1st Proving Ground Group

1st Proving Ground Group
Stearman XA-21, one of the planes tested by the group
Active	1939-1944
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army Air Forces
Role	Test and Development
Insignia
1st Proving Ground Group emblem

The 1st Proving Ground Group is a disbanded United States Army Air Forces unit. It was last active with the Army Air Forces Proving Ground Command, based at Eglin Field, Florida, where it was disbanded on 1 April 1944. The unit's personnel/equipment/mission was taken over by the 610th Army Air Forces Base Unit (AAF Base Unit) and 611th AAF Base Unit.

The group was originally established as the 23d Composite Group and was part of the Air Corps Tactical School with a mission that focused on developing and demonstrating tactics and doctrine. After moving to Eglin it also conducted testing of experimental weapons.

The group was established at Maxwell Field, Alabama in August 1939 as the 23d Composite Group. It was assigned the 1st Pursuit Squadron,24th Bombardment Squadron (Light) (not manned until 1940) and the 54th Bombardment Squadron (Medium).

Throughout the 1930s, there had been a number of attempts to have Air Corps tactical units demonstrate current tactics to students attending the Air Corps Tactical School, which was the advanced school for Air Corps officers. The impracticability of scheduling a recently trained unit with modern aircraft for these demonstrations led the school to recommend the formation of a composite unit permanently stationed with the school as early as 1932. The recommendation was disapproved because of the lack of personnel or equipment that could be dedicated to this mission. The establishment of the group was finally approved in August 1939, with the understanding that the group would also assume the demonstration and exhibition function that was being carried out by combat units of Air Force Combat Command.

The group was also assigned the mission of performing tactical service tests of aircraft and other equipment; developing and testing new air tactics; and demonstrating these new tactics to the service schools of the other branches of the Army, to General Headquarters, and at Air Corps stations. However, because the Tactical School suspended classes in June 1940, because experienced officers were required for the expansion of the Air Corps in response to the war in Europe and could not be spared for a nine-month-long school, the group was only able to support the school for a short time. In September 1940, the group moved to Orlando Army Air Base, Florida, which would become the base for the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics.