340th Weapons Squadron The 340th Weapons Squadron ( 340 WPS ) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the USAF Weapons School . It is stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base , Louisiana . The 340th WPS is a Geographically Separated Unit ( GSU ) of the 57th Wing , assigned to Nellis AFB , Nevada . The mission of the squadron is to provide B - 52 Stratofortress instructional flying . On 3 February 1942 , Captain Paul Tibbets ( of Enola Gay fame ) was given command of a new squadron that would later become the 340th Bombardment Squadron . The 340th Bomb Squadron was involved in combat missions in both the European and Mediterranean theaters from 1942 through 1945 . The most notable of these were the raids on Hitler ’ s largest oil refinery in Ploesti , Romania . During the Vietnam War , B - 52 crews from the 340th BS participated in the LINEBACKER offensives over the skies of North Vietnam . In August 1990 the 340th deployed aircrews for Operation DESERT STORM . History . World War II . Established in early 1942 as a B - 17 Flying Fortress heavy bomb squadron ; trained under Third Air Force in Florida . Deployed to European Theater of Operations ( ETO ) in mid - June 1942 , being assigned to VIII Bomber Command in England . The squadron was one of the first B - 17 heavy bomb squadrons in the ETO . During the summer of 1942 , engaged in long range strategic bombardment of enemy military , transport and industrial targets , primarily in France and the Low Countries with limited fighter escorts . Reassigned to the new Twelfth Air Force in England , being deployed to Algiers as part of the initial Operation Torch forces that arrived in North Africa . Squadron aircraft carried Triangle - O on tail . Engaged in bombardment of enemy targets in Algeria and Tunisia as part of the North African Campaign , and attacked enemy strong points around Tunis as part of the Tunisian Campaign . Continued heavy bomb missions of enemy targets in Sicily and Southern Italy and in late 1943 was reassigned to new Fifteenth Air Force formed in Southern Italy . From airfields around Foggia , conducted long - range strategic bombardment missions over Southern Europe and the Balkans of enemy targets until the German Capitulation in May 1945 . Demobilized squadron personnel and aircraft were sent to the United States for reclamation in the fall of 1945 ; being inactivated in Italy in October . Cold War . Reactivated in August 1946 under Strategic Air Command . Equipped with B - 29 Superfortresses and participated in numerous exercises , operational readiness inspections , and overseas deployments . Became part of SAC nuclear deterrent force . Began upgrading to the new B - 50 Superfortress , an advanced version of the B - 29 in 1949 . The B - 50 gave the unit the capability to carry heavy loads of conventional weapons faster and farther as well as being designed for atomic bomb missions if necessary . By 1951 , the emergence of the Soviet Mig - 21 interceptor in the skies of North Korea signaled the end of the propeller - driven B - 50 as a first - line strategic bomber . Received B - 47 Stratojet jet bombers in 1955 and despite initial difficulties , the Stratojet became the mainstay of the medium - bombing strength of SAC all throughout the 1950s , deployed frequently to North Africa and England for REFLEX exercises . Began sending its B - 47s to AMARC at Davis - Monthan in 1959 when the aircraft was deemed no longer capable of penetrating Soviet airspace . Reassigned to Blytheville AFB , Arkansas and equipped with B - 52G Stratofortress strategic bombers in 1960 . Stood nuclear alert with the B - 52G , although deployed aircrew to forward bases in the Western Pacific during the Vietnam War which flew Arc Light and Linebacker I combat missions over Indochina ; aircrews participated in the December 1972 / January 1973 Linebacker II missions over the Hanoi - Haiphong area of North Vietnam . On 15 August 1973 , after months of committing most of the wing ' s people and resources to the conflict , crew E - 21 had the distinction of flying the last B - 52 mission over a target in Cambodia . This marked the end of the United States ' strategic bombing in Southeast Asia . Crews returned to the United States to training and alert status . Deployed aircraft and crews to RAF Fairford , England in February 1991 , engaging in combat operations over Iraq and Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm . Inactivated in early 1992 after the end of the Cold War . Modern era . The Air Force Chief of Staff directed the creation of the B - 52 Division , USAF Weapons School on 1 October 1989 as the Strategic Weapons School , graduating the first class in April 1990 . In 1992 , with the activation of Air Combat Command , the B - 52 Division was reborn as part of the USAF Weapons School , eventually becoming Detachment 2 , USAF Weapons School . The 340th Bombardment Squadron was reactivated as the 340th Weapons Squadron , USAF Weapons School on on 3 February 2003