B-17 of the 94th Bomb Group over target
The 94th Bombardment Group (H)
Overview:
- Assigned to Eighth Air Force: April 1943.
- Combat Aircraft: B-17F and B-17G Flying Fortresses.
Wing & Command Assignments:
- 1 May 1943: VIII Bomber Command (BC), 4th Bombardment Wing (BW), 401st Provisional Combat Bombardment Wing (PCB).
- 13 September 1943: VIII BC, 3rd Bomb Division (BD), 4th Combat Bombardment Wing (CBW).
- 1 January 1945: 3rd Air Division (AD), 4th CBW.
Component Squadrons:
- 331st Bombardment Squadron (H)
- 332nd Bombardment Squadron (H)
- 333rd Bombardment Squadron (H)
- 410th Bombardment Squadron (H)
Stations:
- Mid-April 1943: Bassingbourn.
- 12 May 1943: Earls Colne (Air echelon arrived 27 May 1943).
- 13 June 1943 – 12 December 1945: Bury St. Edmunds.
Group Commanding Officers:
- Col. John G. Moore (15 Jun 1942 – 22 Jun 1943)
- Col. Frederick W. Castle (22 Jun 1943 – 16 Apr 1944)
- Col. Charles B. Dougher (17 Apr 1944 – 15 Mar 1945)
- Col. Nicholas T. Perkins (16 Mar 1945 – c. 3 Jun 1945)
- Lt. Col. Ernest B. Maxwell (3 Jun 1945 – late 1945)
Combat Record:
- First Mission: 13 May 1943.
- Last Mission: 21 April 1945.
- Total Missions: 324.
- Total Credit Sorties: 8,884.
- Total Bomb Tonnage: 18,924.6 tons.
- Aircraft MIA: 153.
- Other Operational Losses: 27.
- Enemy Aircraft Claims: 342 destroyed, 92 probable, 154 damaged.
Major Awards:
- Two Distinguished Unit Citations:
- 17 August 1943: Regensburg mission (all 4 BW groups).
- 11 January 1944: Brunswick.
Early History:
- Activated: 15 June 1942 at McDill Field, Florida.
- Training: Initial training at Pendleton Field, Oregon, detailed training at Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona, and final training at Pueblo, Colorado.
- Overseas Movement: Air echelon began overseas movement around 1 April 1943. Ground echelon departed for Camp Kilmer, NJ, on 17 April 1943 and sailed on the Queen Elizabeth on 5 May 1943, arriving at Greenock on 11 May 1943.
Subsequent History:
- Occupational Air Forces: Scheduled for occupational air forces in Germany, but plans changed in September 1945.
- Nickle Project Missions: Dropped leaflets over former occupied countries and to displaced persons in Germany late in 1945.
- Deactivation: Inactivated at Camp Kilmer on 21 December 1945 after the remaining personnel left Bury St. Edmunds on 11 December 1945.
Aircraft Markings:
- Original Combat B-17Fs: Dark Olive Drab and Neutral Gray finish.
- Squadron Codes: Light grey, 36 inches high, painted forward of the cocarde on both sides of the fuselage with individual aircraft call-letters aft of the waist gun windows.
- 331st Bomb Squadron: QE.
- 332nd Bomb Squadron: XM.
- 333rd Bomb Squadron: TS.
- 410th Bomb Squadron: GL.
- Square A Tail Marking: Introduced in late June 1943, initially 60×48 inches, later reduced to 48 inches.
- Wing Tips and Tail Surfaces: Painted yellow in January 1945, with a 36-inch wide red stripe around the rear fuselage.
- Engine Cowling Colors: Dark blue for 331st, red for 332nd, bright green for 333rd, and yellow for 410th.