137th Special Operations Group
| 137th Special Operations Group | |
|---|---|
MC-12W Liberty as flown by the squadron | |
| Active | 1943–1945; 1947–1952; 1952–1975; 1992–present |
| Country | United States |
| Allegiance | Oklahoma |
| Branch | Air National Guard |
| Role | Special Operations |
| Part of | Oklahoma Air National Guard |
| Garrison/HQ | Will Rogers Air National Guard Base, Oklahoma |
| Motto(s) | Tontrinus e Caelo (Latin for 'Thunder from the Sky') (1952-present); Igne Ferroque Hostem Armatum Contere (Latin for 'With Fire and Steel Crush the Armored Foe') (1943-1945); Eis Infirnum Damus (Latin for 'We Give Them Hell') (1942-1943) |
| Engagements | European Theater of Operations |
| Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation Air Force Outstanding Unit Award French Croix de Guerre with Palm Belgian Fourragere |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Maj Gen Stanley F.H. Newman |
| Insignia | |
| 137th Special Operations Wing emblem | |
| 137th Fighter-Bomber Wing emblem | |
| 404th Fighter-Bomber Group emblem | |
| 404th Bombardment Group emblem | |
| Tail Marking | Blue tail stripe "Tinker" in yellow |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Fighter | F-51, F-80, F-84, F-86 |
| Transport | C-97, C-124, C-130 |
| Tanker | KC-135 |
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The 137th Special Operations Group is an associate unit of the Oklahoma Air National Guard stationed at Will Rogers Air National Guard Base. If activated for federal service, the group is gained by Air Force Special Operations Command.
The group was first activated during World War II as the 404th Fighter Group flying Republic P-47 Thunderbolts. The group served in the European Theater of Operations from May 1944 until the end of the war. It provided close air support to ground troops following Operation Overlord, the Normandy landings. It earned a Distinguished Unit Citation, French Croix de Guerre with Palm and Belgian Fourragere before inactivating in the fall of 1945.
The group was redesignated the 137th Fighter Group and allotted to the National Guard in 1946, with squadrons in Oklahoma and Kansas. During the Korean War, it was activated and deployed to France as the 137th Fighter-Bomber Group, where it opened Chaumont Air Base.
The unit was replaced in France by a regular unit and returned without personnel or equipment to state control. In 1955, it converted from the fighter bomber to the fighter interceptor mission, and two years later lost its squadrons in Tulsa and in Kansas to new fighter groups.
From 1961 until it was inactivated in 1975, the group engaged in strategic and tactical airlift.
The group was activated again in 1992 and converted to the air refueling mission in 2008.