2d Special Operations Squadron
| 2d Special Operations Squadron | |
|---|---|
Nellis AFB based MQ-1 Predator, AF Ser. No. 97-3034
|
|
| Active | 1917 – present |
| Country |
 United States
|
| Branch |
 United States Air Force
|
| Role | Special Operations |
| Part of | 919th Operations Group |
| Garrison/HQ | Hurlburt Field, Florida |
| Engagements |
 Occupation of the Rhineland |
| Decorations |
.jpg){kind=small} Croix De Guerre (France) |
| Insignia | |
| Emblem of the 2d Special Operations Squadron |  |
The 2d Special Operations Squadron (2 SOS) is an Air Force Reserve Command unit, assigned to the 919th Operations Group. Stationed at Hurlburt Field, Florida, the unit operates MQ-9 Reaper Remotely Piloted Vehicles.
The unit is one of the oldest units in the United States Air Force, being formed on 25 September 1917 at Fort Omaha, Nebraska. During World War I, the unit was part of the Balloon Section, American Expeditionary Forces (AEF), becoming the first American balloon company to reach the Western Front in France and enter combat. 2d SOS thus holds the distinction among all USAF units of being "the first complete American air unit in history to operate against an enemy on foreign soil."
It was part of the Army Balloon and Airship School after the war, being a balloon training unit until the beginning of World War II. It was later part of the Strategic Air Command during the Cold War.
The unit was initially formed at Fort Omaha, Nebraska as Company B, 2d Balloon Squadron on 25 September 1917 at the Fort Omaha Balloon School. Its mission was to provide forward observations for the artillery. The unit trained in the fall of 1917, one of the last, as training was rather difficult at Fort Omaha: the weather was bad much of the time, and it was impossible to keep balloons in the air for long periods. The Army decided they needed Balloon Schools in warmer, more stable, environments and selected Camp John Wise in San Antonio, Texas and Camp Ross, Arcadia, California. On 30 November, orders were received for the unit to proceed to the Aviation Concentration Center, Garden City, Long Island, for preparation to serve overseas.
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