945th Military Airlift Group

945th Military Airlift Group
Active	1963-1973
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force Reserve
Role	Airlift

The 945th Military Airlift Group is an inactive United States Air Force Reserve unit. It was last active with the 452d Military Airlift Wing, based at Hill AFB, Utah. It was inactivated on 1 January 1973

History

Douglas C-124C Globemaster II of the 945th Military Airlift Group

Following the mobilizations in 1961 and 1962 for the Berlin Crisis and the Cuban Missile Crisis, Continental Air Command (ConAC) realized that it was unwieldy to mobilize an entire wing unless absolutely necessary. Their original Table of Organization for each Wing was a wing headquarters, a troop carrier group, an Air Base Group, a maintenance and supply group, and a medical group. In 1957, the troop carrier group and maintenance and supply groups were inactivated, with their squadrons reassigned directly to the wing headquarters - despite the fact that many wings had squadrons spread out over several bases due to the Detached Squadron Concept dispersing Reserve units over centers of population.

To resolve this, in late 1962 and early 1963, ConAC reorganized the structure of its reserve Troop Carrier Wings by establishing fully deployable Troop Carrier Groups and inserting them into the chain of command between the Wing and its squadrons at every base that held a ConAC troop carrier squadron. At each base, the group was composed of a material squadron, a troop carrier squadron, a tactical hospital or dispensary, and a combat support squadron. Each troop carrier wing consisted of 3 or 4 of these groups. By doing so, ConAC could facilitate the mobilization of either aircraft and aircrews alone, aircraft and minimum support personnel (one troop carrier group), or the entire troop carrier wing. This also gave ConAC the flexibility to expand each Wing by attaching additional squadrons, if necessary from other Reserve wings to the deployable groups for deployments.

As a result, the 945th Troop Carrier Group was established with a mission to organize, recruit and train Air Force Reserve personnel in the tactical airlift of airborne forces, their equipment and supplies and delivery of these forces and materials by airdrop, landing or cargo extraction systems. The group was equipped with C-119 Flying Boxcars for Tactical Air Command airlift operations.

The 945th TCG was one of four C-119 groups assigned to the 452d TCW in 1963, the others being the 942d, 943d, and the 944th Troop Carrier Group, at March AFB, California.

The group flew overseas missions, particularly to the Far East and Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. In 1971, the group began phasing out the C-124 and was inactivated on 1 January 1973 along with the 733d MAS.

Lineage

• Established as 945th Troop Carrier Group, Medium, and activated, on 28 December 1962

Organized in the Reserve on 17 January 1963

Redesignated: 945th Military Airlift Group on 1 July 1966

Inactivated on 1 January 1973

Assignments

• Continental Air Command, 28 December 1962
• 452d Troop Carrier (later Military Airlift) Wing, 17 January 1963 – 1 July 1972
• 301st Tactical Fighter Wing, 1 July 1972 – 1 January 1973

Components

• 733d Troop Carrier (later Military Airlift) Squadron, 17 January 1963 – 1 January 1973

Stations

• Hill AFB, Utah, 17 January 1963 – 1 January 1973

Aircraft

• C-119 Flying Boxcar, 1963–1965
• C-124 Globemaster II, 1965–1973

References

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

• Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947-1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-12-9.
• Mueller, Robert, Air Force Bases Volume I, Active Air Force Bases Within the United States of America on 17 September 1982, Office of Air Force History, 1989
• Cantwell, Gerald (1987), Citizen Airmen, A History of the Air Force Reserve, 1946-1994. Washington, D.C.: Air Force History and Museums Program: GPO, 1997 ISBN 0-16049-269-6
• AFHRA search 945th Military Airlift Group