4706th Air Defense Wing

The 4706th Defense Wing was organized at the beginning of 1952 at O'Hare IAP^[1] in a major reorganization of Air Defense Command (ADC) responding to ADC's difficulty under the existing wing base organizational structure in deploying fighter squadrons to best advantage.^[2] The wing assumed the operational squadrons and air defense mission of the inactivating 142d Fighter-Interceptor Wing, an Oregon Air National Guard wing, which had been federalized and moved to O'Hare in 1951 in the expansion of the USAF for the Korean War.^[3] The wing also received the regular USAF 62d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron. flying North American F-86 Sabre aircraft, at O'Hare from the inactivating 56th Fighter-Interceptor Group at Selfridge Air Force Base, Michigan and the 97th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, which had been attached to the 142nd Wing.^[4][5] The wing also assumed command of units stationed elsewhere in this reorganization, the 113th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, flying F-51H Mustangs, at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois,^[6] and the 166th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, at Lockbourne Air Force Base, Ohio, flying Republic F-84 Thunderjet aircraft.^[7] Thus, the wing's fighter squadrons defended Illinois, Indiana, southern Wisconsin, western Michigan and western Ohio. Air base squadrons were also activated and assigned to the wing to provide support for USAF units stationed at bases where ADC was the host command.

As ADC realigned during the year. the 113th Squadron was reassigned directly to Central Air Defense Force.^[6] Then in July, the 63d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, another F-86 squadron^[8] at Oscoda Air Force Base, Michigan transferred into the wing,^[9] and in August, the 166th Squadron moved to Youngstown Municipal Airport, Ohio and was reassigned to the 4708th Defense Wing.

In February 1953 another ADC reorganization activated air defense groups at ADC bases with dispersed fighter squadrons. These groups assumed direct command of the fighter squadrons at their stations, in addition to support squadrons to assist in their role as USAF host organizations at the bases. The 501st Air Defense Group, activated at O'Hare, the 520th Air Defense Group, at Truax Field and the 534th Air Defense Group at Kinross Air Force Base (later Kincheloe Air Force Base), Michigan.^[10] Although the 527th Air Defense Group activated at Oscoda, it was assigned to another wing.^[10] Another result of the February 1953 reorganization was that the wing assumed the aircraft detection, control and warning mission, with six squadrons in four states being assigned to the wing.^[11][12][13]

In 1955, ADC implemented Project Arrow, which was designed to bring back on the active list the fighter units that had compiled memorable records in the two world wars.^[14] As a result of Project Arrow, the 501st Group was replaced by the 56th Fighter Group (Air Defense), the 520th Group was replaced by the 327th Fighter Group (Air Defense), and the 534th Group was replaced by the 507th Fighter Group (Air Defense).^[5][15] Because Project Arrow called for fighter squadrons to be assigned to their traditional group headquarters, the 97th Squadron moved to Delaware and its personnel and equipment reassigned to the 56th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron.^[16] In early October, the 319th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, flying Lockheed F-94 Starfire aircraft^[17] was assigned to the wing in anticipation of its return to the United States as the Korean war was ending.^[11][18][19]

The 56th and 319th Squadrons and three of the radar squadrons transferred from the wing to the 58th Air Division in March 1956^[13][18] The wing was discontinued a few months later and its units assigned to other ADC organizations.^[1]

• Designated as the 4706th Defense Wing and organized on 1 February 1952

Redesignated as 4706th Air Defense Wing on 1 September 1954^[1]

Discontinued on 8 July 1956^[1]

• List of MAJCOM wings of the United States Air Force
• List of United States Air Force Aerospace Defense Command Interceptor Squadrons
• List of United States Air Force aircraft control and warning squadrons