30th Operations Group

30th Operations Group
Titan IVB launching Lacrosse satellite at Vandenberg AFB
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Insignia
30th Operations Group emblem
30th Bombardment Group emblem

The 30th Operations Group (30 OG) is an operational component of the United States Air Force 30th Space Wing, stationed at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.

The group provides the core capability for West Coast spacelift and range operations. Operations Group professionals are responsible for operating and maintaining the Western Range for spacelift, missile test launch, aeronautical and space surveillance missions.

Patrolled west coast, 1942–1943, while training crews for other units.

Began operations in the Pacific in November 1943. Attacked enemy installations on the Gilbert Islands in support of U.S. invasion; raided enemy airfields in the Marshalls to prevent Japanese airplanes launching against Tarawa. From January–March 1944, bombed installations in the Marshalls in preparation for their occupation. During April–Jul, raided airfields and navy facilities in the Truk Islands to keep them neutralized during the U.S. attack on the Marianas; also bombed Wake, Guam, and Saipan. From August 1944 until the U.S. took Iwo Jima in early 1945, the group attacked airfields and shipping in the Bonin and Volcano Islands and hit bypassed islands in the Carolines and Marianas until March 1945, when group returned to Hawaii for routine patrols and training until inactivated.

Search, rescue, and recovery missions in area of Vandenberg AFB, CA, 1993–. Launched meteorological and surveillance satellites into polar earth orbit, 1990–. Launched first interceptor missile in Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) program, September 2006. Deployed airmen worldwide to meet national commitments, 2005–.

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.