16th Electronic Warfare Squadron

16th Electronic Warfare Squadron
Active	1917–1919; 1921–1945; 1947–1949; 1993–present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Test and evaluation
Part of	Air Combat Command
Garrison/HQ	Eglin AFB
Engagements	Mediterranean Theater of Operations European Theater of Operations[1]
Decorations	Distinguished Unit Citation[1]
Commanders
Notable commanders	Major General Clarence L. Tinker (1922-1924) General of the Air Force Henry H. Arnold (1926–28)[2]
Insignia
16th Electronic Warfare Squadron emblem
16th Observation Squadron emblem[note 1]

The 16th Electronic Warfare Squadron is an active United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 350th Spectrum Warfare Group at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. The squadron began as the 16th 16th Aero Squadron and redesignated several times over its history with the 16th Aero Squadron, 16th Reconnaissance Squadron, and the 16 Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron being the major redesignations.

The 16th Aero Squadron, a World War I squadron that provided maintenance support for aeronautical units on the Western Front.

The 16th Reconnaissance Squadron, which served during the years between the World Wars as an observation squadron, with its flights located with various Army schools. During World War II, the squadron served in the Mediterranean, where it was awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation for its performance from October 1943 to January 1944.

The 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron, which served as a long range photographic unit during the early years of the Cold War.

The 16th Electronic Warfare Squadron (EWS) provides electronic warfare test facilities for mission data and electronic warfare systems test and evaluation. Its personnel assess the maintainability, reliability, suitability, and readiness of electronic warfare systems and support equipment, and perform test and evaluation of new concepts for electronic warfare systems. They also monitor developmental testing conducted by acquisition agencies. The 16th EWS develops, fabricates and maintains test instrumentation and performs acceptance tests of all new electronic warfare related hardware and software and supports training for maintenance and operational units worldwide. The 16th EWS has more than $450 million in assets, including eight system integration laboratories and five mobile test facilities.^[3]

The squadron was originally established as an Air Service flying training unit in May 1917, conducting flying training for air cadets in the Midwest throughout the summer. It deployed to France in January 1918, becoming an aircraft maintenance organization in rear areas of the Western Front. It remained in France until May 1919 when squadron returned to the United States and demobilized.^[1]

The 16th Squadron was established in 1921 as an observation squadron, attached to Army ground units throughout the 1920s and 1930s. It was consolidated with its predecessor in 1924. The 16th carried mail and performed fire observation duties, included carrying mail to President Calvin Coolidge vacationing in South Dakota and Wisconsin in August and September 1927, and June to September 1928.^[1]

After the Attack on Pearl Harbor the squadron was reassigned to antisubmarine duties along the southeast coast in late 1941, early 1942. It deployed to the European Theater of Operations, where it was attached to the Royal Air Force reconnaissance school at RAF Wattisham, England in late 1942. While in England, the air echelon received modern Lockheed P-38 long-range photo-reconnaissance aircraft and joined the ground personnel in French Morocco shortly after the Operation Torch invasion in November 1942.^{[citation needed]}

The squadron was assigned to Twelfth Air Force and engaged in long range intelligence gathering and aerial mapping of Algeria and Tunisia, supporting the United States Fifth Army during the North African and Tunisian Campaigns.^{[citation needed]} After the retreat of Axis forces from Tunisia in mid-1942, performed antisubmarine patrols over the Mediterranean Sea and also functioned as in in-theater training unit for aerial reconnaissance pilots.^[1]

Beginning in September 1943, the squadron received specially-equipped B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers equipped with radar detection and electronic countermeasures (ECM) equipment.^[1] It performed ECM overflights of enemy territory in advance of Fifteenth Air Force heavy bomber formations, jamming enemy Radar and generating false returns to confuse defensive forces. It also continued to fly long range reconnaissance with B-25 Mitchell medium bombers fitted with aerial cameras..^{[citation needed]} The Squadron returned to the United States in November 1944 as the need for the unit dissipated as enemy forces were driven out of the Mediterranean Theater of Operations. It was inactivated in April 1945.^[1]

The 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron served with Strategic Air Command as a long-range reconnaissance unit early in the Cold War. Its mission was absorbed by the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing in 1949. In 1985, it was consolidated with its predecessors,^[4] but remained inactive until 1993, when it assumed its present mission.

16th Aero Squadron

• Organized as 3d Aviation School Squadron on 9 May 1917

Redesignated 16th Aero Squadron (Construction) on 31 Aug 1917

Redesignated 16th Aero Squadron (Repair) 1918

Demobilized on 22 May 1919^[1]

16th Reconnaissance Squadron

• Authorized as 16th Squadron (Observation) on 30 August 1921

Organized on 7 December 1921

Redesignated 16th Observation Squadron (Corps and Army) on 25 January 1923

• Consolidated with 16th Aero Squadron on 8 April 1924

Inactivated on 15 March 1931

• Activated on 1 Jun 1937

Redesignated 16th Observation Squadron (Medium) on 13 Jan 1942

Redesignated 16th Observation Squadron on 4 Jul 1942

Redesignated 16th Reconnaissance Squadron (Bomber) on 31 May 1943

Redesignated 16th Reconnaissance Squadron, Heavy (Special) on 12 May 1944

Disbanded on 12 Apr 1945^[5]

• Reconstituted on 19 September 1985 and consolidated with 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron as 16th Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron^[4]

16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron

• Constituted as 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron (Special) 1947

Activated on 16 December 1947

Inactivated on 1 June 1949

• Consolidated on 19 September 1985 with 16th Reconnaissance Squadron as 16th Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron^[4]

16th Electronic Warfare Squadron

• Formed on 19 September 1985 by consolidation of 16th Reconnaissance Squadron and 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron
• Redesignated 16th Test Squadron

Activated on 15 April 1993.

Redesignated 16th Electronic Warfare Squadron 13 September 1999

• JN-4, 1917
• DH-4, c. 1922–1926,
• O–2, 1926-1930
• JNS-1, O-1, and apparently JN-4 and JN-6, 1921–1930
• O-25, 1930–1931
• O-46, 1937-C. 1939, O-47, 1938–1942, and O-49, 1941–1942
• YG-1, and O-43, 1937–1940
• O-51 and O-9, 1940–1941
• DB-7, L-4, P-40, and P-43, 1942
• A-20 and P-39, 1942–1943
• P-38, P-39, P-40, and Spitfire, 1943
• B-17, 1943–1944
• B-25, 1945^[1]

Explanatory notes

Citations

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

• Anderson, Capt. Barry (1985). Army Air Forces Stations: A Guide to the Stations Where U.S. Army Air Forces Personnel Served in the United Kingdom During World War II (PDF). Maxwell AFB, AL: Research Division, USAF Historical Research Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 January 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
• Clay, Steven E. (2011). US Army Order of Battle 1919-1941 (PDF). Vol. 3 The Services: Air Service, Engineers, and Special Troops 1919-1941. Fort Leavenworth, KS: Combat Studies Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-98419-014-0. LCCN 2010022326. OCLC 637712205. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
• 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. LCCN 70605402. OCLC 72556.