94th Aero Squadron The 94th Aero Squadron was a Air Service , United States Army unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I . The squadron was assigned as a Day Pursuit ( Fighter ) Squadron as part of the 1st Pursuit Group , First United States Army . Its mission was to engage and clear enemy aircraft from the skies and provide escort to reconnaissance and bombardment squadrons over enemy territory . It also attacked enemy observation balloons , and perform close air support and tactical bombing attacks of enemy forces along the front lines . The squadron was one of the first American pursuit squadrons to reach the Western Front and see combat , becoming one the most famous . The 94th was highly publicized in the American print media of the time , and its exploits " over there " were widely reported on the home front . Its squadron emblem , the " Hat in the Ring " became a symbol in the minds of the American Public of the American Air Service of World War I . Three notable air ace s served with the squadron , Eddie Rickenbacker , who was awarded almost every decoration attainable , including the Congressional Medal of Honor and the Distinguished Service Cross . Douglas Campbell was the first American trained pilot to become an air ace . He shared the honor of having the first official victory over an enemy aircraft with Alan Winslow . Another squadron member , Raoul Lufbery , attained 17 aerial victories before leaping to his death from a fiery Nieuport 28 aircraft in May , 1918 . After the 1918 Armistice with Germany , the squadron returned to the United States in June 1919 and became part of the permanent United States Army Air Service in 1921 . The current United States Air Force unit which holds its lineage and history is the 94th Fighter Squadron , assigned to the 1st Operations Group , Joint Base Langley – Eustis , Virginia . History . Origins . The 94th Aero Squadron was formed at Kelly Field , Texas on 20 August 1917 . The original cadre of men was composed entirely of volunteers recruited from all parts of the United States . With the exception of two men , none had any previous military training . The men were indoctrinated into military service with drill and other basic training . On 30 September 1917 , the 94th was ordered to the Aviation Concentration Center at Mineola Field , Long Island for overseas service . The squadron entrained at Kelly Field for New York , consisting of 160 men and two officers , arriving on 5 October . At the Concentration Center , the squadron received additional equipment and was further instructed in drills and in military traditions . Training in France . On 27 October , the squadron boarded the RMS Adriatic and after an uneventful crossing of the Atlantic , the squadron disembarked at Liverpool , England on 10 November 1917 . Boarding a train , the squadron moved to Southampton on the southern coast , reaching it at midnight that same day . The next morning it boarded the steamship Hunstcrft for Le Harve , France , and took up residence at British Rest Camp # 2 . The 94th remained at Le Harve until 18 November when it boarded a troop train and arrived in Paris , France that evening . The squadron was billeted at Reuilly Barracks upon arrival . After a brief rest period , the 94th Aero Squadron was divided up into seven flights , each flight being sent to a separate airplane or engine factory for technical training . These were Breguet , Brasler , Renault , Nieuport , Bleriot and Hispano - Suisa . For the next two and a half months , the men underwent training at these factories . Upon completion of the training , the squadron was sent to the 3d Instructional Center , AEF , at Issoudun Aerodrome on 24 January 1918 for additional training . At Issoudun , the squadron was equipped with Nieuport 28 aircraft and was designated as a pursuit ( fighter ) squadron . However , the necessities of war meant the squadron was needed in the " Zone of Advance " ( the Western Front ) , for combat deities as soon as possible . On 30 March , the 94th was ordered to proceed to the 1st Pursuit Organization Center at Epiez Aerodrome to replace a French squadron which had moved to another part of the front . However , a fire broke out in one of the hangars at Issoudun that delayed the squadron for a day . Consequently , it was not until 1 April that the 94th arrived at Epiez . A continual rain meant that flying was impossible upon arrival , however the aircraft were hangared and readied for combat patrols . Some familiarization flights were flown from Epiz , before the 94th Aero Squadron was ordered to proceed to Gengault Aerodrome , near Toul in the new American Sector of the line on 7 April . The squadron was assigned to work with the Eighth French Army . It was the first American trained and organized pursuit squadron to be stationed at the front and see active combat service . Combat on the Western Front . At Toul , active combat patrols and alerts immediately commenced , over the sector from Saint - Mihiel to Pont a Mousson . On a cloudy Sunday morning , 14 April , an alert was given and Lieutenants Douglas Campbell and Alan F . Winslow took off . A few minutes later , two enemy aircraft were seen moving though some clouds , and after a brief combat , Lt Campbell shot down one of the enemy and Lt Winslow forced the other down out of control . Both crashed on the ground . These were the first American air combat victories of World War I . On 29 April , Captain Hall and Lt . Rickenbacker responded to an alert and shot down an enemy aircraft just over the lines . Air combats began to become more frequent and by 3 May , the squadron had four aerial victories . However , on that day , the squadron suffered its first causality , when Lt . Charles W . Chapman was shot down in flames by a biplane , which Captain Peterson later shot down . On 5 May , the 94th was organized , along with the 95th Aero Squadron into the 1st Pursuit Group . In combat , the squadron was succeeding in defeating the enemy , and in a few weeks , the 94th gained the first American air aces . On 31 May , Lieutenant Campbell gained his fifth victory ; on 17 June , Lieutenant Rickenbacker also became and ace . However , the squadron had also suffered several losses . Captain Hall had been brought down and became a prisoner . Major Lufbery attacked a German plane flying over Toul and was shot down in flames . In combat over Maiseraes , Lieutenant Davis was killed in action and Lieutenant Hill was seriously wounded in the leg while in combat on 27 May over Montsec . By the end of June , the 94th Aero Squadron was the leading pursuit squadron in the AEF , having seventeen official victories with four casualties . On 29 June the 1st Pursuit Group moved to the Chateau Thierry sector and to Touquin Aerodrome . There , the 94th began receiving SPAD XIII s , replacing the unpopular Nieuport 28s . On 1 July , Lieutenant Coolage shot down his first enemy aircraft , he would later become a flying ace . On 9 July , the squadron moved again , this time to Saints Aerodrome , which was nearer the front lines . However , unlike the Toul Sector , this sector was not as active with German aircraft and only a few enemy aircraft were shot down during the months of July and August . During the latter part of August , the front line had receded to a distance that an axillary landing field was built at Coincy . However with the Germans retreating , the 1st Pursuit Group was given a short period of repose until arrangements could be made to move to a new sector . The squadron engaged in target practice and formation flying for new pilots and the senior pilots were given a much needed and well - deserved rest . On 30 August , the 94th was ordered moved to Rembercourt Aerodrome in preparation for the St . Mihiel Offensive . However , little flying was done in the new sector initially in order not to let the enemy know of the American build - up of forces . On 12 September the American offensive was begun . The squadron employed a new tactic of low - level patrols , below 600m flying from dawn until dusk . The 94th was given the mission of attacking enemy observation balloons as spotted and to machine - gun enemy infantry and other targets as observed in order to aid First Army in its advance . During the period from September 12 until the Armistice on 11 November , the 94th Aero Squadron shot down 47 enemy aircraft . Several pilots became aces . Pilots also brought back invaluable intelligence concerning information about enemy rear areas . It was during the St . Mihiel and later the Meuse - Argonne Offensive that Captain Rickenbacker shot down over twenty enemy aircraft . On 25 September , he brought down two enemy planes within a few minutes of each other . Four of his victories were balloons , which he attacked at dusk while they were lying on the ground . While Captain Rickenbacker was adding to his number of combat victories , Captain Hamilton Coolidge was also successfully defeating the enemy . During the period from October 2d to the 13th , he shot down seven enemy aircraft and two balloons . However , on 27 October , while leading his flight along the lines , he was hit by an enemy anti - aircraft shell and crashed in flames . Lieutenant Harvey Cook also became one of the leading aces of the squadron . During October he shot down seven enemy aircraft , and five balloons . He had the distinction of being chosen for the dangerous and difficult work of balloon strafing in the early morning and just before dusk . In one attack , he attacked an enemy balloon that lay on the ground between two tall trees . It was necessary that he dived between the trees three times before the balloon went up in flames . During the closing days of the war , reports indicated that enemy activity had dwindled to a great extent . Only a few biplanes and an occasional enemy formation of aircraft were seen . Hostilities ended on 10 November , as unfavorable weather caused the squadron to be grounded on the morning of 11 November . Demobilization . Proficiency flights were conducted after the Armistice with Germany , however , no flights were permitted to be flown over German - controlled territory . The squadron remained at Rembercourt until 7 April 1919 when orders were received from First Army for the squadron to report to the 1st Air Depot , Colombey - les - Belles Airdrome to turn in all of its supplies and equipment and was relieved from duty with the AEF . The squadron ' s planes were delivered to the Air Service Production Center No . 2 . at Romorantin Aerodrome , and there , practically all of the pilots and observers were detached from the Squadron . Personnel were subsequently assigned to the Commanding General , Services of Supply and ordered to report to one of several staging camps in France . There , personnel awaited scheduling to report to a staging camp at Le Mans on 5 May where it waited for a brief period before proceeding to its port of embarkation in France . The 94th Aero Squadron arrived in New York Harbor on 30 May and reported to Mitchel Field on 1 June . There most of the men were demobilized and returned to civilian life .