Lineage

Constituted 3d Photographic Squadron on 15 May 1941. Activated on 10 Jun 1941. Redesignated: 3d Mapping Squadron on 13 Jan 1942; 3d Photographic Mapping Squadron on 9 Jun 1942; 3d Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron, Very Heavy, on 19 May 1944; 3d Reconnaissance Squadron, Very Long Range (Photographic-RCM), on 19 Sep 1945; 3d Reconnaissance Squadron, Very Long Range, Photographic, on 15 Jan 1946. Inactivated on 15 Mar 1947. Consolidated (13 Oct 1994) with the 3d Satellite Control Squadron, which was constituted on 9 Jan 1990. Activated on 2 Feb 1990. Redesignated 3d Space Operations Squadron on 30 Jan 1992.

Assignments

1st Photographic (later, 1st Mapping; 1st Photographic Charting) Group, 10 Jun 1941; 11th Photographic Group, 1 Dec 1943; 311th Photographic (later, 311th Reconnaissance) Wing, 5 Mar 1944 (attached to Twentieth Air Force, 1 Nov-13 Dec 1944; XXI Bomber Command, 14 Dec 1944-15 Jul 1945; Twentieth Air Force, 16 Jul 1945-2 Feb 1947); Twentieth Air Force, 3 Feb-15 Mar 1947. 2d Space Wing, 2 Feb 1990; 50th Operations Group, 30 Jan 1992-.

Stations

Maxwell Field, AL, 10 Jun 1941; MacDill Field, FL, 22 Dec 1941; Smoky Hill AAFld, KS, 16 Apr-3 Aug 1944; Saipan, 18 Sep 1944; Guam, 11 Jan 1945-15 Mar 1947. Falcon AFB, CO, 2 Feb 1990-.

Aircraft and Space Systems

Included F-2, 1942; B-25/F-10, 1942-1944; B-24, 1943-1945; B-17/F-9, 1944, 1946-1947; B-29/F-13, 1944-1947. Satellites, 1990-.

Operations

Mapped areas of the United States, West Indies, and South America, May 1942-Jan 1943; Canada and Alaska, Mar-Jul 1943; India, Burma, and China, Dec 1943-Mar 1944. Photographic, electronic, and weather reconnaissance in Western Pacific, Nov 1944-Sep 1945. Controlled satellites for the Defense Satellite Communications System, the Fleet Satellite Communications System, the NATO II satellite program, and the UHF Follow-on Satellite Program, 1990-.

Honors

Service Streamers. World War II American Theater.

Campaign Streamers. World War II: Western Pacific; Air Offensive, Japan.

Armed Forces Expeditionary Streamers. None.

Decorations. Air Force Outstanding Unit Award: 1 Sep 1990-31 Aug 1991.

Emblem

Sable, a triangle, one point up Or, bearing a globe Celeste, gridlined Azure, between two lightning flashes of the first enfiling an elliptical ring surmounted by three mullets of four points one and two, all between a mullet of eight points in dexter chief and a mullet of eight points in sinister base Argent; all within a diminished bordure of the second. MOTTO: FIRST IN SPACE COMMUNICATIONS. Approved on 5 May 1992; replaced emblem approved on 24 Jul 1943 (150264 A.C.).