3030th AAF Base Unit

3030th AAF Base Unit
Active 1944–1945
Country  United States
Branch   United States Army Air Forces
Type Wing
Role Bombardier training, Flight and Technical training
Size Unit
Garrison/HQ Walker Air Force Base
Engagements

World War II


  • World War II American Theater

The 3030th AAF Base Unit (Pilot School, Specialized Very Heavy)[1] was a United States Army Air Forces training unit. It specialized in training the crews of Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers, as well as pilot transition from twin-engine fighters to four-engine aircraft. It was one of the first established training schools of B-29s in the United States Military, and was essential in proving the effectiveness and versatility of the aircraft. The unit was formed on April 30, 1944, and was discontinued on November 1, 1945.

Operational History

The 3030th AAF Base Unit was formed on April 30, 1944, at Walker Air Force Base, as one of the very first training schools of B-29 Superfortress bombers in the United States. When performing drills on the bombing target adjacent to the runway, the B-29 bombers used sand and flour bags as makeshift bombs, instead of actual ammunition. When actual rounds of ammunition or bombs needed to be used, the practice bombing and gunnery ranges due south of the air field, and on Matagorda Island, were used.[2] Since some of the aircraft that the unit used were experimental or prototype B-29s, the 3030th AAF Base Unit lost many men in malfunctions of equipment on the aircraft. Plane crashes, although infrequent, happened a number of times throughout the unit's history.

References

  1. "Walker Air Force Base". themilitarystandard.com. Retrieved 2016-11-17.
  2. "Remembering Walker AFB | Roswell Daily Record | Roswell Area News". rdrnews.com. Retrieved 2016-11-17.
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