FReeper Canteen ~ Happy 60th Birthday, United States Air Force ~ 18 September 07

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Signal Corps is Air Force’s ancestor in proud lineage
By Bill Hess
Herald/Review

Published on Tuesday, September 18, 2007

FORT HUACHUCA — The lineage of the United States Air Force began in 1907, when the air service was part of the U.S. Army and in the early years the then air service was looked at for being put on the post.

Following is that lineage:

• Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps — Aug. 1, 1907 to July 18, 1914.

• Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps — July 18, 1914 to May 20, 1918.

• Division of Military Aeronautics — May 20, 1918 to May 24, 1918.

• U.S. Army Air Service — May 24, 1918 to July 2, 1926.

• U.S. Army Air Corps — July 2, 1926 to June 20, 1941.

• U.S. Army Air Forces — June 20, 1941 to Sept. 17, 1947.

• U.S. Air Force — Sept. 18, 1947 to present.

When it comes to the Air Force presence on Fort Huachuca, there was a proposal in 1909 to have aircraft on the post starting in May 1910.

According to the book, “Fort Huachuca The Story of a Frontier Post,” by Cornelius C. Smith Jr., soldiers of the 18th Infantry Regiment on the fort “almost embarked on an exotic assignment.”

The War Department thought of establishing an “aviatory” on the top of Huachuca Peak and with 10 soldiers from each of the 18th’s companies for special training that appeared to be for a weather and aerial navigation station.

It was proposed Signal Corps pilots would fly 10 Wright Brothers biplanes out of the post.

The training was to commence in March 1910 with the aircraft arriving in May of that year.

Although there as no dictionary definition for aviatory, it did matter as nothing came of the scheme according to Smith.

“Considering the state of the art in 1910, it is not surprising,” the author stated.

For a short time the fort had the potential of becoming an Air Force base.

That was between 1949 and 1951, when the then Secretary of the Air Force indicated an interest in establishing an air base on the then closed Army post.

However, the Army took back control of the land, which had been given to the state, and the Air Force base thought ended.

Today, the largest Air Force presence is the 314th Training Squadron, with a permanent party of 16 blue suiters and about two dozen students.

The Department of Defense’s Joint Interoperability Test Command has a dozen Air Force members assigned to it.

Another four are assigned to the Communications Security Logistic Agency and one each to the Intelligence Strategic Debriefing course and the Battlefield Weather program.

Additionally, the Air Force operates the aerostat, as part of an anti-drug smuggling system along the border, through a contractor, and there are Air Force civilian forecasters at the post’s Libby Army Airfield.

The airfield is also used by the Missouri Air National Guard, which rotates Air Force C-130 instructors in and out of the fort to train cargo aircrew of not only the United States but other nations for operations in hostile regions.

Also, the Air Force uses the Libby runway for aircrew flight training, primarily A-10s, F-16s and KC-135s, of both the active duty and Air National Guard.

Herald/Review senior reporter Bill Hess can be reached at 515-4615 or by e-mail at bill.hess@svherald.com.