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Military unit
4683rd Air Defense Wing (ADC) Headquarters building from an official postcard sold at the Thule Base Exchange in 1963
The 4683d Air Defense Wing is a discontinued
United States Air Force (USAF) organization. Its last assignment was with
Aerospace Defense Command (ADC)'s
Goose Air Defense Sector at
Thule Air Base ,
Greenland , where it was discontinued in 1965.
The
wing was organized in 1960 and assigned a
fighter interceptor squadron and a
squadron operating a
radar for
ground controlled interception . The 4683d also acted as the host organization at Thule until October, when support units were transferred to the 4683d Air Base Group , which was attached to the wing, but assigned to the
64th Air Division in Newfoundland. It supported the
Ballistic Missile Early Warning System when the system was activated at Thule, but was discontinued when that mission supplanted the wing's traditional
air defense mission.
History
The 4683d Air Defense Wing was established in 1960 when
Air Defense Command (ADC) assumed host responsibility for
Thule Air Base from
Strategic Air Command .
[1]
[2] Its operational mission was to act at the command and control echelon, controlling both a
radar and a
fighter
squadron in Greenland to provide forward
air defense of northeast North America.[
citation needed ] Through the attached 4683rd Air Base Group, the
wing also acted as the
United States Air Force host organization for Thule. The wing also provided support for an Army
Nike Missile air defense unit.
[2]
The
931st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron , already at Thule, was reassigned to the wing from the
64th Air Division immediately upon organization of the wing.
[3] The 931st was located on Pingarssuit Mountain (Site N-32), 20 miles south of the main base.
[2] The wing was assigned the
332d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron , flying
Convair F-102 Delta Dagger
interceptor aircraft when the squadron moved to Thule from
England Air Force Base , Louisiana in September 1960.
[4]
[5] It also supported the
Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) when the system was activated at Thule.
The 332d was inactivated at the end of May 1965.
[4] The wing was discontinued in July
[1] and replaced as host organization at Thule by the 4683d Air Base Group.
[6] The wing's 931st AC&W Sq was assigned to the 4683d Air Base Group until the squadron was inactivated on 24 December 1965.
[3] The Army's NIKE operations also ended in 1965, and Thule's primary mission became BMEWS operations.
[2]
Lineage
Designated as the 4683d Air Defense Wing and organized on 1 July 1960
Discontinued on 1 July 1965
Assignments
64th Air Division, 1 July 1960
Goose Air Defense Sector, 1 July 1963 – 1 July 1965
Stations
Thule AB, Greenland, 1 July 1960 – 1 July 1965
Components
Group
4683d Air Base Group (attached)
[6]
Designated, organized, assigned to Goose Air Defense Sector and attached to 4683d Air Defense Wing on 1 October 1960
Redesignated 4683d Combat Support Group on 1 April 1963
Redesignated 4683d Air Base Group on 1 July 1965 and relieved from attachment to 4683d Air Defense Wing
Reassigned to the
37th Air Division on 1 April 1966
Reassigned to the
21st Air Division on 1 December 1969
Discontinued on 31 March 1977
Operational Squadrons
332d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 1 September 1960 – 31 May 1965
931st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron, 1 July 1960 – 1 July 1965
4683d Operations Squadron, 1 July 1960 – 1 October 1960
Support Units
4683d USAF Hospital, 1 July 1960 - 1 October 1960
[7]
4683d Air Police Squadron, 1 July 1960 - 1 October 1960
[7]
4683d Civil Engineering Squadron, 1 July 1960 - 1 October 1960
[8]
4683d Consolidated Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, 1 July 1960 - 1 July 1965
[9]
4683d Food Service Squadron, 1 July 1960 - 1 October 1960
[7]
4683d Supply Squadron, 1 July 1960 - 1 October 1960
[7]
4683d Transportation Squadron, 1 July 1960 - 1 October 1960
[7]
Aircraft
Convair F-102A Delta Dagger, 1960-1965
Awards
Commanders
Col. Chester L. Sluder, 1 July 1960 - 29 Oct 1960
[2]
Col. David B. Tudor, 20 Jul 1962-18 July 1963
[2]
[11]
Col. James W. Lancaster, by Jan 1965 - 1 July 1965
[12]
See also
References
Notes
^
a
b 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. p. 65. Archived from
the original (PDF) on 13 February 2016. Retrieved 11 February 2012 .
^
a
b
c
d
e
f Fletcher, Harry R (1993).
Air Force Bases, Vol. II, Air Bases Outside the United States of America (PDF) . Washington, DC: Center for Air Force History. pp. 182–185.
^
a
b Cornett & Johnson, p. 105
^
a
b Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969].
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. p. 410.
ISBN
0-405-12194-6 .
^ Cornett & Johnson, p. 127
^
a
b Cornett & Johnson, p. 88
^
a
b
c
d
e See Fletcher, p. 185, list of units
^ Cornett & Johnson, p. 108
^ Cornett & Johnson, p. 143
^
AF Pamphlet 900-2, Unit Decorations, Awards and Campaign Participation Credits, Department of the Air Force, Washington, DC, 15 Jun 71 (Part 1)
[1]
Archived 2015-08-04 at the
Wayback Machine (Part 2), p. 547
^
"Abstract, History 4683 Air Defense Wing Jan-Jun 1963" . Air Force History Index. Retrieved 11 February 2012 .
^
"Abstract, History 4683 Air Defense Wing Jan-Mar 1965" . Air Force History Index. Retrieved 11 February 2012 .
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 11 February 2012 .
Fletcher, Harry R (1993).
Air Force Bases, Vol. II, Air Bases Outside the United States of America (PDF) . Washington, DC: Center for Air Force History.
Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969].
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History.
ISBN
0-405-12194-6 .
AF Pamphlet 900-2, Unit Decorations, Awards and Campaign Participation Credits, Department of the Air Force, Washington, DC, 15 Jun 71
Further Reading
Bases
Stations
Air Defense units
Forces Air Divisions Sectors Wings Groups Squadrons
Major weapon systems
Miscellaneous