| 56th Operations Group | |
|---|---|
 21st Fighter Squadron F-16A | |
| Active | 1941–1945, 1946–1952, 1955–1961, 1991–present |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Type | Training wing operations group |
| Role | Fighter crew training |
| Size | 4 F-35 Lightning II squadrons and 1 F-16 Fighting Falcon squadron 1 Air Control Squadron 1 operations support squadron 120 F-35 aircraft and 26 F-16 aircraft 200 instructor pilots |
| Part of | 56th Fighter Wing Nineteenth Air Force Eighth Air Force |
| Garrison/HQ | Luke Air Force Base, Arizona |
| Motto(s) | Cave Tonitrum Latin Beware the Thunderbolt |
| Engagements | 447 group missions |
| Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation Air Force Outstanding Unit Award |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Col. Oliver R. Lause |
| Insignia | |
| 56th Operations Gp emblem[note 1] |  |
| 56th Fighter Group emblem (approved 4 April 1942)[1] |  |
The 56th Operations Group is a unit of the United States Air Force, and the flying component of the 56th Fighter Wing.
The group is the direct descendant of the World War II 56th Fighter Group of the United States Army Air Forces. The 56th Fighter Group is credited by the Air Force Historical Research Agency with the destruction of 665.5 aircraft in air-to-air combat, the 56th Fighter Group had more air-to-air kills than any other fighter group in the Eighth Air Force, was the top-scoring Republic P-47 Thunderbolt group during World War II, and recorded the second-highest number of air-to-air kills of any USAAF fighter group.[2] The 56th also claimed 311 fighters destroyed on the ground.[3]
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