46th Test Wing
 | |
|---|---|
_on_display_at_Eglin.jpg) F-35 on display during its first visit to Eglin and the 46th Test Wing | |
| Active | 1941–1944, 1975–1982, 1992–2012 |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Army United States Air Force |
| Role | Developmental Test and Evaluation |
| Motto(s) | Custos Libertate Latin (Guardian of Liberty) 1942–1944 Support 1975–1983 Proof by Trial 1993–2012 |
| Decorations | Air Force Outstanding Unit Award |
| Insignia | |
| 46th Test Wing emblem[note 1][1] |  |
| Patch with 46th Aerospace Defense Wing emblem[note 2][2] |  |
| 46th Bombardment Group emblem[note 3][3] |  |
The 46th Test Wing is an inactive wing of the United States Air Force last based at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. The wing's 46th Test Group was a tenant unit at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico.
The wing's history dates from 1941, when the Army Air Forces (AAF) activated the 46th Bombardment Group. The group served in the early period of the United States' involvement in World War II flying antisubmarine missions over the Gulf of Mexico. It then served as a training unit until being disbanded in 1944 in a general reorganization of AAF units.
The 46th Aerospace Defense Wing replaced the 4600th Air Base Wing to provide administrative and logistic support to headquarters elements of Air Defense Command and North American Air Defense Command at Ent Air Force Base, Peterson Air Force Base, and the Cheyenne Mountain Complex. It was inactivated in 1983.
The wing and group were consolidated into a single unit in 1984, but remained inactive until 1992, when the consolidated unit was activated at Eglin as the 46th Test Wing. The wing managed test and development at Eglin and at Holloman until 2012 when its functions were combined with those of the 96th Air Base Wing in a reorganization of Air Force Materiel Command.
Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).
- ^ Robertson, Patsy (22 September 2008). "Factsheet 46 Test Wing (AFMC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Archived from the original on 4 January 2013. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
- ^ Endicott, p. 125. Ravenstein claims the emblem was used without authorization upon activation. Ravenstein, p. 75.
- ^ Maurer, Combat Units, pp. 104–105