Fifth Air Force - History

History

see main article Far East Air Force (United States)

With its origins going back almost a century to 1912, the command was officially established on 6 May 1941 as the Philippine Department Air Force at Nichols Field, Luzon, Philippines. Fifth Air Force was a United States Army Air Forces combat air force in the Pacific Theater of World War II, engaging in combat operations primarily in the Southwest Pacific AOR.

During World War II, Fifth Air Force units first engaged the Japanese during the Philippines Campaign (1941–1942), then afterward withdrawing to Australia after the Japanese conquest of the islands. Rearmed, it engaged the Japanese in New Guinea, the Dutch East Indies and then as part of the liberating forces in the Philippines Campaign (1944–45). In the postwar era, Fifth Air Force was the primary USAF occupation force in Japan. During the Korean War, Fifth Air Force was the primary command and control organization for USAF forces engaged in combat operations over Korea, and during the Cold War was the main USAF defense force in Japan.