page_title: 810th Strategic Aerospace Division
section_title: Biggs Air Force Base
hierarchical_section_title: 810th Strategic Aerospace Division / History / Biggs Air Force Base
caption_attribution_description: English: Strategic Air Command B-47 Stratojet bombers c. 1950s. The world's first swept-wing bomber. The B-47 normally carried a crew of three--pilot, copilot (who operated the tail turret by remote control), and an observer who also served as navigator, bombardier and radar operator.
context_page_description: The 810th Strategic Aerospace Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command, assigned to Fifteenth Air Force at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, where it was inactivated on 30 June 1971.
  The division was first activated in 1952 to manage Biggs Air Force Base, Texas and to command the two SAC bombardment wings stationed there. From 1954 to 1956 it also commanded a reconnaissance squadron that operated from bases in Japan and the United Kingdom. When SAC began to disperse its heavy bomber force in the late 1950s, one of the wings at Biggs moved to Arkansas, and, the other wing moved two of its operational squadrons to bases in Texas and Georgia. The division assumed command of the dispersed strategic wing at Amarillo Air Force Base, Texas and transferred management of Biggs to the remaining wing there.
  In 1962, SAC assumed control of bases in the northern United States from Air Defense Command and the division moved to Minot, where it took command of three strategic wings. Later that year it added a Minuteman missile wing and was redesignated the 810th Strategic Aerospace Division.
context_section_description: The 810th Air Division was activated in 1952 at Biggs Air Force Base, Texas when Strategic Air Command (SAC) departed from the wing base organization system and created air divisions as the headquarters on bases with two operational wings.
  The division's components were the 95th and 97th Bombardment Wings, and the newly activated 810th Air Base Group.
  The 97th Bomb Wing's tactical squadrons flew the Boeing B-50 Superfortress and it was also assigned a refueling squadron with Boeing KB-29 Superfortress tankers.  The division's 95th Bomb Wing was not manned, but was also nominally a medium bombardment wing.
  In July 1953, the 95th wing began to receive personnel, but when it was equipped and began training the following month, it was as a Convair B-36 Peacemaker wing.  The division assured the manning, training, and equipping of its two assigned wings to conduct long-range bombardment missions using either nuclear or conventional weapons. Each wing deployed to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam.  The 97th wing deployed all its squadrons from December 1952 until March 1953 and again from December 1953 until July 1954.  The 95th wing deployed from July to November 1955.
  The 97th Bomb Wing continued to fly B-50s until 1955, when it converted to the Boeing B-47 Stratojet.  Beginning in 1954, the wing's 340th Bombardment Squadron maintained detachments at RAF Lakenheath, England and Yokota Air Base, Japan, flying electronic reconnaissance models of the B-29 and B-50.  As the 340th re-equipped with jet bombers, SAC formed the 4024th Bombardment Squadron to operate these planes.
  Although the 4024th was assigned directly to the division, the 97th Bomb Wing continued to exercise operational control of the squadron.  The 4024th was inactivated in 1956, but it shared an Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with the 340th squadron for its operations.    Once the 97th converted to B-47s it deployed as a unit to RAF Upper Heyford from May to July 1956.  Although deployments of its planes and crews continued, that was the only deployment as a complete wing while assigned to the 810th Air Division.
  In 1958 the division began a transformation of its bomber force.  The 97th Bomb Wing began to lose its B-47s.  In January 1959 it became non-operational.
  In July the 97th moved to Blytheville Air Force Base, Arkansas, where it re-equipped with Boeing B-52 Stratofortresses and was assigned to another division.
  Meanwhile, starting in 1959, the 95th wing replaced its B-36s with B-52s.  At the same time it participated in a SAC plan to disperse its B-52s over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike.  Two of the 95th wing's three bombardment squadrons moved, one to Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas and the other to Turner Air Force Base, Georgia.
  The move of the 97th Bomb Wing left only a single wing, the 95th, at Biggs.  The 810th transferred support responsibilities at Biggs to the 95th wing and assumed a new role as an operational headquarters only for B-52 wings at multiple bases in July 1959, when the 4128th Strategic Wing at Amarillo Air Force Base was assigned in place of the 97th.  The 4128th was a strategic wing that had been organized when B-52s at Ellsworth Air Force Base were dispersed.  Although division aircraft had previously deployed to Guam and England to stand alert, starting in 1960, a portion of division aircraft began to stand alert at their home stations to reduce vulnerability to a Soviet missile strike.
caption: SAC B-47s on the flight line
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