100th Aero Squadron The 100th Aero Squadron was a Air Service , United States Army squadron during World War I . Ordered to serve on the Western Front , it boarded the SS Tuscania on 23 January 1918 . The ship was torpedoed on 5 February and most of the survivors were rescued . Re - formed in England the squadron was assigned as a Day Bombardment Squadron ; its mission to perform long - range bombing attacks on roads and railroads ; destruction of materiel and massed troop formations behind enemy lines . It was assigned to the 2d Day Bombardment Group , United States Second Army . Just before its first scheduled combat mission , the war ended . After the 1918 Armistice with Germany , the squadron returned to the United States in June 1919 and was demobilized . The squadron was never reactivated and there is no current United States Air Force or Air National Guard successor unit . History . Origins . The 100th Aero Squadron was organized on 20 August 1917 at Kelly Field , Texas . Initially , the squadron was given instruction in basic drill and the fundamentals of soldering . After two months of indoctrination training , orders for overseas duty were issued and the squadron was ordered to Mineola Field , Long Island , New York on 14 October . At Mineola Field , instruction was given to the men in the maintenance of Curtiss JN - 4 " Jenny " aircraft and the Liberty V - 12 engine which powered them . Finally , on 20 January 1918 , orders were issued for the squadron to proceed to the Port of Entry , Hoboken , New Jersey for service overseas . The SS Tuscania sinking . The squadron boarded the SS Tuscania on 23 January , bound for the port of Liverpool , England . Initially sailing for Halifax , Nova Scotia , the Tuscania waited there to form up in a convoy prior to the Atlantic crossing . The crossing was uneventful until the late afternoon of 5 February . At 17 : 54 the ship was shaken to its keel by a large explosion , the significance of which everyone was aware . There was a quick alarm and some scurrying on the decks , however , there was no panic or disorder . The squadron historian writes : " . . . I had just finished supper and come onto " B " Deck , at a point directly above the engine room when all of a sudden something struck the ship with a loud explosion . The boat seemed to be hurled entirely out of the water and trembled from one end to the other . The force of the explosion sent a column of water into the air that reached the top rigging . Several of us were directly in the path of this , receiving a thorough drenching . It was no time at all before the vessel listed sharply to starboard . This rendered the lowering of the lifeboats extremely difficult . All men immediately went to their assigned lifeboats , and , despite a natural state of excitement , perfect order prevailed . I was on the port side of " A " Deck and five other members of the Squadron , who with a number of men from the 158th Squadron were supposed to have been lowered in one of the first boats . There ensued some difficulty , however , in launching the boat so we could do nothing but look overboard at the unfortunate ones fighting for their lives in the icy water . The cries were enough to make one stand aghast . About 19 : 45 a torpedo boat came alongside and threw ropes to us . The sea was now becoming rougher , causing the rescue ship to roll considerably and making the work of getting the men to safety on her decks very hazardous and difficult . One big wave caused the two vessels to rub sides , and the poor unfortunates on the ropes were crushed to death between the sides . Other men dropped into the water and were drowned . Some of the boys of our Squadron who perished lost their lives in this manner . In the glare of one of the huge searchlights , I saw one lad struggling in the water , without a life preserver , attempting to catch a line which a British sailor was throwing to him . He finally succeeded in catching hold of the rope , but his hands were evidently frozen and he slipped limply back into the water . After several more unsuccessful attempts , he was fortunate enough to effect a half - hitch around his numbed body and he was hoisted to the deck of the destroyer as it pulled away . After this , the destroyer left there followed some very anxious moments for us , and , while we waited and shivered it appeared that our doom was sealed . It was at this time that someone began singing the " Star Spangled Banner " . It met with a resounding response , and soon the whole ship echoed the national anthem . At 20 : 30 , the destroyer HMS Pigeon steamed alongside of the port bow , and we were soon removed safely on her decks . During the progress of the rescue , two torpedoes were fired by the submarine , one grazing the stern of the British Destroyer , and the second missing only a few yards to the bow of the Tuscania . The detachment of which I was a member was landed at Buncranne , Ireland , about 02 : 00 on 6 February , cold , desolate , but with an unbroken spirit and increasing hatred for the Kaiser . . . " Training in England . After the sinking , the 100th Aero Squadron was re - formed at Winchester , England . At Winchester , the men of the squadron were taken into the quarters of the 6th Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers , who furnished the men with clothing , food , and merriment . At Winchester , the squadron was assigned to the Royal Flying Corps , who divided the men into three detachments . Flight " A " was sent to RFC London Colney ; Flight " B " to RFC Stamford , and Flight " C " to RFC Feltwell . At those stations , the men were instructed in the intricacies of French SPADs , Sopwith Camels , Sopwith Pups and Avros . On 5 May , the squadron was re - assembled at RFC Feltwell , fully trained on the mechanics of the airplanes . Duty in France . At Feltwell , the squadron trained for an additional three months , with the men itching with impatience to get to France . After three months of final training , orders were finally received to report to the Air Service Replacement Concentration Center , St . Maixent Replacement Barracks . Arriving at St . Maixent on 16 August , the 100th was first designated as Pursuit squadron . However , it was then changed a Day Bombardment squadron , and was ordered to Delouze Aerodrome , where it was assigned to the 1st Day Bombardment Group , First Army . However , there were no planes assigned to the squadron and no pilots to fly them . The 100th was assigned to camp duties and remained at Delouze when the rest of the group moved out to Amanty Airdrome , on 7 September . It was then assigned as the Headquarters squadron at Delouze , being in charge of the camp facilities and providing guards for the airfield . The 100th Aero Squadron remained at Delouze until 30 October when a veteran officer - pilot , Captain Belmont P . Beverly , took command of the unit . A number of pilots and observers were assigned and it prepared to become a fighting unit . The squadron was ordered to Ourches Aerodrome , and was assigned to the newly formed 2d Day Bombardment Group of Second Army , joining the 163d Aero Squadron . Support units assigned to Ourches were the 73d Park Squadron , along with the 9th and 16th Photo Sections . Also the squadron began to receive Dayton - Wright DH - 4 aircraft and prepared to enter combat . The Armistice with Germany on 11 November , however , was concluded before the squadron was assigned to any combat missions . Demobilization . After the end of hostilities , the history of the 100th Aero Squadron is scant . It remained at Ourches until 15 April 1919 when the Second Army was demobilized . Orders were received 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 a staging camp in France for the return crossing of the Atlantic back to the United States . The 100th Aero Squadron was shipped home on 31 May 1919 on the SS St . Louis . It was then demobilized at Mitchel Field , New York in June , where the men returned to civilian life .