452d Operations Group The 452d Operations Group ( 452 OG ) is the flying component of the 452d Air Mobility Wing , assigned to the United States Air Force Reserve . The group is stationed at March Air Reserve Base , California . During World War II , its predecessor unit , the 452d Bombardment Group ( Heavy ) was an Eighth Air Force B - 17 Flying Fortress unit in England , stationed at RAF Deopham Green . 1st Lieutenant Donald J . Gott and 2nd Lieutenant William E . Metzger , Jr were both awarded the Medal of Honor for their heroic actions . The present day 452d works to maintain a special relationship with the 452d Bomb Group Memorial Association to keep its heritage alive . Overview . The 452 OG mission is to organize , train and equip aircrews to provide air refueling and strategic airlift any time , any place . The Group ' s aircraft operate under widely varying situations ranging from small movements in battle to large movements over long distances . The Group also has a medical squadron which augments joint forces with aeromedical evacuation aircrews who provide medical care for sick and injured patients transported by air . Units . The grouop includes a C - 17 Globemaster III flying squadron and a KC - 135R Stratotanker flying squadron as well as an aeromedical evacuation squadron : History . World War II . The 452 Bombardment Group ( Heavy ) was established on 14 May 1943 and activated on 1 June 1943 at Geiger Field , Washington . The unit was transferred to Rapid City AAB , South Dakota on 15 June 1943 and trained there until early October 1943 . It had been redesignated as 452 Bombardment Group , Heavy on 20 August 1943 . The unit was moved to Pendleton Field Oregon on 11 October 1943 and to Walla Wallla AAFd Washington on 4 November 1943 . Ground unit left for Camp Shanks New York on 23 December 1943 and sailed on the Queen Elizabeth on 2 January 1944 , and arrived in Clyde on 8 January 1944 . The air echelon began overseas movement in early December 1943 via the southern ferry route . Most of the aircraft reached England a few days before the ground units arrived . The 452d was assigned to the 45th Combat Bombardment Wing , and the group tail code was a " Square - L " . the 452d entered combat on 5 February with an attack against aircraft assembly plants at Brunswick . Throughout combat , engaged primarily in bombardment of strategic targets , including marshalling yards at Frankfurt , aircraft assembly plants at Regensburg , aircraft component works at Kassel , the ball - bearing industry at Schweinfurt , a synthetic rubber plant at Hanover , and oil installations at Bohlen . In addition to strategic missions , the 452d supported ground forces and carried out interdictory operations . Helped prepare for the invasion of Normandy by hitting airfields , V - weapon sites , bridges , and other objectives in France . The group struck coastal defenses on D - Day , 6 June 1944 . Bombed enemy positions in support of the breakthrough at Saint - Lô in July and the offensive against Brest in August and September 1944 . Later in September , assisted the airborne attack on Holland . Hit enemy communications in and near the combat zone during the Battle of the Bulge , December 1944 – January 1945 . Bombed an airfield in support of the airborne assault across the Rhine in March 1945 . The group received a Distinguished Unit Citation for action on 7 April 1945 when , despite vigorous fighter attacks and heavy flak , it accurately bombed a jet - fighter base at Kaltenkirchen . The 452d Bomb Group flew its last combat mission of World War II [ in Europe ] on 21 April , striking marshalling yards at Ingolstadt . The group flew a total of 250 missions from Deopham Green during the war , losing 110 of its bombers in the course of these operations . Indeed , the group suffered particularly heavy losses during the spring of 1944 , at that time sustaining one of the highest rates of loss of any Fortress equipped unit in the Eighth Air Force . Redeployed to the US June / August 1945 . The air echelon departed the United Kingdom late June 1945 . Ground echelon sailed on the " Queen Elizabeth " from Greenock on 5 August 1945 , and arrived in New York on 11 August 1945 . The unit established at Sioux Falls AAFd , South Dakota where the Group was inactivated on 28 August 1945 . Cold War . Redesignated 452 Bombardment Group , Very Heavy on 11 March 1947 . Activated in the Reserve on 19 April 1947 . Redesignated 452 Bombardment Group , Light on 27 June 1949 . Trained as a bombardment group under supervision of the 2347th Air Force Reserve Training Center . Ordered to active duty effective 10 August 1950 for duty in the Korean War . Moved to Japan , October – November 1950 , and entered combat with B - 26 Invader light bombers against communist forces late in Oct , operating first from bases in Japan and later from South Korea . Flew armed reconnaissance , intruder , and interdiction missions , and provided support for ground troops . Bombed and strafed buildings , tunnels , rail lines , switching centers , bridges , vehicles , supply dumps , and airfields until May 1952 when its mission was taken over by the regular USAF 17th Bombardment Group ( Light ) . The group received two Distinguished Unit Citation s for its actions during the Korean War . Returned to the United States and placed back in reserve status . The unit was remanned and trained as a tactical reconnaissance group , ( 452 Tactical Reconnaissance Group ) 1952 – 1955 ; as a tactical bombardment group ( 452 Bombardment Group , Tactical ) , 1955 – 1957 ; and as a troop carrier group , ( 452 Troop Carrier Group , Medium ) 1957 – 1959 . Modern era . On 1 August 1992 , the 452d Operations Group ( 452 OG ) was activated as a result of the 452d Refueling Wing implementing the USAF objective wing organization . Upon activation , the 452 OG was bestowed the lineage and history of the 452 Air Refueling Group and all predecessor organizations . the 452 OG was assigned the flying squadrons of the 452d Refueling Wing . In 1993 , March AFB was selected for realignment . As part of the Air Force ' s realignment the 452d ARW became the the 452d Air Mobility Wing on 1 April 1994 . On 1 April 1996 , March officially became March Air Reserve Base . In 2005 , the Group retired its C - 141 fleet . A year later , the wing began to receive its eight C - 17s .