5th Pursuit Group The 5th Pursuit Group was an Air Service , United States Army unit that was assigned to the American Expeditionary Force s during World War I . It was demobilized in Germany after serving with the Third Army Air Service as part of the American Occupation of the Rhineland in May , 1919 . There is no modern United States Air Force unit that shares its lineage and history . History . The 5th Pursuit Group was authorized by the Second Army Air Service in October 1918 , for the purpose of participating in the planned drive on Metz and subsequent offenses . However , the signing of the Armistice with Germany on 11 November intervened . Officially organized on 15 November 1918 , initially , the 41st , 138th and 638th Aero Squadrons ( Pursuit ) were assigned to the Group , and were billeted in the village of Lay St . Remy , in the Toul Sector . The Aerodrome was located only about a dozen kilometers from the town . Within several weeks after the Group ' s formation , barracks were completed near the field and the squadron ' s men were moved to the quarters . Many of the pilots of the Group had seen service with the British Royal Flying Corps , and a few had been shot down over German - held territory and had been taken prisoner . Also , several of the pilots were instructors in the United States and were sent overseas late in the war , and had not seen combat . Also many of the men of the squadrons had been instructors at training fields both in the United States , as well as in England and Scotland . Although formed after the Armistice with Germany , the flying of the Group did not . Pilots flew proficiency flights , training in formation flying , patrols and in air combat being on the schedule each day the weather permitted , although all flying was performed in friendly territory . Also demonstration flying was performed for various events to thrill the crowd and to demonstrate to the other branches of the service the capabilities of the Air Service . The pilots were skilled in aerobatic flying , and no accidents ever resulted from an exhibition . High - ranking officers would visit Lay - Saint - Remy Aerodrome on occasion to discuss their cooperation with the Air Service during the War , and on their own particular work . Courses were held for the enlisted men in maintaining their skills learned and updating them with experiences learned during the war . By 1919 , the rough , barren airdrome had been transformed by much hard work , into one of the showplaces of the Second Army Air Service . Colonel Frank P . Lahm , Chief of Air Service , Second Army , remarked in a talk to the officers of the Group that the station compared most favorably with a Regular Army post in the United States during peacetime . A fully equipped Officer ' s Club ( The " Side Slip Inn " ) was one of the best - equipped , and prettiest places to be found in France , and it was here that the officers of the group entertained the many high - ranking visitors . On 15 April 1919 , orders were received that the Second Army Air Service was being demobilized . The entire 5th Pursuit Group was ordered to Coblenz , Germany to become part of the Third Army Air Service . Just before this , the Group had been reviewed by General Pershing and General Patrick , Chief of Air Service , AEF . The group was informed that the 141st Aero Squadron would be joining it at Coblenz . Each squadron prepared to move , and their equipment and supplies were moved the 200 - odd miles in their own trucks . The enlisted personnel moved by rail and also by truck , while the pilots ferried their aircraft to their new airfield in the Rhineland . The group made itself comfortable in Fort Kaiser Alexander , which was built by Wilhelm Hohenzollern ' s grandfather . The Fort commanded a high ridge between the Rhine and Moselle rivers , overlooking the city . There it was also joined by the 3d Air Park , its primary support unit that completed the organization of the Group . At Coblenz , the groups flew a mixture of their assigned aircraft , and also they were was able to perform test flights on surrendered German aircraft . Flights of the Fokker D . VII , Pfalz D . XII , Halberstadts and Rumpler aircraft were made and evaluations were made . The entire air service of the Third Army , excepting that of the III Corps Observation Group at Weißenthurm Airdrome , were relieved from further duty with the Third Army , on 12 May 1919 and ordered demobilized . The 5th Pursuit Group component squadrons were ordered to proceed to the 1st Air Depot at Colombey - les - Belles Airdrome , France for subsequent demobilization .