317th Airlift Group The 317th Airlift Group ( 317 AG ) is a United States Air Force unit , stationed at Dyess Air Force Base , Texas . Assigned to Air Mobility Command ( AMC ) Eighteenth Air Force , the 317 AG operates as a tenant unit to the 7th Bomb Wing , Air Combat Command ( ACC ) . The 317 AG is a tactical airlift organization , flying the C - 130 Hercules and Lockheed Martin C - 130J Super Hercules . Since December 2003 , the 317th has been in a continuously deployed status in support of the Global War on Terrorism , with elements being deployed into combat areas . It has been engaged in Operation Enduring Freedom ( OEF ) ; Operation Iraqi Freedom ( OIF ) , as well as supporting other Air Expeditionary units around the world . During World War II , the units predecessor unit , the The 317 Troop Carrier Group was one of the most highly decorated troop carrier units of the United States Army Air Forces . The 317th TCG took part in nearly all of the airlift operations in the Pacific Theater of World War II including Wau , New Guinea , and the " Operation Topside " parachute drops on Corregidor , where the 503rd Parachute Regiment was dropped from 400 feet in groups of six per aircraft , requiring the crews to fly their C - 47 " Gooney Birds " over the target at least three times . For both of these operations the 317 TCG was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation . It was Colonel John Lackey , commanding officer of the 317 TCG , who became the first American pilot to land in Japan following the capitulation of that country in August 1945 . Units . The 317AG is composed of the following squadrons : History . Components . Group Squadrons Operations . World War II . Formed at Duncan Field , Texas , on 22 February 1942 . The group ' s humble beginning consisted of eighteen enlisted men and one Captain which formed the entire unit . Moved to Australia , December 1942 – January 1943 , and assigned to Fifth AF . the 317 Troop Carrier Group ( TCG ) was the second airlift group to arrive in the Southwest Pacific Theater during World War II . Operated in New Guinea for a short time early in 1943 . Received a DUC for making numerous flights in unarmed planes over the Owen Stanley Range , 30 January – 1 February 1943 to transport reinforcements and supplies to Wau , New Guinea , where enemy forces were threatening a valuable Allied airdrome . Exchanged its new C - 47 ’ s for a variety of aircraft in New Guinea and began operating from Australia , where the group had maintained its headquarters , Flew troops and equipment to New Guinea , established courier and passenger routes in Australia , and trained with airborne troops . Equipped with C - 47 ’ s and moved to New Guinea in September 1943 . Took part in the first airborne operation in the Southwest Pacific on 5 September , dropping paratroops at Nadzab , New Guinea , to cut supply lines and seize enemy bases . Until November 1944 , transported men and cargo to Allied bases on New Guinea , New Britain , Guadalcanal , and in the Admiralty Islands . Also dropped reinforcements and supplies to US forces on Noemfoor , 3 – 4 July 1944 . After moving to the Philippines in November 1944 , transported supplies to ground forces on Luzon , Leyte , and Mindoro , and supplied guerrillas on Mindanao , Cebu , and Panay . Participated in two airborne operations during February 1945 : on 3 and 4 February dropped paratroops south of Manila to seize highway routes to the city , and on 16 and 17 February dropped the 502d Regiment on Corregidor to open Manila Bay to US shipping ; received a DUC for the latter operation , performed at low altitude over small drop zones in a heavily defended area . Completed two unusual missions on 12 and 15 April 1945 when this troop carrier organization bombed Carabo Island with drums of napalm . Dropped part of 511th Regiment near Aparri on 23 June 1945 to split Japanese forces in the Cagayen Valley and prevent a retreat to the hills in northern Luzon . Cold War . After end of Pacific War , remained in the theater as part of Far East Air Forces ; used C - 46 and C - 47 aircraft , the latter being replaced in 1947 with C - 54 ' s . 317th Troop Carrier Wing was activated in Japan in 1948 . Provided troop carrier and courier service in the Far East , 1948 . As a result of Soviet blockade of Berlin , moved by ship from Japan to West Germany , December 1948 — January 1949 and reassigned to USAFE . . Participated in Berlin Airlift , 9 January – 31 July 1949 . Became USAFE theater airlift organization . From July 1952 to April 1957 provided C - 119 troop carrier and airlift service in support of USAFE , NATO , and UN , at same time participating in numerous exercises and humanitarian missions . Moved to France in April 1957 , replacing 465th Troop Carrier Wing on 8 July From April 1963 to June 1964 , provided C - 130 airlift in support of USAFE , NATO , and UN . Reassigned to Tactical Air Command and moved to Ohio in June 1964 . Became involved in TAC ' s worldwide C - 130 airlift operations , with airborne training a major responsibility . In May 1967 the unit was redesignated the 317 Troop Carrier Wing and by 1971 it has transferred to Pope Air Force Base , North Carolina . Provided C - 130 replacement training support for PACAF , October 1965 — July 1971 and August — December 1971 . Also provided C - 123 combat crew training for the U . S . and Republic of Vietnam crews , September 1969 — August 1971 . Reassigned to Military Airlift Command in December 1974 . Pioneered in use of adverse weather aerial delivery system ( AWADS ) equipment in active combat operations in Southeast Asia , and from September 1977 to January 1988 , trained aircrews in the AWADS for a C - 130 squadron in Europe . The 317th provided airlift , combat control , medical evacuation , and security police support for Operation Urgent Fury , the rescue and evacuation of American citizens from Grenada , October – November 1983 . Between 1983 and 1993 , the 317th participated in training exercises , special assignment airlift missions , channel missions for Military Airlift Command and Air Mobility Command , and national airlift competitions . Crews and aircraft of assigned squadrons rotated periodically to England for European providing intra - theater airlift . It has Trained jointly with Army airborne forces from Fort Bragg , NC , tested container delivery system for parachute dropping of heavy equipment , deployed crews and aircraft worldwide as needed , and participated in Operation Just Cause in Panama . Modern era . After an Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990 , transported troops , equipment , and supplies to Southwest Asia as part of Operation Desert Shield and participated in Operation Desert Storm in 1991 . In 1992 , the Fighting 3 - 1 - 7 took part in humanitarian airlifts to Bosnia ( Operation Provide Promise ) and Somalia ( Operation Provide Relief ) . It transported relief workers and supplies to Florida after Hurricane Andrew . As the Air Force continued to streamline its operations after the end of the Cold War , the 317th was inactivated at Pope AFB in July 1993 . Four years after the inactivation , in April 1997 , a transfer of all U . S . based C - 130 aircraft to Air Mobility Command ( AMC ) resulted in the reactivation of the 317th as a group organization . From 1997 to present , deployed personnel and equipment worldwide to provide all phases of combat delivery , air - land , airdrop , airlift maintenance and recovery , operations support and deployable air mobility command and control . In 2008 , the 317th AG again supported Americans providing hurricane relief in Hurricanes Gustav and Ike , transporting patients and ambulatory personnel away from affected areas to temporary shelters . Beginning 20 December 2003 and ending 20 March 2013 , the 317th AG deployed for 3 , 378 continuous days in service to the United States at home and abroad . On 25 July 2013 , the 317th AG received its 28th and final Lockheed Martin C - 130J Super Hercules , giving the Group the distinction of being the largest C - 130J unit in the world .