The 8th Pursuit Group was activated at Langley Field, Virginia on 1 April 1931. It had three squadrons assigned - the 33rd, 35th, and 36th Pursuit Squadrons. Before World War Two, the 8th PG flew a variety of aircraft including the P-6 and P-12 Hawk, the P-35, P-36, P-39, and finally the P-40. The mission prior to the war was training pilots and testing airplanes. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the 8th PG was moved to Mitchel Field as part of the New York defense force.
In early 1942, the 8th PG was sent to the Australia and assigned to 5th Air Force. In March, the 8th moved to New Guinea, flying P-39s and P-40s before finally transitioning into the P-38 Lightning. It would be in the P-38 that the 8th (now) Fighter Group would achieve fame. In 1942, the 33rd Squadron was renumbered as the 80th FS.
During the war, the 8th FG would produce no less than 27 aces, including Major George "Wheaties" Welch, who would become synonymous with F-86s as the test pilot in the first supersonic jet fighter. Major Welch woulds shoot down 16 Japanese aircraft, including getting a kill on that fateful day in December 1941, the first American victory of the war; and Lt. Boyd "Buzz" Wagner, who became the first American ace when he shot down his fifth Japanese fighter on 18 December 1941.
By the end of the War in the Pacific, the 8th FG had won Distinguished Unit Citations for actions over Papua in 1943, and again over the Philippine Islands in 1944. In 1946, the 8th moved to Ashiya AB, Japan. It was somewhat ironic since the pilots from the 8th had been instrumental in the destruction of Ashiya during the war. Now it would be their home. With a new home also came a new aircraft, the P-51 Mustang.
While reconstruction was going on at Ashiya, the Group was moved to another former Japanese air base - Itazuke. They would return to Itazuke several times over the next few years, and were in place at Itazuke on 25 June 1950 when the North Korean Communists invaded South Korea. The 8th had been designated the 8th Fighter Bomber Group in January. There was a 4th squadron attached to the 8th FBG when the war broke out, the 339th F(AW)S with F-82G Twin Mustangs.
President Harry S. Truman committed US forces to attempt to stem the Communist invasion, incuding men and aircraft of both Far East Air Force (FEAF) and 5th AF. At the top of the list was the 8th FBG. The 8th had been in process of transitioning into the new F-80C Shooting Star. But they had a mission to fly, a combat mission. The North Korean Air Force (NKAF) had been strafing the evacuation centers at Kimpo and Inchon, and the 8th was ordered to stop them.
On 26 June 1950, pilots from the 8th began flying top cover over the evacuation. On the 27th, the NKAF sent a formation of Yaks to hinder the evacuation. They lost! No less than six NKAF fighters went down, four by pilots from the 8th. Major James Little, a 339th F-82G pilot shot down one of the Yaks. It's still not clear whether Maj. Little was the first to score as he and Lt. Wm. Hudson, a 68th pilot, both scored at virtually the same time. Three of the Yaks went down to 35th FBS pilots - Lt. Bob Dewald, Capt. Ray Schillereff, and Lt. Bob Wayne.
By early November, 8th FBG pilots had downed an additional nine NKAF fighters. The Communists had seen enough and in early November, they unleashed the MiG-15 jet fighter, flown by Soviet pilots, into the air war over Korea. 5th AF countered by sending the 4th FIG with F-86A Sabres into Korea. However, U. Howard Landry, a 36th FBS F-80 pilot, did shoot down one of the vaunted MiG jets on 17 March 1951, one of only two MiG kills of the war for the 8th, the other being by Bob Smith in December 1951.
Late in the year, 1950, 5th AF ordered the 8th to transition back into F-51 Ds. Col. Charles Stark, CO of the 8th from December 1950 to April 1951, recalls: "After we got kicked out of Korea, they made us shift from '80s back into '51s. That was done by simply crawling out of an '80 at the end of one mission, and into the '51 for the next mission of the day! Check outs?! Nuts! What a step backward that was!"
In April 1951, the 8th moved back into Korea after UN ground forces had pushed the Communists back across the 38th Parallel. They were based at Kimpo, just across the Han River. The men of the 8th had to rebuild literally everything at Kimpo as FEAF B-29s had decimated the airfield and buildings. But they built the base back up too well. The 4th FIG Sabres moved in during the late Summer of 1951, pushing the 8th back to Suwon (K-13).
Suwon was especially interesting as, for many months, there were no taxiways. Everything was mud. And you had five squadrons using the runway. You taxied down one side while other airplanes were taking off or landing on the other side of the same runway! It was a little hairy. In the Fall of 1952, an 8th FBG F-80C flew the 50,000th sortie of the Korean War. The 8th was the only unit in Korea still flying F-80 fighter bombers.
On 22 November 1952, one 8th Group pilot made the supreme sacrifice in the name of freedom. Major Charles J. Loring, Jr., was leading a flight of 80th FBS F-80Cs against a Communist gun position that was firing on friendly forces. Major Loring pressed his attack so close that his F-80 was hit and mortally damaged. With no hope of making it back to Suwon. Major Loring then deliberately turned his F-80 and dove the plane into the gun emplacement, destroying the gun and killing himself. For his selfless and heroic action, Major Charles Loring was awarded the Medal Of Honor.
In the Spring of 1953, 5th AF made the decision to phase out the veteran F-80Cs and transition the 8th FBG into brand new F-86F fighter bombers. The Sabres began arriving in April and the Group was flying combat missions in time to make the infamous May Day attack against Pyongyang Radio. During the late Spring, the Communists launched what would be their last effort to break the UN lines. Every squadron in 5th AF was called on for a maximum effort. The men of the 8th FBG responded with a record 291 sorties for a single day.
Following the signing of the truce agreement on 27 July 1953, the 8th FBG returned to its `home plate' at Itazuke AB, Japan. Their record was quite enviable and included many firsts - First air unit committed to action, first jet unit, first unit to shoot down an enemy airplane, first to fly 255 sorties in one day, first to fly 50,000 sorties in jet warfare, first to fly 60,000 sorties, and first to fly 291 sorties in a single day. The Group added eleven streamers to their flag, two Republic of Korea citations, and another Distinguished Unit Citation.
In the years following the truce signing, the 8th would see more action, although not on a daily basis. Rotating squadrons in and out of Korea, the 8th would fly escort to the many reconnaisance aircraft that were monitoring the North Korean military buildup. MiGs were en-countered on several occasions but the results were mixed. In 1956, the Group turned in their F-86Fs for the first of the Century Series fighters, the F-100 Super Sabre. And in 1963, the Group transitioned into F-105D Thunderchiefs. With the Thuds, the 8th Group would again go to war, this time in Vietnam. 8th FBG Thuds flew some of the first missions against North Vietnam.
During the Vietnam War the 8th (now) TFW would be-come famous for something called "Bolo". On 2 January 1967, Col. Robin Olds led several flights of F-4C Phantoms on Operation BOLO. The 8th F-4s were tasked with eliminating the MiGs that had been harrasing the strike forces. Olds flights used F-105 call signs, flew at F-105 speeds and altitudes, and even used F-105 tanker tactics. When they entered North Vietnam, they appeared to be another part of a large F-105 strike force.
The NVAF MiG-21s came up in force. What they found was Col. Olds' F-4s itching for a fight. When the day ended, no less than seven MiG-21s had been shot down - over half of the NVA1, MiG-21 inventory. And it established the F-4 Phantom as the premier fighter in the skies over Vietnam.
Today, the 8th FW is based at Kunsan AB, South Korea, flying the latest in F-16 fighter aircraft - and still de-fending the skies over Korea from any threat that might emerge from the north. SabreJet Classics salutes all the men that have served in the 8th Fighter Wing from its inception.
No portion of this article may be used or reprinted without permission
from the President of the F-86 Sabre Pilots Association or the editor of Sabre Jet
Classics magazine.
Return to
Classics
Page