European Air Materiel Command

European Air Materiel Command

Temporary hangars at an advanced air depot in France
Active 1942–1947
Country  United States
Branch United States Army Air Forces
Role Logistics support
Size 62,000 at peak
Part of United States Air Forces Europe
Engagements European Theater of Operations
Disbanded 8 October 1948
Aircraft flown
Transport Douglas C-47 Skytrain

The European Air Materiel Command was a support organization of the United States Army Air Forces.

History

In November 1942, Lt. Gen. Frank M. Andrews assumed command of U.S. Army Forces in the Middle East (USAFIME) in Egypt, replacing Maxwell. Andrews was an experienced airman, and one of his first acts was to establish the Ninth Air Force to replace USAMEAF. Brereton assumed command of the new organization and established the IX Air Service Command, which joined the IX Bomber Command and the IX Fighter Command as the major subordinate headquarters.[1]

IX Air Service Command was changed to IX Air Force Service Command (IX AFSC) by an unnumbered Ninth Air Force Memorandum of 29 January 1944.

IX Air Force Service Command was more clearly patterned after its Eighth Air Force opposite number than any of the other Ninth Air Force commands. A number of officers and enlisted men had been brought to England from Egypt, but most of the key members of the headquarters came from the Eighth Air Force. General Miller, for most of the past year the commander of the VIII AFSC, took over the IX AFSC in October 1943 and brought with him members of his former staff. From the Tactical Air Depot Area came additional officers and men to round out a headquarters staff rich in experience. On 5 May, Brig. Gen. Myron R. Wood succeeded General Miller as commander of the IX AFSC. In mid-November, the service command headquarters moved into newly constructed quarters across from the Ascot race course, adjacent to the Ninth Air Force headquarters at Sunninghill Park.

The projected size of the Ninth Air Force and the scope of its operations clearly required a large and mobile service command. The service command, in turn, recognized early that its own size and wide-flung operations made decentralization of its organization desirable. Accordingly, borrowing from the experience of VIII AFSC, in October it set up a base air depot area (BADA) and an advanced air depot area (AADA) which were areas in terms of function rather than geography. The base air depot area was intended primarily for supply and aircraft assembly functions. For a time, BADA was located at Constitution Hill, Sudbury, in Suffolk. In December the IX AFSC divided the advanced air depot area into a 1st and 2d AADA. This further decentralization of the command was purportedly in preparation for the move to the continent, where mobile warfare would require decentralized operations. In addition, the two headquarters could be, and were, of value in organizing and training the many service units formed in the United Kingdom by the IX AFSC.

Beginning in August 1943, RAF Grove was used by the 3rd Tactical Air Depot of IX Air Service Command, repairing A-20 Havocs and P-61 Black Widows. Starting on 31 October, the 31st Transport Group, IX Air Service Command used the airfield with C-47 Skytrains with the mission of transporting cargo and personnel between IX Air Force airfields in the UK. The 31st TG consisted of the 87th, 313th and 314th Transport Squadrons.

In 1945 IX Air Force Service Command was reassigned from Ninth Air Force to USSTAF (about the date IX ASC moved to Erlangen). On 7 October 1946, IX AFSC was redesignated European Air Materiel Command. This command administered United States Air Forces in Europe's supply and maintenance depots. EAMC was headquartered at Erlangen Air Depot. At Erding Air Depot, it had Detachment B, 4th Air Vehicle Repair Squadron, and the 43d Air Depot. The 10th Air Depot was located at Oberpfaffenhofen Air Depot. The 862d Engineer Aviation Battalion and 837th Engineer Aviation Battalion were located at Landsberg. At Industriehafen Air Depot was Detachment A, 42d Air Repair Squadron. Minor EAMC facilities were located at Bad Wiesse, Wolfgang, Munich, Bruck, Oberwiesenfeld and Bremerhaven. EAMC also controlled ammunition depots at Landesberg, Roth and Zepplenheim. EAMC remained assigned to USAFE until it was inactivated on 15 September 1947.

Lineage

Redesignated IX Air Force Service Command on 18 September 1942
Redesignated IX Air Service Command in 1943
Redesignated IX Air Force Service Command on 24 January 1944
Redesignated European Air Materiel Command on 7 October 1946
Inactivated on 15 September 1947

Assignments

Components

Commands
Division
Depot Areas
Depots
  • Erding Air Depot, 5 November 1946 – 15 September 1947
  • European Air Depot, September 1945 – 5 November 1946
  • Montdidier Air Ammunition Depot, 15 June 1946 – 20 September 1946
  • 2d Depot Unit, Army, c. April 1945 – 15 September 1947
  • Ninth Air Force Base Depot, 5 June 1945 – September 1945
  • 10th Air Depot Group (later 10th Air Depot), 30 December 1945 – 15 September 1947
  • 42d Air Depot Group (later 42d Air Depot), 31 December 1945 – 5 June 1947
  • 44th Air Depot, c. 1 June 1946 – 15 December 1946
  • 45th Air Depot, c. 1 January 1946 – c. 31 August 1947
Regiments
Wings
Groups

Stations

Campaigns

Campaign Streamer Campaign Dates Notes
Egypt-Libya12 November 1942 – 12 February 1943IX Air Force Service Command[12]
Tunisia12 November 1942 – 13 May 1943IX Air Force Service Command[12]
Sicily14 May 1943 – 17 August 1943IX Air Service Command[12]
Normandy6 June 1944 – 24 July 1944IX Air Force Service Command[12]
Ground Combat, EAME Theater12 November 1942 – 11 May 1945IX Air Force Service Command[12]

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Newell, p. 19
  2. 1 2 See Reed, et al., p. 87
  3. ↑ Reed, et al., p. 84
  4. ↑ Reed, et al., Ninth Air Force Organizational Chart 9 June 1944
  5. ↑ Reed, et al., Ninth Air Force Organizational Chart 29 November 1944
  6. ↑ "Factsheet 302 Air Division". Air Force Historical Research Agency. 5 October 2007. Archived from the original on 30 October 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
  7. ↑ Robertson, Patsy (May 28, 2010). "Factsheet 323d Expeditionary Operations Group (USAFE)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  8. ↑ Mueller, p. 349
  9. ↑ Mueller, p. 607
  10. 1 2 3 4 Station number in Anderson
  11. ↑ Station number in Johnson
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Air Force Pamphlet 900-2, p. 85

Bibliography

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