Lineage

Organized as Company A, 4th Balloon Squadron on 13 Nov 1917. Redesignated: 9th Balloon Company on 25 Jul 1918; 9th Airship Company on 30 Aug 1921; 9th Airship Squadron on 26 Oct 1933; 1st Observation Squadron on 1 Jun 1937; 1st Observation Squadron (Medium) on 13 Jan 1942; 1st Observation Squadron on 4 Jul 1942; 1st Reconnaissance Squadron (Special) on 25 Jun 1943; 41st Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron on 25 Nov 1944; 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron on 24 Jan 1946. Inactivated on 17 Jun 1946. Redesignated 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, Night-Photographic, on 14 Jan 1954. Activated on 18 Mar 1954. Inactivated on 18 May 1959. Redesignated 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, Photo-Jet, and activated, on 30 Jun 1965. Organized on 1 Oct 1965. Redesignated: 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron on 8 Oct 1966; 41st Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron on 15 Mar 1967. Inactivated on 31 Oct 1969. Redesignated 41st Electronic Combat Squadron on 17 Jun 1980. Activated on 1 Jul 1980.

Assignments

Unkn, 13 Nov 1917?5 Aug 1918; Balloon Wing, IV Army Corps, 5 Aug 1918; Balloon Wing, III Army Corps, 21 Sep 1918; Balloon Group, III Army Corps, 8 Oct 1918; 2d Balloon Group, First Army, c. 20 Nov?Dec 1918; unkn, Dec 1918?May 1919; Army Balloon School, Ft Omaha, NE, May 1919; Sixth Corps Area, Oct 1921; 1st (later, 21st) Airship Group, 19 Jul 1922; Sixth Corps Area, 1 Jun 1937; Seventh Corps Area (attached to Cavalry School), 15 Jun 1937; Cavalry School, c. 1939; Second Army, 3 Oct 1940 (two flights attached to Cavalry School to c. Apr 1941; third flight remained assigned to Cavalry School throughout period); II Air Support Command, 1 Sep 1941 (flight attached to Cavalry School to c. Dec 1941); 72d Observation (later, 72d Reconnaissance) Group, 26 Sep 1941 (attached to 6th Bombardment Group, 10 Apr?c. Jun 1942); Sixth Air Force, 1 Nov 1943; II Tactical Air Division, 24 May 1944; III Tactical Air Division, 24 Jun 1944; III Tactical Air Command, 1 Oct 1944; III Tactical Air Division, 4 Dec 1944; 7th Fighter Wing, 18 Apr 1945; AAF, Pacific Ocean Area (attached to XXI Bomber Command), 13 Jun 1945; United States Army Forces, Middle Pacific (attached to Twentieth Air Force), 16 Jul 1945; 315th Bombardment Wing, 18 Sep 1945; VII Fighter Command (later, 20th Fighter Wing), 4 Jan?17 Jun 1946. 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group, 18 Mar 1954; 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 8 Feb 1958?18 May 1959. Tactical Air Command, 30 Jun 1965; 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 1 Oct 1965; Thirteenth Air Force, 20 Oct 1965; 460th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 18 Feb 1966; 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 18 Sep 1966; 355th Tactical Fighter Wing, 15 Aug 1967?31 Oct 1969. 552d Airborne Warning and Control Wing (later, 552d Airborne Warning and Control Division), 1 Jul 1980; 28th Air Division, 1 Apr 1985 (attached to Air Division Provisional, 15, 5 Dec 1990?17 Apr 1991); 355th Operations Group, 1 May 1992?.

Stations

Ft Omaha, NE, 13 Nov 1917; Camp Morrison, VA, 9 Feb?29 Jun 1918; Camp de Meucon, Morbihan, France, 17 Jul 1918; Raulecourt, France, 14 Aug 1918; Xivray et Marvoisin, France, 12 Sep 1918; St Benoit-en-Woevre, France, 14 Sep 1918; Lamarche-en-Woevre, France, 16 Sep 1918; Thierville, France, 22 Sep 1918; Cumieres, France, 9 Oct 1918; Consenvoye, France, 7 Nov 1918; Fromereville, France, 12 Nov 1918; Damvillers, France, 14 Nov 1918; Ville-sur-Cousances, France, 26 Nov 1918; Colombey-les-Belles, France, 4 Feb 1919; Bordeaux, France, 18 Feb?20 Apr 1919; Camp Stuart, VA, 4 May 1919; Camp Lee, VA, 8 May 1919; Ft Omaha, NE, 18 May 1919; Scott Field, IL, 28 Oct 1921; Marshall Field, KS, 15 Jun 1937?27 Dec 1941; Rio Hato, Panama, 14 Jan 1942; Howard Field, Canal Zone, 19 Jan 1942; David, Panama, 17 Apr 1942; Rio Hato, Panama, 10 May 1942; Howard Field, Canal Zone, 20 Jun 1942?7 May 1944; Pounds Field, TX, 24 May 1944; Muskogee AAFld, OK, 7 Dec 1944?4 Apr 1945; Kualoa Field, TH, 18 Apr?31 May 1945; Northwest Field, Guam, 13 Jun 1945 (detachment at Iwo Jima, 9 Aug?c. 15 Sep 1945); Isley Field, Saipan, 4 Jan 1946; Northwest Field, Guam, 15 Apr?17 Jun 1946. Shaw AFB, SC, 18 Mar 1954?18 May 1959. Shaw AFB, SC, 1 Oct 1965; Takhli RTAFB, Thailand, 20 Oct 1965?31 Oct 1969. Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, 1 Jul 1980? (deployed at Bateen AB, Saudi Arabia, 27 Aug 1990?17 Apr 1991).

Aircraft

Type R observation balloon, 1918?1919, 1919?1921; probably included RN?1 (Zodiac), type SST (Mullion), type AA (pony blimp), A?4, D?4, OA?1, AC?1, TA?1, TA?5, TC?1, TC?3, TC?5, TC?6, TC?10, TC?11, TC?14, TE?1, type TE?3, and TF?1 nonrigid airships, RS?9 semirigid airship, type R (later, C?3) and C?6 observation balloons, and A?6, A?7, and A?8 spherical balloons during period 1922?1937; included O?19, O?25, and apparently O?46, during period 1937?1939; in addition to O?47, 1938?1944, L?4 and B?18, 1942?1944, and P?39, 1943?1944, included YG?1, c. 1938?1940, YO?51, 1940?1941, YO?50, and apparently O?59, 1941, O?49, 1941?1943, and CG?4, 1943; A?20, 1944, primarily F?5, 1944?1946. RB?26, 1954?1956; RB?66, 1956?1959. RB?66, 1965; EB?66, 1965?1969. EC?130, 1982?.

Operations

Observation unit with French XVII and XXXII and American III and IV Army Corps, 16 Aug?11 Nov 1918. Air defense for Panama Canal, Jan 1942?May 1944, with occasional antisubmarine patrols over the Caribbean and Pacific, especially during May and Jun 1942; deployed to Western Pacific in Jun 1945, but never entered combat. Combat in Southeast Asia, c. Nov 1965?31 Oct 1969. Command, control, and communications countermeasures, 1982?. Electronic countermeasures in Southwest Asia, 27 Aug 1990?17 Apr 1991.

Honors

Service Streamers. World War II Asiatic-Pacific Theater.

Campaign Streamers. World War I: Lorraine; St Mihiel; Meuse-Argonne. World War II: Antisubmarine, American Theater. Vietnam: Vietnam Defensive; Vietnam Air; Vietnam Air Offensive; Vietnam Air Offensive, Phase II; Vietnam Air Offensive, Phase III; Vietnam Air/ Ground; Vietnam Air Offensive, Phase IV; TET 69/Counteroffensive; Vietnam Summer-Fall 1969. Southwest Asia: Defense of Saudi Arabia; Liberation and Defense of Kuwait.

Armed Forces Expeditionary Streamers. None.

Decorations. Presidential Unit Citations (Southeast Asia): 18 Feb?18 Sep 1966; 11?12 Aug and 24?28 Oct 1967; 12 Apr 1968?30 Apr 1969. Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards with Combat "V" Device: 18 Sep 1966?15 Aug 1967; 16 Aug 1967?11 Apr 1968; 1 Jul?31 Oct 1969. Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards: 1 Jul 1982?30 Jun 1984; 1 Apr 1985?31 Mar 1987; 1 Jan 1992?1 Jun 1993. Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm: 18 Feb 1966?31 Oct 1969.

Emblem

On a Medium Blue disc edged Black a Blue equilateral triangle charged with a Yellow demi-sun emitting thirteen rays, all within a Black band formed by three chain links highlighted White. Approved on 28 Oct 1981 (KE 74125) and modified in 1994; replaced emblem approved on 3 Jan 1933 (K 8141).