page_title: 564th Air Defense Group
section_title: Cold War
hierarchical_section_title: 564th Air Defense Group / History / Cold War
caption_attribution_description: English: 437th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron F-94s over Provincetown, Massachusetts in 1953. Stationed at Otis Air Force Base, Massachusetts. Identified aircraft are: Lockheed F-94C-1-LO Starfire 50-1044; 50-1056, 50-1058, and 51-5698, "Chappie's Chariot", FA-056 flown by Major Chappie James marked in commander's stripes.
context_page_description: The 564th Air Defense Group is a disbanded United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 4707th Air Defense Wing, stationed at Otis Air Force Base, Massachusetts, where it was inactivated in 1955. The group was originally activated as a support unit for a combat group at the end of World War II but never deployed before it was inactivated in 1945.
  The group was activated once again in 1952 to replace the support elements of the inactivating 33d Fighter-Interceptor Wing. A year later ADC established it as an operational headquarters for fighter-interceptor squadrons as well. It was replaced in 1955 when ADC transferred its mission, equipment, and personnel to the 33d Fighter Group in a project that replaced air defense groups commanding fighter squadrons with fighter groups with distinguished records during World War II.
context_section_description: During the Cold War the group was reconstituted, redesignated as the 564th Air Base Group, and activated at Otis Air Force Base in 1952 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. It replaced the 33rd Air Base Group as USAF host unit for Otis.  The group was assigned eight squadrons to perform its support responsibilities. It also assumed aircraft maintenance responsibility from the 33d Maintenance & Supply Group for units stationed at Otis. The operational elements of the inactivating 33d Fighter-Interceptor Wing were assigned to the 4707th Air Defense Wing.
  In 1953 the group was redesignated as the 564th Air Defense Group and assumed responsibility for air defense of the Boston area.  It was assigned the 58th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron (FIS), flying Lockheed F-94 Starfire aircraft equipped with air intercept radar and armed with cannon, from the 4707th Defense Wing as its operational element. The 58th FIS was already stationed at Otis. In April 1953, the 437th FIS, flying a newer model of the F-94 aircraft armed with Mighty Mouse rockets, was activated as a second operational squadron. The 58th FIS upgraded to the newer F-94s by June 1953 and both squadrons converted to Northrop F-89 Scorpion aircraft in June 1955. The group was inactivated and replaced by the 33d Fighter Group (Air Defense) on 18 August 1955 as result of ADC's Project Arrow, which was designed to bring back on the active list the fighter units which had compiled memorable records in the two world wars. The group was disbanded once again in 1984.
caption: 437th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron F-94s over Cape Cod 1953
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