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Military unit
The 31st Air Division (31st AD) is an inactive
United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with
Air Defense Command , assigned to
Tenth Air Force , being stationed at
Sioux City Municipal Airport , Iowa. It was inactivated on 31 December 1969.
History
31st Air Division ADC AOR 1950–1960
Assigned to
Air Defense Command (ADC) for most of its existence, the division equipped, administered, trained, and provided combat ready forces within an area covering North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, and other parts of the Midwest. The division participated in numerous live and simulated exercises such as Creek Chief , Pawnee Knife , and Mandan Hunt.
[2]
31st Air Division ADC AOR 1966–1969
Later, beginning in 1966, the 31st assumed responsibility for the former
Oklahoma City Air Defense Sector and covered an area including Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana.
[2] Assumed additional designation of 31st NORAD Region after activation of the NORAD Combat Operations Center at the
Cheyenne Mountain Complex , Colorado and reporting was transferred to
NORAD from ADC at
Ent Air Force Base in April 1966.
Inactivated in December 1969
[2] as ADC phased down its interceptor mission as the chances of a Soviet bomber attack on the United States seemed remote, its mission being consolidated into
North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).
Lineage
Established as the 31st Air Division (Defense) on 7 September 1950
Activated on 8 October 1950
Inactivated on 1 February 1952
Organized on 1 February 1952
[3]
Inactivated on 1 January 1960
Redesignated 31st Air Division and activated on 20 January 1966 (not organized)
Organized on 1 April 1966
Inactivated on 31 December 1969
[2]
Assignments
Eastern Air Defense Force , 8 October 1950 (attached
30th Air Division , 27 November 1950 – 1 February 1951
Central Air Defense Force , 20 May 1951 – 1 January 1960
Air Defense Command, 20 January 1966 (not organized)
Fourteenth Air Force , 1 April 1966 – 1 July 1968 (
ConAC )
Tenth Air Force , 1 July 1968 – 31 December 1969
[2]
Stations
Components
Sectors
Duluth Municipal Airport , Minnesota
Grand Forks Air Force Base , North Dakota
[2]
Groups
53d Fighter Group : 18 August 1955 – 1 March 1956
Sioux City Municipal Airport , Iowa
343d Fighter Group : 18 August 1955 – 1 January 1959
Duluth Municipal Airport, Minnesota
475th Fighter Group : 18 August 1955 – 2 January 1958
Minneapolis-Saint Paul Municipal Airport , Minnesota
Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota
Minneapolis-Saint Paul Municipal Airport, Minnesota
Duluth Municipal Airport, Minnesota
Sioux City Municipal Airport, Iowa
[2]
Interceptor squadrons
Radar squadrons
650th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Dallas Center Air Force Station , Iowa, 1 July 1955 – 1 March 1956
676th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Antigo Air Force Station , Wisconsin, 6 February 1952 – 16 February 1953
Sweetwater Air Force Station , Texas, 1 April 1966 – 30 September 1969
687th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
West Mesa Air Force Station , New Mexico, 1 April 1966 – 8 September 1968
Amarillo Air Force Base , Texas, 1 April 1966 – 8 September 1968
692d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Baudette Air Force Station , Minnesota, 1 October 1958 – 1 January 1959
703d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Texarkana Air Force Station , Arkansas, 1 April 1966 – 8 September 1968
707th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Grand Rapids Air Force Station , Minnesota, 1 July 1956 – 1 January 1959
739th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Wadena Air Force Station , Minnesota, 1 February 1953 – 1 January 1959
Rapid City Air Force Base, South Dakota, 1–16 February 1953
Lackland Air Force Base , Texas, 1 April 1966 – 31 December 1969
Perrin Air Force Station , Texas, 1 April 1966 – 30 September 1969
Oklahoma City Air Force Station, Oklahoma, 1 April 1966 – 8 September 1968
756th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Finland Air Force Station , Minnesota, 6 February 1952 – 1 July 1959
785th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Finley Air Force Station , North Dakota, 6 February 1952 – 16 February 1953
786th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Minot Air Force Station , North Dakota, 6 February 1952 – 16 February 1953
787th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Chandler Air Force Station , Minnesota, 6 February 1952 – 1 January 1959
788th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Waverly Air Force Station , Iowa, 6 February 1952 – 1 March 1956
789th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Omaha Air Force Station , Nebraska, 6 February 1952 – 1 March 1956
791st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Hanna City Air Force Station , Illinois, 6 February 1952 – 1 March 1956
808th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
Rochester Air Force Station , Minnesota, 1 September 1955 – 9 September 1957
903d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron]
Gettysburg Air Force Station , South Dakota, 1 March 1956 – 1 January 1959
Sioux Lookout Air Station , Ontario, 16 December 1952 – 1 January 1959
Beausejour Air Station , Manitoba, 1 December 1952 – 1 January 1959
See also
References
Notes
^ Aircraft shown is F-104A, serial 56-821
^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
"Factsheet 31 Air Division" . Air Force Historical Research Agency. 5 October 2007. Archived from
the original on 21 October 2012. Retrieved 9 April 2014 .
^ The simultaneous inactivation and activation on 1 February 1952 reflects a change between a Table of Organization unit and a Table of Distribution unit.
Bibliography
This article incorporates
public domain material from the
Air Force Historical Research Agency
Cornett, Lloyd H; Johnson, Mildred W (1980).
A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization, 1946–1980 (PDF) . Peterson AFB, CO: Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center. Archived from
the original (PDF) on 13 February 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2012 .
Winkler, David F.; Webster, Julie L (1997).
Searching the skies: The legacy of the United States Cold War Defense Radar Program . Champaign, IL: US Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories.
LCCN
97020912 . [
dead link ]
"ADCOM's Fighter Interceptor Squadrons". The Interceptor (January 1979) Aerospace Defense Command, (Volume 21, Number 1)
Bases
Stations
Air Defense units
Forces Air Divisions Sectors Wings Groups Squadrons
Major weapon systems
Miscellaneous