1.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
2.
Virginia
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Virginia is a state located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, as well as in the historic Southeast. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are shaped by the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay, the capital of the Commonwealth is Richmond, Virginia Beach is the most populous city, and Fairfax County is the most populous political subdivision. The Commonwealths estimated population as of 2014 is over 8.3 million, the areas history begins with several indigenous groups, including the Powhatan. In 1607 the London Company established the Colony of Virginia as the first permanent New World English colony, slave labor and the land acquired from displaced Native American tribes each played a significant role in the colonys early politics and plantation economy. Although the Commonwealth was under one-party rule for nearly a century following Reconstruction, the Virginia General Assembly is the oldest continuous law-making body in the New World. The state government was ranked most effective by the Pew Center on the States in both 2005 and 2008 and it is unique in how it treats cities and counties equally, manages local roads, and prohibits its governors from serving consecutive terms. Virginias economy changed from agricultural to industrial during the 1960s and 1970s. Virginia has an area of 42,774.2 square miles, including 3,180.13 square miles of water. Virginias boundary with Maryland and Washington, D. C. extends to the mark of the south shore of the Potomac River. The southern border is defined as the 36° 30′ parallel north, the border with Tennessee was not settled until 1893, when their dispute was brought to the U. S. Supreme Court. The Chesapeake Bay separates the portion of the Commonwealth from the two-county peninsula of Virginias Eastern Shore. The bay was formed from the river valleys of the Susquehanna River. Many of Virginias rivers flow into the Chesapeake Bay, including the Potomac, Rappahannock, York, and James, the Tidewater is a coastal plain between the Atlantic coast and the fall line. It includes the Eastern Shore and major estuaries of Chesapeake Bay, the Piedmont is a series of sedimentary and igneous rock-based foothills east of the mountains which were formed in the Mesozoic era. The region, known for its clay soil, includes the Southwest Mountains around Charlottesville. The Blue Ridge Mountains are a province of the Appalachian Mountains with the highest points in the state. The Ridge and Valley region is west of the mountains and includes the Great Appalachian Valley, the region is carbonate rock based and includes Massanutten Mountain. The Cumberland Plateau and the Cumberland Mountains are in the southwest corner of Virginia, in this region, rivers flow northwest, with a dendritic drainage system, into the Ohio River basin
3.
Air National Guard
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When Air National Guard units are used under the jurisdiction of the state governor they are fulfilling their militia role. However, if federalized by order of the President of the United States and they are jointly administered by the states and the National Guard Bureau, a joint bureau of the Army and Air Force that oversees the National Guard of the United States. The ANG of the territories of Guam and the Virgin Islands have no aircraft assigned, ANG units typically operate under Title 32 USC. However, when operating under Title 10 USC all ANG units are operationally-gained by an active duty USAF major command. ANG units of the Combat Air Forces based in the Continental United States, conversely, CONUS-based ANG units in the Mobility Air Forces, plus the Puerto Rico ANGs airlift wing and the Virgin Islands ANGs civil engineering squadron are gained by the Air Mobility Command. The vast majority of ANG units fall under either ACC or AMC, established under Title 10 and Title 32 of the U. S. S. When not in a status, the Air National Guard operates under their respective state. The exception to rule is the District of Columbia Air National Guard. Because both state Air National Guard and the Air National Guard of the United States relatively go hand-in-hand, Air National Guard of the United States units or members may be called up for federal active duty in times of Congressionally sanctioned war or national emergency. The United States Air National Guard has about 110,000 men and women in service, even traditional part-time air guardsmen, especially pilots, navigators/combat systems officers, air battle managers and enlisted aircrew, often serve 100 or more man-days annually. As such, the concept of Air National Guard service as representing only one weekend a month, the Georgia Air National Guard and the Kansas Air National Guard previously flew the B-1B Lancer prior to converting to the E-8 Joint STARS and KC-135R Stratotanker, respectively. In addition, the 131st Fighter Wing of the Missouri Air National Guard transitioned from flying the F-15C/D Eagle at St and these proposals were eventually overruled and cancelled by the U. S. Congress. As state militia units, the units in the Air National Guard are not in the normal United States Air Force chain of command and they are under the jurisdiction of the United States National Guard Bureau unless they are federalized by order of the President of the United States. Air National Guard units are trained and equipped by the United States Air Force, the state ANG units, depending on their mission, are operationally gained by a major command of the USAF if federalized. Air National Guard personnel are expected to adhere to the moral and physical standards as their full-time active duty Air Force. The same ranks and insignia of the U. S. Air Force are used by the Air National Guard, the Air National Guard also bestows a number of state awards for local services rendered in a service members home state or equivalent. The creation of the regiments was caused by the perceived need to defend the Bay Colony against American Indians. This organization formed the basis of subsequent colonial and, post-independence, state and this distinction accounts for why there are no National Guard components in the U. S. Navy, U. S. Marine Corps or U. S. Coast Guard
4.
192nd Fighter Wing
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The 192nd Fighter Wing, also referred to as the 192D Fighter Wing, is a unit of the Virginia Air National Guard and the United States Air Force, stationed at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia. If activated to service the 192 FW is gained by Air Combat Command. 192D Fighter Wing is the military nomenclature of the unit and it is commonly referred to as the 192nd Fighter Wing. It is often interchanged within military writing and speech, either way, - Reserves numbers 101 through 299 for Air National Guard units giving position for the unit numbering. The 192 FW is an Air National Guard unit co-located with the active duty 1st Fighter Wing at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, the 149th TFS becoming the groups flying squadron. Other squadrons assigned into the group were the 192nd Headquarters, 192nd Material Squadron, 192nd Combat Support Squadron, during 1971, the 192nd was assigned the F-105D Thunderchief, a battle-hardened supersonic fighter-bomber that was the backbone of America’s fighter element during the Vietnam War. The group’s special tasks during the decade included several deployments to Red Flag live-fire exercises at Nellis AFB, Nevada. In 1981, the converted to the A-7D Corsair II. The decade long A-7 era included several deployments to Howard AFB, Panama to aid the defense of the Panama Canal, shortly after a deployment to Ecuador, the 192nd deployed in September 1985 to Evenes Air Station, Norway,150 miles above the Arctic Circle. A few weeks later, a Virginia ANG contingent competed in Gunsmoke 85, the Air Forces tactical fighter competition, the 192nd also earned the General Spruance Safety Award and was recognized as having the best operational readiness inspection in the Ninth Air Force during 1985. In 1987, the 192nd earned its first USAF Outstanding Unit Award, in 1991, the 192nd became the first Air National Guard unit to receive the Air Forces upgraded Fighting Falcon—the F-16C/D. The unit was initially assigned 24 single-seat F-16C models and two F-16D models, by early 1994, defense cutbacks reduced the units assigned inventory to 18 F-16s, and eventually to 15. Conversion to the F-16 airframe required the 192nd to build a $2 million hush house, between 1 December 1993, and 15 January 1994, ANG pilots patrolled the no-fly zone over northern Iraq to prevent Iraqi forces from inflicting damage on the villages of Kurdish minorities. This marked the first time Air National Guard units were called to duty in the Middle East. The unit returned to Incirlik in February 1996 for another round of patrols over Iraq, during October 1995, the wing designation was changed to 192nd Fighter Wing. At the direction of the commander of Air Combat Command, in January, the Air Force aimed to reduce the number of F-16 maintenance workers, consolidate their training, reduce duplication of resources, and lower maintenance costs per flying hour. The 192 FW was also selected to test the capability of electro-optical recce pods, for 45 days, the 192 FW flew recce missions over Bosnia to support international peacekeeping efforts. In December 1996, the wing was awarded its second Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, in December 2000,29 members of the 192nd deployed to Southwest Asia in support of Operation Southern Watch
5.
Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
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The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is a fifth-generation, single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force. The aircraft was variously designated F-22 and F/A-22 before it entered service in December 2005 as the F-22A. The Raptors combination of stealth, aerodynamic performance, and situational awareness gives the aircraft unprecedented air combat capabilities, a final procurement tally of 187 operational production aircraft was established in 2009, and the last F-22 was delivered to the USAF in 2012. In 1981 the U. S. Air Force developed a requirement for an Advanced Tactical Fighter as a new air superiority fighter to replace the F-15 Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon. Code named Senior Sky, this program was influenced by the emerging threats, including development and proliferation of Soviet Su-27 Flanker-. Each design team produced two prototype air vehicles, one for each of the two engine options, the Lockheed-led team employed thrust vectoring nozzles on YF-22 for enhanced maneuverability in dogfights. The ATFs increasing weight and cost drove out certain requirements during development, side-looking radars were deleted, and the dedicated infra-red search and track system was downgraded from multi-color to single color and then deleted as well. However, space and cooling provisions were retained to allow for future addition of these components, the ejection seat requirement was downgraded from a fresh design to the existing McDonnell Douglas ACES II. After the flight test demonstration and validation of the prototypes, on 23 April 1991, the YF-23 design was considered stealthier and faster, while the YF-22 was more maneuverable. The aviation press speculated that the YF-22 was also adaptable to the U. S. Navys Navalized Advanced Tactical Fighter, but by 1992. F-22 production was split up over many subcontractors across 46 states to increase Congressional support, though this production split may have contributed to increased costs, many capabilities were deferred to post-service upgrades, reducing the initial cost but increasing total program cost. Production supported over 1,000 subcontractors and suppliers and up to 95,000 jobs, the F-22 had several design changes from the YF-22. The swept-back angle of the edge was decreased from 48° to 42°, while the vertical stabilizers were shifted rearward. To improve pilot visibility, the canopy was moved forward 7 inches, the shapes of the wing and stabilator trailing edges were refined to improve aerodynamics, strength, and stealth characteristics. Increasing weight during development caused slight reductions in range and aerodynamic performance, the first F-22, an engineering and manufacturing development aircraft named Raptor 4001, was unveiled at Marietta, Georgia, on 9 April 1997, and first flew on 7 September 1997. In 2006, the Raptors development team, composed of over 1,000 contractors, the F-22 was in production for 15 years, at a rate of roughly two per month during peak production. The USAF originally envisioned ordering 750 ATFs at a cost of $26.2 billion, the 1990 Major Aircraft Review led by Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney reduced this to 648 aircraft beginning in 1996. By 1997, funding instability had further cut the total to 339, in 2004, the Department of Defense further reduced this to 183 operational aircraft, despite the USAFs preference for 381
6.
113th Operations Group
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The 113th Operations Group is a flying group of the United States Air Force. Its predecessor, the 352d Fighter Group, was one of the most highly decorated United States Army Air Forces Fighter Groups in World War II, the 352d was composed of three squadrons. Once deployed to the European Theater of Operations, the group was headquartered in RAF Bodney. It performed a variety of missions for the Eighth Air Force, the 121st Fighter Squadron of the 113th Operations Group, is a descendant organization of the 121st Observation Squadron, established on 10 July 1940. The 113ths primary mission is training of air combat and operational airlift crews for national defense, the 113th also provides a ready response force of fighters for the defense of the District of Columbia area. Members of the 113th also assist local and federal law enforcement agencies in combating trafficking in the District of Columbia on a case by case basis. The groups 121st Fighter Squadron is a descendant organization of the 121st Observation Squadron, the group was equipped with the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighter. The initial squadrons to be assigned were the 21st and 34th Fighter Squadrons, on 18 May 1943 the assignment of the 21st and 34th Squadrons was retroactively revoked and they were replaced by the 486th and 487th Fighter Squadrons effective 1 October 1942. Shortly thereafter, the 328th was moved back to Mitchel Field in and was joined by the 487th in March, the 486th moved to Republic Field on 8 March. Training was in its advanced phase when the group was reassembled at Westover in late May in anticipation of deployment orders. Skirmishes with the Luftwaffe were frequent, but it wasnt until 26 November when Major John C. Meyer of the 487th Squadron scored the groups first victory over Europe, Meyer later became deputy commander of the 352d during its most successful period of operations. On 8 April 1944, the 352d exchanged its radial-engined P-47s for sleek North American P-51 Mustang fighter planes and it was then that the Group adopted their unique blue nose marking and the nickname the Blue Nosed Bastards of Bodney. In the end, the Group flew nearly 60,000 combat hours in 19 months, claimed 519 enemy aircraft destroyed in the air,287 on the ground, notable pilots of the 352d include top scoring P-51 aces Major George Preddy and Col. John C. John Thornell, Capt. William T. Whisner, Captain Donald S. Bryan, Capt. Raymond Littge Lt. Robert Punchy Powell, John Smokey Stover and Capt. William C. Miller. One of the 352ds greatest accomplishments was its victory over the Luftwaffe on 1 January 1945. In December 1944, the 352d received orders to deploy to Asch Airfield, after arriving on 22 December, it began operating on the 24th. Poor weather hampered operations and the Battle of Bulge was raging nearby. Unknown to the Allies, the Luftwaffe was preparing a New Years Day attack, however, many of the Luftwaffe pilots were poorly trained and did not have the experience necessary to battle seasoned Allied pilots
7.
Republic P-47 Thunderbolt
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The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt was a World War II era fighter aircraft produced by the United States between 1941–1945. Its primary armament was eight. 50-caliber machine guns and in the fighter-bomber ground-attack role it could carry five-inch rockets or a load of 2,500 pounds. When fully loaded the P-47 weighed up to eight tons making it one of the heaviest fighters of the war. The P-47 was designed around the powerful Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp engine which was used by two U. S. Navy fighters, the Grumman F6F Hellcat and the Vought F4U Corsair. The Thunderbolt was effective as a short-to-medium range escort fighter in high-altitude air-to-air combat, the P-47 was one of the main United States Army Air Forces fighters of World War II, and served with Allied air forces including France, Britain, and Russia. Mexican and Brazilian squadrons fighting alongside the U. S. were equipped with the P-47, the armored cockpit was relatively roomy and comfortable, offering good visibility. A modern-day U. S. ground-attack aircraft, the Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II, both had fled from their homeland to escape the Bolsheviks. In 1939, Republic Aviation designed the AP-4 demonstrator powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-1830 radial engine with a belly-mounted turbocharger. While the resulting Republic P-43 Lancer was in limited production, Republic had been working on an improved P-44 Rocket with a powerful engine. The latter was an aircraft powered by the Allison V-1710 liquid-cooled V-12 engine. The United States Army Air Corps backed the project and gave it the designation XP-47, as the war in Europe escalated in spring 1940, Republic and the USAAC concluded that the XP-44 and the XP-47 were inferior to the Luftwaffe fighters. Republic unsuccessfully attempted to improve the design, proposing the XP-47A, kartveli then designed a much larger fighter, which was offered to the USAAC in June 1940. The Air Corps ordered a prototype in September, to be designated the XP-47B, the XP-47A, which had little in common with the new design, was abandoned. The XP-47B was of construction with elliptical wings, with a straight leading edge that was slightly swept back. The air-conditioned cockpit was roomy and the seat was comfortable—like a lounge chair. Main and auxiliary self-sealing fuel tanks were placed under the cockpit, the cowling admitted cooling air for the engine, left and right oil coolers, and the turbosupercharger intercooler system. At full power, the pipes glowed red at their forward ends, the complicated turbosupercharger system with its ductwork gave the XP-47B a deep fuselage, and the wings had to be mounted in a relatively high position. This was problematic since long-legged main landing gear struts were needed to provide clearance for the enormous propeller
8.
North American P-51 Mustang
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The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II, the Korean War and other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 by North American Aviation in response to a requirement of the British Purchasing Commission, the Purchasing Commission approached North American Aviation to build Curtiss P-40 fighters under license for the Royal Air Force. Rather than build an old design from another company, North American Aviation proposed the design, the prototype NA-73X airframe was rolled out on 9 September 1940,102 days after the contract was signed, and first flew on 26 October. The Mustang was originally designed to use the Allison V-1710 engine and it was first flown operationally by the RAF as a tactical-reconnaissance aircraft and fighter-bomber. The addition of the Rolls-Royce Merlin to the P-51B/C model transformed the Mustangs performance at altitudes above 15,000 ft, the P-51 was also used by Allied air forces in the North African, Mediterranean, Italian and Pacific theaters. During World War II, Mustang pilots claimed to have destroyed 4,950 enemy aircraft, despite the advent of jet fighters, the Mustang remained in service with some air forces until the early 1980s. After the Korean War, Mustangs became popular civilian warbird and air racing aircraft, in April 1940 the British government established a purchasing commission in the United States, headed by Sir Henry Self. Self was given responsibility for Royal Air Force production and research and development, and also served with Sir Wilfrid Freeman. Self also sat on the British Air Council Sub-committee on Supply and one of his tasks was to organize the manufacturing and supply of American fighter aircraft for the RAF. At the time, the choice was limited, as no U. S. aircraft then in production or flying met European standards. The Curtiss-Wright plant was running at capacity, so P-40s were in short supply, North American Aviation was already supplying its Harvard trainer to the RAF, but was otherwise underutilized. NAA President Dutch Kindelberger approached Self to sell a new medium bomber, instead, Self asked if NAA could manufacture the Tomahawk under license from Curtiss. Kindelberger said NAA could have an aircraft with the same engine in the air sooner than establishing a production line for the P-40. In March 1940,320 aircraft were ordered by Sir Wilfred Freeman who had become the head of the Ministry of Aircraft Production. The NA-73X, which was designed by a led by lead engineer Edgar Schmued, followed the best conventional practice of the era. One was a wing designed using laminar flow airfoils which were developed co-operatively by North American Aviation and these airfoils generated very low drag at high speeds. The results of this test showed the superiority of the wing designed with the NAA/NACA 45–100 airfoils, the other feature was a new cooling arrangement that reduced the cooling drag. It was later discovered that, after lot of development, the assembly could take advantage of the Meredith Effect
9.
France
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France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
10.
Belgium
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Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a sovereign state in Western Europe bordered by France, the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and the North Sea. It is a small, densely populated country which covers an area of 30,528 square kilometres and has a population of about 11 million people. Additionally, there is a group of German-speakers who live in the East Cantons located around the High Fens area. Historically, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg were known as the Low Countries, the region was called Belgica in Latin, after the Roman province of Gallia Belgica. From the end of the Middle Ages until the 17th century, today, Belgium is a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. It is divided into three regions and three communities, that exist next to each other and its two largest regions are the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders in the north and the French-speaking southern region of Wallonia. The Brussels-Capital Region is a bilingual enclave within the Flemish Region. A German-speaking Community exists in eastern Wallonia, Belgiums linguistic diversity and related political conflicts are reflected in its political history and complex system of governance, made up of six different governments. Upon its independence, declared in 1830, Belgium participated in the Industrial Revolution and, during the course of the 20th century, possessed a number of colonies in Africa. This continuing antagonism has led to several far-reaching reforms, resulting in a transition from a unitary to a federal arrangement during the period from 1970 to 1993. Belgium is also a member of the Eurozone, NATO, OECD and WTO. Its capital, Brussels, hosts several of the EUs official seats as well as the headquarters of major international organizations such as NATO. Belgium is also a part of the Schengen Area, Belgium is a developed country, with an advanced high-income economy and is categorized as very high in the Human Development Index. A gradual immigration by Germanic Frankish tribes during the 5th century brought the area under the rule of the Merovingian kings, a gradual shift of power during the 8th century led the kingdom of the Franks to evolve into the Carolingian Empire. Many of these fiefdoms were united in the Burgundian Netherlands of the 14th and 15th centuries, the Eighty Years War divided the Low Countries into the northern United Provinces and the Southern Netherlands. The latter were ruled successively by the Spanish and the Austrian Habsburgs and this was the theatre of most Franco-Spanish and Franco-Austrian wars during the 17th and 18th centuries. The reunification of the Low Countries as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands occurred at the dissolution of the First French Empire in 1815, although the franchise was initially restricted, universal suffrage for men was introduced after the general strike of 1893 and for women in 1949. The main political parties of the 19th century were the Catholic Party, French was originally the single official language adopted by the nobility and the bourgeoisie
11.
Battle of the Bulge
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The Battle of the Bulge was the last major German offensive campaign of World War II. It was launched through the densely forested Ardennes region of Wallonia in Belgium, France, the surprise attack caught the Allied forces completely off guard. American forces bore the brunt of the attack and incurred their highest casualties of any operation during the war, the battle also severely depleted Germanys armoured forces on the Western Front, and they were largely unable to replace them. German personnel and later, Luftwaffe aircraft, also sustained heavy losses, the Germans officially referred to the offensive as Unternehmen Wacht am Rhein, while the Allies designated it the Ardennes Counteroffensive. The phrase Battle of the Bulge was coined by contemporary press to describe the bulge in German front lines on wartime news maps, once that was accomplished, the German dictator Adolf Hitler believed he could fully concentrate on the Soviets on the Eastern Front. The offensive was planned by the German forces with utmost secrecy, with minimal radio traffic and movements of troops, intercepted German communications indicating a substantial German offensive preparation were not acted upon by the Allies. The Germans achieved total surprise on the morning of 16 December 1944, due to a combination of Allied overconfidence, preoccupation with Allied offensive plans, and poor aerial reconnaissance. The Germans attacked a weakly defended section of the Allied line, columns of armor and infantry that were supposed to advance along parallel routes found themselves on the same roads. This, and terrain that favored the defenders, threw the German advance behind schedule, improved weather conditions permitted air attacks on German forces and supply lines, which sealed the failure of the offensive. In the wake of the defeat, many experienced German units were left severely depleted of men and equipment, the Germans initial attack involved 406,000 men,1,214 tanks, tank destroyers, and assault guns, and 4,224 artillery pieces. These were reinforced a couple of later, bringing the offensives total strength to around 450,000 troops. Between 67,200 and 125,000 of their men were killed, missing, for the Americans, out of 610,000 troops involved in the battle,89,000 were casualties. While some sources report that up to 19,000 were killed, British historian Antony Beevor reports the number killed as 8,407. It was the largest and bloodiest battle fought by the United States in World War II, after the breakout from Normandy at the end of July 1944 and the Allied landings in southern France on 15 August 1944, the Allies advanced toward Germany more quickly than anticipated. The Allies were faced with several military logistics issues, - troops were fatigued by weeks of continuous combat supply lines were stretched extremely thin supplies were dangerously depleted. General Dwight D. Eisenhower and his staff chose to hold the Ardennes region which was occupied by the U. S, the Allies chose to defend the Ardennes with as few troops as possible due to the favorable terrain and limited Allied operational objectives in the area. They also had intelligence that the Wehrmacht was using the area across the German border as an area for its troops. The speed of the Allied advance coupled with a lack of deep-water ports presented the Allies with enormous supply problems
12.
Fourteenth Air Force
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The Fourteenth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Space Command. It is headquartered at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, established on 5 March 1943 at Kunming, China,14 AF was a United States Army Air Forces combat air force deployed to the Pacific Theater of World War II. It engaged in primarily in China. After World War II Fourteenth Air Force subsequently served Air Defense Command, Continental Air Command,14 AF is commanded by Lt Gen John W. Raymond. Its Command Chief Master Sergeant is Chief Master Sgt, in 1993, Fourteenth Air Force became part of Air Force Space Command responsible for performing space operations. The overall mission is control and exploit space for global and theater operations, in 1997,14 AF established the Space Operations Center at Vandenberg AFB in California for the 24-hour command and control of all space operations resources. In 2002,14 AF became the Air Force space operational component of United States Strategic Command, in 2005,14 AF officially opened up its newly renovated operations center. The new command and control capabilities of the Joint Space Operations Center ensured unity of effort for all space capabilities supporting joint military operations around the globe, Bissell was General Henry H. ‘Hap’ Arnolds choice to command the USAAFs proposed combat organization in China. As early as 30 December 1941, the U. S, War Department in Washington, D. C. had authorized the induction of the Flying Tigers into the U. S. Army Air Forces. Chennault was opposed to inducting the Flying Tigers into the Army, Stilwell and Bissell made it clear to both Chennault and Chiang that unless the AVG became part of the U. S. Army Air Force, its supplies would be cut off. Chennault agreed to return to duty but he made it clear to Stilwell that his men would have to speak for themselves. Chiang Kai-shek finally agreed to induction of the AVG into the USAAF, with the situation in Burma rapidly deteriorating, Stilwell and Bissell wanted the AVG dissolved by 30 April 1942. Chennault, wanting to keep the Flying Tigers going as long as possible, proposed the group disband on 4 July, Chennault was recalled to active duty in the USAAF on 15 April 1942. He was promoted eight days later, on 23 April, from colonel to brigadier general, Chennault was told that he would have to be satisfied to command a China Air Task Force of fighters and bombers as part of the Tenth Air Force. Its mission was to defend the supply operation over the Himalayan mountains between India and China — nicknamed the Hump — and to provide air support for Chinese ground forces. Bissell had been promoted to brigadier general with one days seniority to Chennault in order to command all American air units in China as Stillwells Air Commander, friction developed when Chennault and the Chinese government were disturbed by the possibility that Chennault would no longer control combat operations in China. The CATF had 51 fighters in July 1942,31 81A-1 and P-40B Tomahawks, both fighters were good medium-altitude day fighters, with their best performance between 15,000 and 18,000 feet, and they were excellent ground-strafing aircraft. Chennault also had seven B-25C Mitchell medium bombers, out of an original 12 sent from India, the AVG was disbanded on 4 July 1942, simultaneous with the activation of the 23rd FG
United States
Virginia
Air National Guard
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.
