414th Combat Training Squadron The 414th Combat Training Squadron ( CTS ) is a United States Air Force unit . It is assigned to the 57th Wing at Nellis Air Force Base , Nevada . The 414 CTS is a non - flying organization charged with hosting Red Flag - NELLIS ( RF - N ) exercises , Air Combat Command ' s premier and largest Large Force Exercise ( LFE ) . Overview . Red Flag is a realistic combat training exercise involving the air forces of the United States and its allies . It is conducted on the vast bombing and gunnery ranges at Nellis AFB , Nev . It is one of a series of advanced training programs administered by the Air Warfare Center and Nellis . The 414 CTS coordinates the F - 16 Fighting Falcon s flown by the 64th Aggressor Squadron and F - 15 Eagle s flown by the 65th Aggressor Squadron and the ground based air defenses operated by the 507th Air Defense Aggressor Squadron . History . World War II . Established as a Night Fighter Squadron in January 1943 , trained in Florida with a specialized version of the A - 20 Havoc modified for night combat . Deployed to Twelfth Air Force in Algeria , May 1943 . Equipped with British Bristol Beaufighter , carried out defensive night patrols over Allied held territory during the North African campaign , also conducted night interdiction raids on German positions in Algeria and Tunisia . After German collapse in North Africa , continued defensive patrols and offensive night attacks on Axis positions on Sardinia , Corsica , and in Italy . Detachment operated with Ninth Air Force in Belgium in late 1944 - 1945 during the Battle of the Bulge . Re - equipped with modified Lockheed P - 38L Lightning ( designated P - 38M ) for night operations fitted with an AN / APS - 6 radar in an external radome underneath the nose , relocated radio equipment and anti - flash gun muzzles in early 1945 . Squadron stood down after the end of the European War , May 1945 . Designated as not operational , June 1945 – August 1946 . Reassigned administratively to Shaw AAF , South Carolina , 15 Aug 1946 and equipped with returned P - 61 Black Widow Night Fighters . Never activated , squadron was inactivated 16 Mar 1947 , with aircraft being reassigned to the 319th Fighter Squadron ( All Weather ) and flown to Howard Field , Canal Zone , 1947 for defense of Panama Canal under Air Defense Command . Cold War . Re - designated as the 414th Fighter Weapons Squadron on 22 August 1969 , the squadron reactivated on 15 October 1969 at Nellis AFB , NV , replacing the 4538th Combat Crew Training Squadron . Assigned to the 57th Fighter Weapons ( later , 57th Tactical Training ; 57th Fighter Weapons ) Wing , the 414th was tasked with combat crew training , using the F - 4C Phantom II aircraft . Aircraft initially tail coded " WD " , wing tail code " WA " was adopted in October 1971 . upgrading to the F - 4D and lastly F - 4E , tail coded " WA " with black / yellow check tail stripe . The 414 CTS assumed the duties of the 4440th Tactical Fighter Training Group ( Red Flag ) on 1 March 1976 , performing combat fighter weapons training with the F - 4 until the end of 1981 , when inactivated and squadron was reassigned to the USAF Fighter Weapons School , being re - designated as " F - 4 Division " . Modern era . The squadron was redesignated as the 414th Composite Training Squadron , and activated , on November 1 , 1991 at Nellis AFB . Assigned to the 57th Wing ' s Operations Group , and flying the F - 16 , the squadron was tasked with conducting Red Flag exercises . In 1993 , the unit was renamed the 414th Training Squadron , and in 1994 , the 414th Combat Training Squadron . Performed aggressor training with F - 16C Fighting Falcon s until 2005 when assets were reassigned to the 65th Aggressor Squadron , 57th Adversary Tactics Group . Now a non - flying organization , the 414th , unlike most USAF squadrons , which are typically commanded by lieutenant colonels , the present scope of responsibility of the 414 CTS within the United States Air Force Warfare Center ( USAFWC ) is such that it is now commanded by a full colonel . While the 414 CTS remains technically subordinate to the 57th Operations Group , it is now more analogous to group level - equivalent organization , for administration of the 57 TAG .