9th Air Force

The Ninth Air Force became operational in November of 1942 when the U.S. Middle East A.F. was redesignated the Ninth under command of Maj. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton. Its air support of the British and U.S. Armies in Africa against the Nazis' Rommel was critical. Gen. Brereton was then ordered to take the 9thAF HQ to England in Oct 1943 to build a Tactical Air Armada for the coming invasion of Europe. By June 6, 1944, D-Day, it had become the largest air force ever assembled under one command - 250,00 people with 3,500 airplanes in 1,500 units. It consisted of Fighter, Bomber, Troop Carrier, Air Defense, Engineer and Service Commands.

On June 6, 1944, the invasion of Normandy was led by the 155th Night Photo Recon & the IX Troop Carrier Command Pathfinder Unit loaded with Pathfinder Troopers of 82nd and 101st Airborne divisions- followed in trail by approximately 1500 transport aircrft loaded with paratroopers and towing gliders. During the invasion, the massive parachute and glider drops were guarded by P-47s, P-38s and P-51s some of which doubled as pin-point dive bombers at the front lines, while the A-20 and B-26 bombes took out key rails and bridges to isolate the Nazis from reinforcing the battle for the Normandy Beaches. Within hours of the beach assaults, the 9th AF Engineers were building airstrips in Normandy so our planes could operate with minimum lost time indirect support of the front line soldiers. Thereafter, by continuously moving our planes to strips just behind the front lines, the 9th AF supported Allied Armies dashing across Western Europe. Included were the airborne assault drops by the Troop Carrier Units on Arnheim seizing the key bridges on the Rhine River; the airborne assault drops by the Troop Carrier Units on Arnheim seizing the key bridges on the Rhine River; the relief supply drops at Bastogne, with 9th AF ending up deep in the heart of Germany on VE Day. This great mobility with combat pilots riding at the head of armored columns providing forward air control-plus a Tactical Air Command Headquarrters working directly alongside each U.S. Army Commander,proved to be the most effective use of air-ground cooperation in the history of warfare.

Since WWII, the 9th AF has continued its roles of providing combat-ready, proficient Air Power-in peacetime; in Korea; in Vietnam; in Grenada; in Panama; and more recently in Operaton Desert Storm (1991) in the Middle East where its performance has been applauded world-wide. The very busy Headquarters of the Ninth Air Force has long been located at Shaw Air Force Base, Sumter, SC where it continues 55-plus years of leadership to Central Command.