96th Test Wing The 96th Test Wing ( 96 TW ) is a United States Air Force formation assigned to the Air Force Test Center , Air Force Material Command ( AFMC ) . It is stationed at Eglin Air Force Base , Florida . The wing is also the host unit at Eglin . The 96th Test Wing consolidated Eglin ' s 46th Test Wing , which was inactivated and the previously designated 96th Air Base Wing . The wing is the successor organization to the World War II Eighth Air Force 96th Bombardment Group . A B - 17 Flying Fortress unit in England , stationed primarily at RAF Snetterton Heath , the group was the first double - strength group in Eighth Air Force , and led the first shuttle mission to Regensburg on 17 August 1943 . Active for over 60 years , the 96th Bombardment Wing was a component organization of Strategic Air Command ' s deterrent force during the Cold War , as a strategic bombardment wing . History . World War II . Constituted as 96th Bombardment Group ( Heavy ) on 28 January 1942 . Activated on 15 July 1942 . Trained with B - 17 ' s and also served as an operational training unit . Moved to RAF Grafton Underwood England , April – May 1943 , for duty with Eighth Air Force . The group was assigned to the 45th Combat Bombardment Wing of the 3d Bombardment Division . Its tail code was Square - C . The group consisted of the following squadrons : This group commenced combat operations on 14 May but , as it was assigned to the 45th Wing with a general base area in north Essex , the 96th moved east at the end of May to RAF Andrews Field . The 96th appears to have only carried out one mission while based at Andrews Field . On 29 May 1943 they took part in a raid on Rennes naval storage depot from which one B - 17 failed to return . The group was moved to RAF Snetterton Heath on 12 June 1943 in a general exchange of bases with B - 26 Marauder groups . As the most conveniently reached station from 3rd Division Headquarters at Elveden Hall , Snetterton Heath units often led to major operations carrying commanding generals . General Curtis LeMay led the famous Regensburg shuttle mission to North Africa flying out of this base , and received a Distinguished Unit Citation for withstanding severe assaults by enemy fighters . The 96th also led the 3rd Division on the famous Schweinfurt mission of 14 October 1943 . In addition , the 93d attacked shipyards , harbours , railway yards , aerodromes , oil refineries , aircraft factories , and other industrial targets in Germany , France , the Netherlands , Belgium , Norway , Poland , Hungary , and Czechoslovakia . The 96th received another DUC for leading the 45th Bomb Wing a great distance through heavy clouds and intense anti - aircraft fire to raid important aircraft component factories in Poland on 9 April 1944 . Other significant targets included airfields at Bordeaux and Augsburg ; marshalling yards at Kiel , Hamm , Brunswick , and Gdynia ; aircraft factories at Chemnitz , Hanover , and Diósgyőr ; oil refineries at Merseburg and Brux , and chemical works in Wiesbaden , Ludwigshafen , and Neunkirchen . In addition to strategic operations , missions of the 96th BG included bombing coastal defences , railway bridges , gun emplacements , and field batteries in the battle area prior to and during the invasion of Normandy in June 1944 ; attacking enemy positions in support of the breakthrough at Saint - Lô in July 1944 ; aiding the campaign in France in August by striking roads and road junctions , and by dropping supplies to the Maquis ; and attacking , during the early months of 1945 , the communications supplying German armies on the western front . After V - E Day , the group was scheduled for occupation duties in Germany however plans were revised and the 96th BG flew food to the Netherlands and hauled redeployed personnel to French Morocco , Ireland , France , and Germany . In November 1945 its aircraft were flown back to the United States , and its squadrons were inactivated . The ground personnel left Snetterton Heath in early December , arriving at Camp Kilmer New Jersey . The 96th Bomb Group was inactivated on 20 December 1945 . Cold War . The 96th Bomb Group was activated in the Reserves on 29 May 1947 at Gunter AFB , Alabama . Conducted routine training activities . Inactivated on 27 July 1949 . Established again on 6 November 1953 at Altus AFB , Oklahoma , as the 96th Bombardment Wing , Medium . It was activated 8 November . Wing headquarters and most of the wing components were not manned until March 1954 ; those components manned were controlled by the 96th Air Base Group , whose commander served additional duty as the 96th ' s wing commander . The wing soon received KC - 97 Stratotankers and began air refueling operations in March 1954 . Began receiving new B - 47E Stratojet swept - wing medium bombers in April 1955 , capable of flying at high subsonic speeds and primarily designed for penetrating the airspace of the Soviet Union . Began bombardment training in April 1955 in support of SAC ' s global commitments . Deployed to Andersen AFB Guam , January – April 1957 . Upon activation , the Wing was bestowed the lineage , legacy and honors of the USAAF World War II 96th Bomb Group . Transferred to Dyess AFB , Texas on 8 September 1957 Controlled the 4th Strategic Support Squadron , a strategic airlift squadron , September 1959 – March 1961 , and the 578th Strategic Missile Squadron , an Atlas F missile squadron , July 1961 – March 1965 . The first Atlas missile went on alert in April 1962 . The Atlas was phased out in March 1965 . In the early 1960s , the B - 47 was considered to be reaching obsolescence , and was being phased out of SAC ' s strategic arsenal . In 1963 , its three squadrons of B - 47s ( 338th , 339th , 413th Bomb Squadrons ) were replaced by one squadron ( 337th Bomb Squadron ) of B - 52s . The 96th received B - 52Cs from the 99th Bomb Wing , then new B - 52Ds and B - 52Es from Boeing . It was redesignated the 96th Bombardment Wing , Heavy , on 31 March 1972 . During several months of 1970 , and for a lengthy period in 1972 – 1973 , all wing aircraft , crews , and most support personnel were loaned to other SAC organizations based in the Far East or Southeast Asia for combat operations . From 1980 , the wing ' s 917th Air Refueling Squadron KC - 135A aircraft regularly deployed to Europe , Alaska , and the Pacific to support SAC tanker task force requirements . The 337th Bomb Squadron became the first squadron to operate the B - 1B Lancer , after the arrival of the first aircraft in June 1985 . In addition , the 338th Combat Crew Training Squadron ( CCTS ) received B - 1Bs in June 1992 . In October 1986 , B - 1Bs assumed SAC alert duties for the first time . Wing 917th ARS KC - 135 tankers provided refueling support to units involved in the invasion of Panama , December 1989 . Ferried personnel and equipment to Andersen AFB , Guam for further movement to Southwest Asia , in August 1990 . In December 1990 all remaining tanker aircraft and crews , except those on alert duty , were sent to Incirlik AB Turkey in support of Operation Desert Storm . Post Cold War . On 1 September 1991 , the wing was redesignated as the 96th Wing and implemented the objective wing concept . It was relieved from assignment to SAC and assigned to Air Combat Command on 1 June 1992 . Also on 1 June 1992 , the 917 ARS acquired KC - 135Qs in conjunction with the drawdown of tanker operations at Beale AFB , California . In accordance with the realignment of tanker squadrons to Air Mobility Command , the 917 ARS was reassigned to the 43d Operations Group at Malmstrom AFB , Montana on 30 September 1993 . On 1 October 1993 the 96th Wing inactivated , replaced by the 7th Wing ( 7 WG ) , which was moved without personnel or equipment due to the BRAC transfer of Carswell AFB , Texas to the U . S . Navy and its redesignation as Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth / Carswell Field . The B - 1Bs of the 337th BS were reassigned to the 7 WG , and the 337h BS was reorganized and absorbed the B - 1s of the inactivating 338 Crew Training Squadron as part of the new wing . The 96th Air Base Wing stood up as a non - flying organization on 15 March 1994 . It assumed the mission of supporting the Air Armament Center and associate units at Eglin AFB , Florida . 2012 Air Force Material Command Restructuring . The wing was redesignated as the 96th Test Wing ( merging the 96th Air Base Wing and the 46th Test Wing together ) , as part of the 2012 Air Force Material Command Restructuring . It is the test and evaluation unit for Air Force air - delivered weapons , navigation and guidance systems , Command and Control systems and Air Force Special Operations Command systems . The wing provides expert evaluation and validation of the performance of systems throughout the design , development , acquisition , and sustainment process to ensure the warfighter has technologically superior , reliable , maintainable , sustainable and safe systems . The 96th TW performs developmental test and evaluation across the complete system life cycle for a wide variety of customers including : Air Force Systems Program Offices , the Air Force Research Laboratory , logistics and product centers ; major commands ; other DoD services and U . S . government agencies ( Department of Transportation , NASA , etc . ) ; foreign military sales ; and private industry . Additionally the wing commander serves as the installation commander , supporting Team Eglin with traditional military services as well as all the services of a small city , including civil engineering , personnel , logistics , communications , computer , medical , security , and all other host services . The Wing provides a myriad of base operating support functions like material resources , mobility requirements , and meeting the needs of Eglin personnel . There are seven distinct groups in the wing ( see groups below ) , the Air Force Seek Eagle Office and more than 30 squadrons and divisions . Components . Groups Squadrons