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Lineage Constituted as Fifteenth Air Force on 30 October 1943. Activated on 1 November 1943 Inactivated on 15 September 1945 Activated on 31 March 1946 Inactivated on 1 October 2003 Redesignated and activated as 15th Expeditionary Mobility Task Force, 1 October 2003 Inactivated on 20 March 2012 Redesignated Fifteenth Air Force on 30 March 2012 (remained inactive) Activated on 20 August 2020
Assignments Headquarters, United States Army Air Forces, 1 November 1943 February 1944 United States Strategic Air Forces, February 1944 31 March 1946 Strategic Air Command, 15 September 1946 1 January 1992 Air Mobility Command, 1 January 1992 1 October 2003 Eighteenth Air Force, 1 October 2003 20 March 2012 Air Combat Command, 20 August 2020
Postwar Air Divisions 1st Strategic Aerospace Division, 1 September 1988 1 September 1991 4th Air Division, 31 March 1970 23 August 1988 12th Air Division, 10 February 1951 16 June 1952; 16 June 1952 1 July 1989 13th Strategic Missile Division, 1 July 1959 1 July 1963; 1 July 1965 2 July 1966 14th Air Division, 10 February 1951 16 June 1952; 16 June 1952 1 September 1991 17th Air Division, 31 March 1970 30 June 1971 18th Strategic Aerospace Division, 1 July 1959 2 July 1968 21st Air Division, 16 July 1952 16 October 1952 22d Strategic Aerospace Division, 9 September 1960 1 July 1965 40th Air Division, 7 July 1989 14 June 1991 57th Air Division, 16 April 1951 16 June 1952; 16 June 1952 4 September 1956; January 1975 14 June 1991 58th Air Division, 31 March 1 November 1946 73d Air Division, 31 March 31 May 1946 311th Air Division, 1 May 1946 31 March 1947 802d Air Division, 28 May 1952 1 July 1955; 1 January 1959 20 June 1960 810th Strategic Aerospace Division, 1 April 1955 1 July 1963; 2 July 1966 30 June 1971 813th Strategic Aerospace Division, 15 July 1959 2 July 1966 818th Air Division 11 October 1954 1 July 1955 819th Strategic Aerospace Division, 1 February 1956 1 July 1965 821st Strategic Aerospace Division, 1 January 1959 30 June 1971
Stations Tunis, Tunisia, 1 November 31 December 1943 Bari Airfield, Italy, 1 December 1943 31 March 1946 Colorado Springs, Colorado, 15 September 1946 7 November 1949 March AFB, California, 7 November 1949 1 January 1992 Travis AFB, California, 1 January 1992 20 March 2012 Shaw AFB, South Carolina, 20 August 2020
Constituted as Fifteenth AF on 30 Oct 1943. Activated in the Mediterranean theater on 1 Nov 1943, at Tunis, Tunisia, with Maj . Gen. James H. Doolittle as its Commanding General. On activation of the Fifteenth, eleven combat groups were permanently transferred to it by the Twelfth Air Force. Also sent to the new Fifteenth were the 5th Bomb Wing (which controlled four B-17 groups, and two B-24 groups); the 42nd Bomb Wing with three B-26 groups and the 47th Bomb Wing including the Twelfth's original two B-25 groups. The later two groups were returned to the Twelfth on 3 Nov 1943 and the 47th Wing became a heavy bomb wing. The 42nd Bomb Wing and its three B-26 groups returned to the twelfth at the end of the year. The 15th began operations on 1 Nov 1943, with the target being the Spezia Naval Base. The 15th engaged primarily in strategic bombardment of targets in Italy, France, Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Hungary, and the Balkans until the end of the war. Transferred to Bari, Italy on 1 Dec 1943. Maj. Gen. Nathan F. Twining would succeed Maj. Gen. Doolittle on 3 Jan 1944. In Jan 1944, reconnaissance of strategic targets was assigned to six aircraft form the 15th Squadron of the 5th Photo Group, Twelfth Air Force, which were placed under Fifteenth control. On 29 Apr 1945 the war in Italy came to an end with the surrender of German forces in-county. The 15th dropped 303,842 tons of bombs on enemy targets in 12 countries of Europe, including military installations in eight capital cities. Its combat personnel made 148,955 heavy bomber sorties and 87,732 fighter sorties against the enemy. It loss 3364 aircraft and 21, 671 personnel killed, wounded, missing and taken prisoner - 20430 bomber crewman and 1187 fighter pilots. The 15th was inactivated in Italy on 15 Sep 1945. Activated in the United States on 31 Mar 1946, at Colorado Springs, CO., and assigned to the Strategic Air Command (SAC). Transferred to March Air Force Base, and continued to be part of SAC through 1 Jun 1992, when it was transferred to the Air Mobility Command. Transferred to Travis Air Force Base on 1 Jul 1993. Re-designated 15th Expeditionary Mobility Task Force on 1 Oct 2003, and transferred to Eighteenth Air Force. On 20 Mar 2012 the 15th Expeditionary Task Force was inactivated at Travis Air Force Base.
Sources: Air Force Combat Units of World War II; www.wikipedia.org; Fifteenth Air Force Story by Kenn C. Rust; B-24 Liberator Units Of The Fifteenth Air Force by Robert F. Dorr.
