702d Expeditionary Airlift Squadron
 | |
|---|---|
 Members of the 702d Expeditionary Airlift Squadron in front of a C-27 Spartan at Kandahar Air Base Afghanistan | |
| Active | 1943-1945; 1947-1949; 1952-1957; 1957-1965; 1971-2000: After 2010 |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Role | Airlift |
| Part of | Air Combat Command |
| Nickname(s) | Dixie Wing (1962-1965) |
| Motto(s) | We Fly for the Troops (2011-2012)[1] Professionalism and Experience (1996-2000) |
| Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation Air Force Meritorious Unit Award Air Force Outstanding Unit Award French Croix de Guerre with Palm |
| Insignia | |
| 702d Airlift Squadron emblem[a] |  |
| Patch with 702d Airlift Squadron emblem |  |
| Patch with 702d Troop Carrier Squadron emblem[b][2] |  |
| 702d Bombardment Squadron emblem[3] |  |
| World War II Fuselage Code[3] | WW |
The 702d Expeditionary Airlift Squadron is a provisional United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to Air Combat Command to activate or inactivate as needed. It was active at Kandahar Airfield from 2011 to 2012.
The squadron was first activated in April 1943 as the 702d Bombardment Squadron. After training in the United States, it deployed with its Consolidated B-24 Liberators to the European Theater of Operations, where it participated in the strategic bombing campaign until the end of hostilities, earning a Distinguished Unit Citation and a French Croix de Guerre with Palm for its actions. It returned to the United States in the summer of 1945 and was inactivated in September.
The squadron was reactivated in the reserves in 1947, although it is not clear whether it was fully manned or equipped before inactivating in 1949. It was activated again in the reserves in 1952 as the 702d Fighter-Bomber Squadron. It was inactivated in July 1957, but activated a few months later in the airlift role as the 702d Troop Carrier Squadron. The squadron was called to active duty during the Cuban Missile Crisis and inactivated in 1965. It was activated again in 1971 as the 702d Military Airlift Squadron and, through 1995, was a reserve associate units of the 438th Airlift Wing at McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey.
- ^ Hartnett, Capt Frank (20 June 2012). "702 EAS deactivates [sic] at Kandahar". Air Force Print News Today. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
- ^ Maurer, Combat Squadrons, pp. 707-708
- ^ a b Watkins, pp. 88-89
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).