374th Strategic Missile Squadron
The 374th Strategic Missile Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit, last assigned to the 308th Strategic Missile Wing at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas. The squadron was equipped with the LGM-25C Titan II intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), with a mission of nuclear deterrence. It was inactivated as part of the phaseout of the Titan II ICBM on 15 August 1986. The squadron was responsible for Launch Complex 374–7, site of the 1980 explosion of a Titan II ICBM in Damascus, Arkansas.
| 374th Strategic Missile Squadron | |
|---|---|
LGM-25C Titan II Test Launch at Vandenberg AFB, California | |
| Active | 1942–1946; 1947–1951; 1951–1961; 1962–1986 |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Type | Squadron |
| Role | Intercontinental ballistic missile |
| Engagements | China Burma India Theater |
| Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation (3x) Air Force Outstanding Unit Award |
| Insignia | |
| Patch with 374th Strategic Missile Squadron emblem | |
| Patch with 374th Bombardment Squadron emblem | |
The squadron was first activated in April 1942 as the 374th Bombardment Squadron. After training in the United States, the squadron deployed to China in early 1943. It engaged in combat, primarily in China and Southeast Asia until June 1945, when it assumed a mainly transport role. It was awarded two Distinguished Unit Citations for its operations in China and its attacks on Japanese shipping. At the end of 1945 it returned to the United States for inactivation.
The squadron was redesignated the 374th Reconnaissance Squadron and activated in California in 1947. It was inactivated in 1949. It returned to its bombardment designation in 1951 and operated Boeing B-47 Stratojets for Strategic Air Command. In 1959 it moved as part of a test of a "super wing" concept, but was not operational until in inactivated in 1961.