14th Weapons Squadron
Military unit / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 14th Weapons Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the USAF Weapons School, stationed at Hurlburt Field, Florida.
14th Weapons Squadron | |
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Active | 1942-1949; 1967–1968; 2003–present |
Country | United States |
Branch | United States Air Force |
Type | Squadron |
Role | Advanced Special Operations Training |
Part of | Air Combat Command |
Garrison/HQ | Hurlburt Field, Florida |
Nickname(s) | Puff the Magic Dragon (1967–1968) Air Commandos (2003–present) |
Engagements | Vietnam War[1] |
Decorations | Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Combat "V" Device Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm[1] |
Insignia | |
14th Weapons Squadron emblem (approved 5 September 1942)[1] | |
Patch with 14th Air Commando Sq emblem |
The squadron is a geographically separated unit of the 57th Wing at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. The mission of the squadron is to produce weapons officers for the special operations community by providing graduate level instructional flying on Air Force Special Operations Command aircraft through weapons instructor courses. Currently, the squadron produces special operations force weapons officers specializing in Lockheed AC-130, Lockheed MC-130 and Pilatus U-28 aircraft.
The unit traces its lineage back to the 14th Observation Squadron and participated in the landings at Normandy in June 1944. Later, during the Vietnam era, the 14th Air Commando Squadron, flew Douglas AC-47 Spooky gunships between 1967 and 1968. The 14th flew out of Nha Trang Air Base, Phan Rang Air Base, Bien Hoa Air Base, and Binh Thuy Air Base, providing fire support in defense of US air bases, special forces camps, Republic of Vietnam Army outposts, and South Vietnamese hamlets. Decorations of this combat unit include the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, and the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Combat "V" Device.
These two units were consolidated in 1985.