15th Air Force
The 15th Air Force was activated on November 1, 1943, its primary mission was the strategic bombardment of targets in Italy, France, Germany,Romania,Hungary,Poland, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Yugoslavia and Greece. The heavy bombardment groups of the 9th and 12th Army Air Forces along with P-38 and P-51 fighter groups formed the beginning of the 15th and were added to by the many new B-24 groups that were sent to bases on the Foggia plain in Italy. The fighter groups formed the escort component for the heavies. They included the 1st, 14th, 82nd, 31st, 52nd, 325th and 332nd Fighter Groups. The B-17 Heavy Bombardment Groups were comprised of the 2nd, 97th, 99th, 301st, 463rd and 483rd. B-24 bombers were in the 98th, 376th, 449th, 450th, 451st, 461st, 484th, 460th, 464th, 465th, 485th, and the 454th, 455th, 456th and 459th groups of the 304th Bombardment Wing. . These groups targeted airfields, marshalling yards, bridges and other industrial targets including the oil refineries of Ploesti, Rumania. Commanded by Major General Nathan Twining the Fifteenth Air Force headquarters was located at Bari, Italy. Order one or more of these 15th Air Force DVDs comprised of historic archival motion picture film shot by the Combat Camera Units.
2nd Bombardment Group
97th Bombardment Group
98th Bombardment Group
99th Bombardment Group
301st Bombardment Group
450th Bombardment Group
451st Bombardment Group
376th Bombardment Group
82nd Fighter Group
325th Fighter Group
5th Bomb Wing
304th Bomb Wing
