433rd Troop Carrier Group

History - Books - Aircraft - Time Line - Commanders - Main Bases - Component Units - Assigned To

History

The 433rd Troop Carrier Group (USSAF) operated in support of the campaigns on New Guinea and the Philippines and moved parts of the Fifth Air Force to Okinawa.

The group was activated in February 1943 and trained in glider towing and supply and paratroop dropping techniques. By November it had joined the Fifth Air Force on New Guinea. The group was based at Port Moresby, at the eastern end of the island from 1943 until October 1944, then at Biak, at the western end of the area, from October 1944 until it moved to Leyte early in 1945.

During its time on New Guinea the group was used to transport troops and supplies to the front and evacuated wounded personnel back.

In October 1944 the group began to convert from the C-47 Skytrain (Dakota) to the Curtiss C-46 Commando, which was judged to be a better aircraft for the Pacific theatre.

The group had a wider range of activities on the Philippines. It continued to fly supplies to the front, but also supported the local Filipino guerillas, and evacuated POWs and other internees from newly liberated areas. The group was also used to move combat troops from New Guinea, the Dutch East Indies and the Solomon Islands to the new battlegrounds on the Philippines.

In June 1945, towards the end of the campaign on Luzon the group provided seven C-46s to tow cargo gliders into Lipa airstrip to support the 317th Troop Carrier Group's move to that airfield. This allowed the 317th to support the American troops advancing towards Alcala.

In June-August 1945 the group was used to transport the staff of the Fifth Air Force to Okinawa. After the Japanese surrender it was used to fly occupation troops onto Japan. The group moved to Japan in September 1945, but was inactivated at the start of 1946.

Books

Pending

Aircraft

1943-1946: Douglas C-47 Skytrain , Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, Curtiss C-46 Commando

Timeline

22 Jan 1943 Constituted as 433rd Troop Carrier Group
9 Feb 1943 Activated
Aug-Nov 1943 To New Guinea and Fifth Air Force
Sept 1945 To Japan
15 Jan 1946 Inactivatedc

Commanders (with date of appointment)

Col Cecil B Guile: 10 Feb 1943
Lt Col Marvin O Calliham: 17 Apr 1945
Lt Col James L Cole: Sep 1945- unkn.

Main Bases

Florence AAFld, SC: 9 Feb 1943
Baer Field, Ind: 1-12 Aug 1943
Port Moresby, New Guinea: 25 Aug 1943
Biak: 17 Oct 1944
Tanauan, Leyte: 19 Jan 1945
Clark Field, Luzon: 31 May 1945
Tachikawa, Japan: 11 Sep 1945-15 Jan 1946

Component Units

65th: 1943-1945
66th: 1943-1945
67th: 1943-1945
68th: 1943-1946
69th: 1943-1946
70th: 1943-1946

Assigned To

1943: 52nd Troop Carrier Wing; US Based
1943: 53rd Troop Carrier Wing; US Based
1943-46: 54th Troop Carrier Wing; Fifth Air Force

How to cite this article: Rickard, J (30 July 2015), 433rd Troop Carrier Group, http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/USAAF/433rd_Troop_Carrier_Group.html

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