page_title: 335th Airlift Squadron
section_title: Return to the reserves
hierarchical_section_title: 335th Airlift Squadron / History / Return to the reserves
caption_attribution_description: English: A U.S. Air Force Fairchild C-119C-19-FA Flying Boxcar (s/n 50-138) in flight.Original description: An Air Force C-119 "Flying Boxcar," once considered the workhorse of the Air Force Reserve, was part of the Continental Air Command's first Airlift Rodeo on Oct. 5, 1956.
context_page_description: The 335th Airlift Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force Reserve unit. It was last active with the 514th Operations Group at McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey, where it was inactivated on 30 September 1995
  The squadron was first organized in 1949 as the 335th Troop Carrier Squadron. It trained with Curtiss C-46 Commando aircraft and was called to active duty for the Korean War until 1953, when it returned to reserve duty.
context_section_description: Two months later, the squadron was activated again in the reserves, taking over the resources of the partially manned 2d Troop Carrier Squadron, part of the 65th Troop Carrier Wing, which had been activated at Mitchel to train reservists who had completed their Korean War tours of active duty.   Its return to the reserves was accompanied by a return to flying the Curtiss Commando, but by August 1954 was once again flying the C-119, becoming part of the first reserve wing to operate the Flying Boxcar. It initially trained with the 2233d Air Reserve Flying Center, but in 1958, the center was inactivated and some of its personnel were absorbed by the squadron.  In place of active duty support for reserve units, ConAC adopted the Air Reserve Technician program, in which a cadre of the unit consisted of full-time personnel who were simultaneously civilian employees of the Air Force and held rank as members of the reserves.
  In the summer of 1956, the squadron participated in Operation Sixteen Ton during its two weeks of active duty training.  Sixteen Ton was performed entirely by reserve troop carrier units and moved United States Coast Guard equipment from Floyd Bennett Naval Air Station to Isla Grande Airport in Puerto Rico and San Salvador Island in the Bahamas.  After the success of this operation, the squadron began to use inactive duty training periods for Operation Swift Lift, transporting high priority cargo for the air force and Operation Ready Swap, transporting aircraft engines, between Air Materiel Command’s depots.
  In 1959, the reserves adopted the dual deputy organization and the squadron was assigned directly to the 514th Troop Carrier Wing when the 514th Group was inactivated.  At this time, the reserve flying force consisted of 45 troop carrier squadrons assigned to 15 troop carrier wings.  The squadrons were not all located with their parent wings, but were spread over thirty-five Air Force, Navy and civilian airfields under what was called the Detached Squadron Concept.  However, under this concept, support organizations remained with the wing.  The squadron was the only one of the 514th Wing's three flying squadrons that moved to McGuire Air Force Base with wing headquarters in 1961 as the Detached Squadron Concept was implemented.
  Although this concept was not a problem if an entire wing was called to active service, mobilizing a single flying squadron and elements to support it proved difficult. To resolve this, at the start of 1962 ConAC determined to reorganize its reserve wings by establishing troop carrier groups with support elements for each of its troop carrier squadrons.  This reorganization would facilitate mobilization of elements of wings in various combinations when needed.   However, the mobilization of a number of reserve wings for the Cuban Missile Crisis  delayed this reorganization until 1963.  On 17 January, the 903d Troop Carrier Group and support elements were activated at McGuire and the squadron was reassigned to the new group.  In 1967, along with other troop carrier units, the squadron was renamed the 335th Tactical Airlift Squadron.  It was inactivated in April 1970 as part of the phaseout of Flying Boxcars.
caption: Air reserve C-119[note 3]
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