99th Reconnaissance Squadron The 99th Reconnaissance Squadron ( 99 RS ) is a squadron of the United States Air Force . It is assigned to the 9th Operations Group , Air Combat Command , stationed at Beale Air Force Base , California . The squadron is equipped with the Lockheed U - 2 Dragon Lady reconnaissance aircraft . The 99 RS is one of the oldest units in the United States Air Force , first being organized as the 99th Aero Squadron on 21 August 1917 at Kelly Field , Texas . The squadron deployed to France and fought on the Western Front during World War I as a Corps observation squadron . During World War II the unit served both in the Panama Canal Zone as an anti - submarine unit and in the Pacific Theater of Operations ( PTO ) as part of Twentieth Air Force as a B - 29 Superfortress bomber squadron . During the Cold War was part of Strategic Air Command equipped with B - 47 Stratojet medium bombers , and later with the SR - 71 Blackbird strategic reconnaissance aircraft . Mission . The 99th Reconnaissance Squadron is responsible for providing critical intelligence for use by the highest levels of our government . Squadron pilots fly the Lockheed U - 2S aircraft as they continuously train to upgrade from normal aircraft commander status to that of instructor pilot status . Pilots from the squadron frequently rotate overseas to support the wing ' s various operating locations . The squadron has one of the highest TDY rates in the Air Force , second only to that of the aircrews supporting the E - 3 Sentry AWACS . This high operations tempo could not be effectively maintained without the crew chiefs assigned to the squadron who perform routine maintenance to keep the aircraft flying on a daily basis . In addition to the military reconnaissance mission , U - 2 pilots fly many humanitarian , search and rescue and environmental missions . The current mission statement of the 99th Reconnaissance Squadron is " To deploy and employ warrior Airmen and execute effective and sustained U - 2 operations globally in support of National Objectives . " History . World War I . Organized at Kelly Field , Texas on 21 August 1917 , the 99th Aero Squadron moved to Garden City , New York in early November and sailed for France on the fourteenth . After training in the Sopwith Camel and the Salmson 2 , the squadron began flying combat missions in June 1918 . Assigned to the V Corps Observation Group , United States First Army Air Service , the 99th Corps Observation Squadron was assigned to the Toul Sector of the French Western Front on 22 June . It served as a school squadron with V Army Corps Infantry Liaison School . On 19 July , was assigned to the St . Die sector during which time one flight of unit , operating in Vosges region of Alsace and Lorraine where it participated in combat with French XXXIII Corps . Between September 12 and 16 the squadron flew reconnaissance missions and directed artillery fire in support French 8th Army and the American V Army Corps during the St . Mihiel offensive . It also participated in the Meuse - Argonne offensive between September 26 to November 11 , 1918 when the Armistice with Germany was reached . The 99th Aero Squadron remained in France until 8 May 1919 , then moved to Mitchel Field , New York where the unit was demobilized . The four black crosses on the 9th Reconnaissance Wing ' s emblem represent 1st and 99th Squadrons ' participation at St . Mihiel , Argonne - Muesse , Champagne - Marne and Aisne - Marne . Inter - war period . The 99th Aero Squadron remained in France until 8 May 1919 , then moved to Mitchel Field , New York . The unit became the 99th Observation Squadron in 1923 . The Squadron was attached to the 9th Observation Group on 9 November 1928 and assigned to the group on 15 February 1929 . The squadron flew Dayton - Wright DH - 4Bs and Royal Aircraft Establishment SE - 5s ( Scouting Experimental ) . Both were World War I - vintage aircraft . During the 1920s the proficiency of squadron aircrews deteriorated until the 99th had no one proficient enough to participate in the 1929 bombing and gunnery matches . With the creation of the GHQ Air Force on 1 March 1935 , the group became the 9th Bombardment Group and the 99th became a bombardment squadron . With the new mission came new airplanes . The new bombardment squadron received American - made Martin B - 10s in 1936 and Douglas B - 18s in 1938 . Squadron members trained hard learning the tactics and maneuvers of their new aircraft and new mission . World War II . Antisubmarine warfare . Re - activated as the 99th Observation Squadron on November 9 , 1928 at Mitchel Field , New York . An element of the 9th Bombardment Group , the unit arrived at Rio Hato Army Air Base , Panama on 13 November 1940 , where it was almost immediately redesignated as the 99th Bombardment Squadron ( Heavy ) , being equipped with Douglas B - 18A Bolo s to fly antisubmarine patrols . On 25 August 1941 , it received one Boeing B - 17B Flying Fortress . Just before the Pearl Harbor Attack , on 3 December , the Squadron was ordered to distant Zandery Field , Dutch Guiana and , to the disappointment of the crews , had to leave their B - 17B behind . By now strengthened to a total of six B - 18A ' s , however , the unit shuttled from Zandery to Atkinson Field , British Guiana and was reassigned to the Trinidad Base Command . The Squadron performed antisubmarine patrols until 31 October 1942 , when it was detached from Sixth Air Force and reassigned to Orlando , Florida , where it became part of the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics in central and northern Florida . At the AAFSAT , the squadron trained units with a mixture of B - 25 Mitchells , B¬26 Marauders and B - 17 Flying Fortresses in combat tactics . B - 29 Superfortress era . The squadron moved to Florida in October 1942 without personnel or equipment where it was reconstituted and trained other bombardment units on formation flying and high altitude precision bombing in B - 17 Flying Fortress es as part of the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics . At various airfields in central and Northern Florida , the squadron trained cadres for 44 bomb groups in organization and operations , performed bombing pattern tests , experimented with 3 - plane formations to attack moving ships , and performed over a hundred equipment tests . On 3 March 1944 , the squadron was reassigned on paper at Dalhart Army Air Field , Texas as part of the 313th Bombardment Wing , to organize and train for B - 29 operations in the Western Pacific . The 9th helped to develop operational bombardment tactics and tested special devices and equipment during this time . In 1944 the unit was re - manned and the 99th moved to Dalhart Army Air Field , Texas where it began training on the new B - 29 Superfortress as part of the 313th Bombardment Wing , to organize and train for B - 29 operations in the Western Pacific . The 99th helped to develop operational bombardment tactics and tested special devices and equipment during this time . It then moved to McCook Army Airfield , Nebraska in May 1944 where it trained in earnest for its own combat deployment . After six months in the new B - 29 , the 99th transferred to North Field , Tinian , in the Mariana Islands , just east of the Philippines . Arriving at Tinian on 28 December 1944 , the 99th Bombardment Squadron ( Very Heavy ) flew its first bombing raids on 27 , 29 and 31 January 1945 , against Japanese installations in the northern Marianas . On 25 February the 99th joined an all - out Allied effort against Tokyo ' s port and industrial areas . For the remaining months of the war , squadron B - 29s repeatedly struck Japanese aircraft factories , chemical plants , naval bases and airdromes . It also participated in night , low - level incendiary bombing attacks on urban areas . During these months the 99th won two Distinguished Unit Citations . The first came for 15 – 16 April 1945 bombing raids on Kawasaki , Japan ' s industrial center , which furnished components for Tokyo and Yokohama ' s heavy industry . The squadron won the second award in mine - laying operations beginning in mid May , 1944 in the Shimonoseki Straits , which controlled access to the Inland Seas . This operation crippled Japan ' s efforts to ship food , raw materials , war supplies , troops , and combat equipment to and from the homeland . The 99th Bomb Squadron continued its attacks on Japan until flying its last mission , a low - level night incendiary attack on Kumagaya on 14 August 1945 . Strategic Air Command . The Air Force established the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Fairfield - Suisun ( later Travis ) AFB , California on 25 April 1949 and activated it on 1 May as a Strategic Air Command ( SAC ) unit . 99th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron flew B / RB - 17 s and , later , B / RB - 29 s . RB - 29s and a few R B - 36 s . On 1 April 1950 , the Air Force redesignated the wing as the 9th Bombardment Wing and the 99th as a bombardment squadron . The 99th continued to fly B - 29s at Fairfield - Suisun AFB until 1 May 1953 , when SAC transferred the wing and its squadrons to Mountain Home AFB , Idaho . By June 1955 , the 99th Bombardment Squadron had replaced its B - 29s with new B - 47 Stratojet s . In November 1955 the 99th and other wing squadrons demonstrated the Strategic Air Command ' s ability to strike anywhere in the world making several deployments to England and Guam . Squadron B - 47s flew nonstop from the 8 , 300 miles from Mountain Home AFB to New Zealand . The 99th flew nuclear deterrent missions for ten years . In November 1965 , SAC agreed to transfer Mountain Home AFB to the Tactical Air Command . The 99th ' s B - 47s transferred to other units and by 1 February 1966 all squadron aircraft were gone . In 1966 , the 99th again became a reconnaissance squadron and moved to California conducting testing of SR - 71 aircraft through 1967 . The 99th flew global strategic reconnaissance until 1971 when the squadron inactivated . In November 1972 , the 99th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron activated at U - Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield , Thailand where it flew reconnaissance missions over Southeast Asia . The squadron relocated at Beale Air Force Base in 1976 and began flying U - 2 missions . Modern era . Operational missions include extensive reconnaissance efforts during Operations Urgent Fury , Just Cause , Desert Shield , Desert Storm and operation Iraqi Freedom as well as humanitarian efforts covering wildfire and earthquake damage in California and Midwestern United States floods . 99 RS personnel are currently temporarily assigned to four overseas detachments .