351st Bombardment Group

351st Bombardment Group was a heavy bomber unit of the United States Army Air Forces active during World War II. Formed in 1942, the unit trained in the United States before deploying to the European Theater of Operations, where it conducted strategic bombing missions over Nazi Germany and occupied Europe. The group flew Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress aircraft and operated from airfields in England as part of the Eighth Air Force offensive. It earned unit and individual decorations for operations against industrial and military targets.

History

The group was constituted and activated during the rapid expansion of the United States Army Air Forces in 1942, aligned with strategic planning by Franklin D. Roosevelt, Henry H. Arnold, and planners at Wright Field. Initial training involved coordination with Air Corps Flying Training Command, Third Air Force, and later transfer to VIII Bomber Command under the Eighth Air Force structure. Deployment to the United Kingdom placed the group within the Allied air campaign that supported operations such as the Combined Bomber Offensive, the Operation Overlord preparations, and later strikes linked to the Battle of the Bulge. The group's wartime history interwove with strategic directives from Sir Arthur Harris and operational tasking from SHAEF leadership including Dwight D. Eisenhower's staff.

Organization and Equipment

The group comprised constituent bombardment squadrons, support elements, and a group headquarters modeled on Army Air Forces tables of organization. Its primary combat aircraft was the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, supported by maintenance and logistics units that coordinated with Air Transport Command and depot facilities at Ogden Air Depot and RAF maintenance stations. Command relationships linked the group to 1st Air Division and group-level administration worked with European Air Materiel channels. Ground echelon organization included operations, intelligence, and bombardment sections that liaised with 6th Bomber Command planners and theater-level intelligence drawn from Ultra and photo-reconnaissance units using Lockheed P-38 Lightning variants for escort and reconnaissance coordination. The group's personnel structure followed typical AAF models with pilots, navigators, bombardiers, gunners, radio operators, and flight engineers trained under curricula influenced by Air Corps Tactical School doctrine.

Combat Operations

Once based in England, the group participated in strategic daylight raids targeting aircraft factories, oil refineries, ball-bearing plants, and transportation hubs within the Reich and occupied territories designated by Bomber Command and Eighth Air Force tasking. Missions included attacks on targets in Berlin, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Leipzig, and the Ruhr industrial region, often coordinated with escort operations by fighters such as the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt and later the North American P-51 Mustang. Operations required integration with navigator training influenced by methods from Jimmy Doolittle's reforms and used formation tactics advocated by leaders like Carl A. Spaatz. The group encountered opposition from Luftwaffe fighter wings and heavy flak from Flak defenses around strategic targets, at times receiving the Distinguished Unit Citation for performance under fire. The group's sorties supported Allied operations including strikes to prepare for Operation Market Garden and interdiction during the Battle of the Bulge.

Notable Personnel and Units

Crew and leadership included pilots, bombardiers, and commanders who later connected with prominent figures and institutions such as Air University and veterans' associations. Several aircrews achieved recognition for valor and were awarded decorations including the Distinguished Flying Cross and Silver Star. Squadrons within the group developed nicknames and identities that entered unit histories archived at repositories like the Air Force Historical Research Agency and museums such as the National Museum of the United States Air Force. Notable linked personnel participated in postwar memoirs and oral histories collected by institutions including the Imperial War Museum and the Library of Congress Veterans History Project.

Postwar Activities and Legacy

After V-E Day the group participated in troop carrier support, repatriation flights, and disposition of aircraft under guidance from United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe staff. Demobilization followed broader AAF drawdown policies overseen by War Department directives, and many veterans integrated into United States Air Force units after 1947 or civilian aviation. The group's legacy persists in scholarly works on the Combined Bomber Offensive, collections at the National Archives, reunion organizations, and commemorations at former airfields in the United Kingdom and the United States. Aircraft restorations, memorials, and exhibits at institutions like the Museum of Flight and veteran-run archives continue to document the group's operations and contribution to Allied victory.

Category:Groups of the United States Army Air Forces Category:Bombardment groups of the United States Army Air Forces