Category:Groups of the United States Army Air Forces

Prior to the establishment of the United States Air Force in 1947, the group was the standard combat unit of the United States Army's Air Corps and Army Air Forces (AAF). Support units were assigned to a different chain of command. Starting that year, the AAF began to unify combat groups and their supporting units under a single wing bearing the same number as their combat group. Most combat groups were inactivated during the 1950s and their combat squadrons were assigned directly to the parent wings. Because the wings (with few exceptions) were established after the end of World War II, starting in the mid-1950s the Air Force began a program in which group histories and honors were temporarily bestowed on the parent wings. Therefore, Groups on this list may have modern "successors" (i.e. 308th Bombardment Group from World War II to the 308th Strategic Missile Wing of the Cold War). In 1984/1985 groups that had not been active at the same time as like numbered wings were consolidated with them, making them single units and ending the temporary bestowal. Starting in 1991, the Air Force adopted the Objective Wing organization, which restored much of the 1947/1948 organization and many combat groups were again activated as Operations Groups.