464th Bombardment Group

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

History

The 464th Bombardment Group was a B-24 group that served with the Fifteenth Air Force in Italy from 1944 until the end of the Second World War.

The group was activated in the US on 1 August 1943 and moved to the Mediterranean in February-April 1944. The ground echelon went to Italy while the air echelon went to Tunisia for extra training before moving on to Italy.

The group entered combat in April 1944 and spent most of its time taking part in the strategic bombing offensive. The group was awarded two Distinguished Unit Citations for its strategic missions. The first was for leading the 55th Wing to hit an oil refinery and marshalling yard at Vienna on 8 July 1944, the second for hitting an oil refinery at Pardubice on 24 August 1944.

The group also flew a number of tactical missions to support the ground troops. During the advance on Rome the group was one of ten B-24 groups that took part in a 17 May 1944 attack on the harbours at Piombion, San Stefano and Porto Ferraio on Elba as part of the campaign to prevent supplies from reaching the German front line.

In August 1944 the group supported Operation Dragoon, the invasion of the south of France. In March 1945 it attacked targets in the Balkans to support the advancing Russians, and in April 1945 it attacked German supply lines in the north of Italy to support the final attacks of the US Fifth and British Eighth Armies into the Po Valley.

After the war the group moved to Trinidad and was assigned to Air Transport Command, but it was soon inactivated.

Books

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Aircraft

August 1943-July 1945: Consolidated B-24 Liberator

Timeline

19 May 1943 Constituted as 464th Bombardment Group (Heavy)
1 August 1943 Activated
Feb-April 1944 To Mediterranean and Fifteenth Air Force
May 1945 Combat ends
June 1945 To Trinidad and Air Transport Command
31 July 1945 Inactivated

Commanders (with date of appointment)

Unkn: 1 Aug-2 Sep 1943
Col Marshall Bonner: 2 Sep 1943
Col Arnold L Schroeder: 30 Jun 1944
Col A J Bird Jr: 13 Mar 1945-unkn.

Main Bases

Wendover Field, Utah: 1 Aug 1943
Gowen Field, Idaho: 22 Aug 1943
Pocatello AAFld, Idaho: 2 Oct 1943-9 Feb 1944
Pantanella Airfield, Italy: Mar 1944
Gioia, Italy: 21 Apr 1944
Pantanella Airfield, Italy: c. 1 Jun 1944-c. May 1945
Waller Field, Trinidad: Jun-31 Jul 1945.

Component Units

776th Bombardment Squadron: 1943-1945
777th Bombardment Squadron: 1943-1945
778th Bombardment Squadron: 1943-1945
779th Bombardment Squadron: 1943-1945

Assigned To

1944-45: 55th Bombardment Wing; Fifteenth Air Force

How to cite this article: Rickard, J (4 April 2014), 464th Bombardment Group, http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/USAAF/464th_Bombardment_Group.html

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