17 October 1945 when the 509th returned to the United States. They immediately proceeded to their new home, Roswell AAFld (later renamed Walker AFB), New Mexico. Because of its expertise with the atomic bombs, the unit became the core organization for what would become the most powerful military force on earth, the Strategic Air Command (SAC), when the command was created on 21 March 1946.
The squadron remained at Roswell until the Army Air Force directed the 509th to Kwajalein, the Marshall Islands, for Operation Crossroads, an atomic explosion test. Although the squadron didn't drop the bomb, it waited in reserve as a back-up to its sister squadron, the 715 BMS. After the squadron returned to Walker AFB, it continued to fly and train in B-29s. In 1952, two major events occurred. First, the 393d welcomed a new aircraft, the B-50. Next, the 393 BMS was reassigned directly to the 509th Bombardment Wing following the inactivation of the ow called 509th Bombardment Group. In 1955, the unit pioneered a new chapter when it began receiving SAC's all-jet bomber, the B-47. In the late 1950s, change was in the air for the personnel of the 393 BMS. In 1958, the squadron, along with the 509th Bombardment Wing, moved with personnel and equipment to Pease AFB, New Hampshire. For the next seven years, the squadron flew and trained from Pease. In 1965, SAC announced the squadron would inactivate following phase-out of the B-47s from the Air Force. However, fate intervened again as SAC decided to keep both the 393d and the 509th active. The command began sending B-52s to the 393d to replace the aging B-47s. Thus, the squadron officially received its first B-52 on 23 March 1966. In November 1966, several crews and aircraft from the 393d deployed to Andersen AFB, Guam. While there, the squadron's representatives participated in Vietnam ARC LIGHT operations. However, an urgent need for the bombers in the war prompted SAC to deploy all 393 BMS crews and aircraft to Andersen in April 1968. During the six month stay, the squadron's personnel participated in many bombing missions. A year later, SAC issued the call and once again, the 393d's aircraft and personnel went to Southeast Asia. During this latter tour, SAC announced the 393d had been selected as the command's first FB-111A squadron. In preparation for arrival of the medium bomber, the squadron released its last B-52 on 19 November 1969. Even so, it was over a year before the first FB-111 landed at Pease. During flight line ceremonies on 16 December 1970, the 393d received its first FB-111. For the next several years, 393 BMS crews and aircraft pioneered tactics for the FB-111A deployment of the Short Range Attack Missile. In the mid-1980s, the squadron hit its stride as it helped the 509 BMW wing virtually every major bomber award in Eighth Air Force and SAC. These achievements included winning SAC's Bombing/Navigation Competition for three consecutive years (1981-1983).
In the late 1980s SAC announced retirement of the FB-111s from its inventory. This raised a question mark about the future of the 509th and its squadrons. However, on 30 November 1988, SAC announced that the 509 BMW would move to Whiteman AFB, Missouri, to become the Air Force's first B-2 Stealth Bomber unit. The command further directed that the 393 BMS become the first operational B-2 squadron in the Air Force. In preparation for this distinction, SAC inactivated the 393 BMS along with numerous other 509th squadrons on 30 September 1990. From that date until 12 March 1993. At that time, the Air Force renamed the squadron as the 393d Bomb Squadron. Then, on 27 August 1993, the squadron activated at Whiteman AFB and became a part of the 509th Operations Group. Over the next several months, the 393d prepared for another rendezvous with history. On 17 December 1993, that rendezvous became reality when the first B-2 Advanced Technology Bomber, nicknamed the "Spirit of Missouri," arrived at Whiteman.
Over the next several years, more and more B-2s arrived as the 393d and the 509th strove to bring the bomber on line. That concept became a reality when, on 1 January 1997, the Air Force declared the 509th (and the 393d) as ready to assume a conventional bombing role. Four months later, on 1 April 1997, the squadron's efforts again paid dividends when the Air Force decreed Initial Operational Capability for the 509th and the B-2. Within two short years, members of the 393d would again prove their mettle as the unit tasted combat for the first time in almost 30 years. On 24 March 1999, the 393d Tigers played a key role in taking the B-2 into its first combat engagement when two of the aircraft attacked targets in the Former Republic of Yugoslavia. The 393d Tigers would participate in and support the attacks until the end of hostilities. Thus, the 393d Bomb Squadron, one of the most historic units in the Air Force, looked towards fulfilling the promise of the revolutionary B-2 era.
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