320th Air Expeditionary Wing
| 320th Air Expeditionary Wing | |
|---|---|
Boeing B-52F Stratofortress "Casper the Friendly Ghost" of the 320th Bombardment Wing on an Arc Light mission
|
|
| Active | 1942–1945; 1947–1949; 1952–1960; 1963–1989, after 1998 |
| Country |
 United States
|
| Branch |
 United States Air Force
|
| Motto(s) | Forever Battling (World War II), Strength Through Awareness (since 1952) |
| Engagements |
|
| Decorations |
Distinguished Unit Citation French Croix de Guerre with Palm |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Sharon K.G. Dunbar |
| Notable commanders |
George Lee Butler Howell M. Estes II William Crumm |
| Insignia | |
| 320th Air Expeditionary Wing emblem |  |
The 320th Air Expeditionary Wing (320 AEW) is a provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force District of Washington. It is stationed at Bolling AFB, District of Columbia. The 320 AEW may be activated or inactivated at any time.
The 320 AEW was activated at Bolling in December 2006 for former President Gerald Ford’s state funeral during the Christmas and New Year holidays, attaching 634 personnel to complete a 10-day mission in three joint-operation areas. In less than 12 hours from notification, the 320 AEW deployed 167 joint forces and equipment for JTF Ceremony Forward.
It was activated in December 2008 to support Air Force requirements during the 2009 Presidential Inauguration, working with the Armed Forces Inaugural Committee, or AFIC.
The wing was originally activated during World War II and served with Twelfth Air Force as the 320th Bombardment Group. The highly decorated unit was equipped with the Martin B-26 Marauder aircraft. The group was later merged with the 320th Bombardment Wing, a component organization of Strategic Air Command's deterrent force during the Cold War, as a strategic bombardment wing.
Constituted as 320th Bombardment Group (Medium) on 19 June 1942 and activated on 23 June at MacDill Field (now MacDill Air Force Base), Florida. The operational squadrons of the group were the 441st, 442d, 443d and 444th Bomb Squadrons. The 320th was equipped with the Martin B-26 Marauder aircraft.
The group was subsequently relocated to nearby Drane Field (now Lakeland Linder Regional Airport), Florida. Most of the group moved to North Africa via England, August–December 1942; crews then flew their planes over the South Atlantic route and arrived in North Africa, December 1942 – January 1943.
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