9th Aero Squadron
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The 9th Aero Squadron was an Air Service, United States Army unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I.
9th Aero Squadron | |
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Active | 14 June 1917 – 22 July 1919 |
Country | United States |
Branch | Air Service, United States Army |
Type | Squadron |
Role | Night Observation |
Part of | American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) |
Nickname(s) | "Bats" |
Engagements | World War I Occupation of the Rhineland |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Capt. George E. A. Reinburg Lt Samuel B. Eckert[1] |
Insignia | |
9th Aero Squadron Emblem | |
Aircraft flown | |
Bomber | Breguet 14, 1918-1919, Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2, 1918-1919[1] |
Fighter | Sopwith Camel, 1917 Sopwith Scout, 1917[1] |
Trainer | Curtiss JN-4, 1917[1] |
Service record | |
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Operations |
First Army Observation Group
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The squadron was assigned as an Army Observation Squadron, performing long-range, strategic night reconnaissance over the entire length of the United States First Army sector of the Western Front in France.[4] It was the only night reconnaissance squadron of the Air Service stationed on the Western Front, and the squadron's emblem reflects an aircraft, flying at night with searchlights searching for it in a IX pattern.
After the 1918 Armistice with Germany, the squadron was assigned to the United States Third Army as part of the Occupation of the Rhineland in Germany. It returned to the United States in June 1919 and became part of the permanent United States Army Air Service in 1921, being re-designated as the 9th Squadron (Observation).[3][5]
The current United States Air Force unit which holds its lineage and history is the 9th Bomb Squadron, assigned to the 7th Operations Group, Dyess Air Force Base, Texas.[6]