U.S. Army Air Forces

7th Air Force

Originally the Hawaiian Air Force — present at Hickam Field during Pearl Harbor. The 7th Air Force provided air defense of the Hawaiian Islands before deploying combat units across the Central Pacific. Its bomb groups neutralized Japanese garrisons in the Gilberts, Marshalls, and Carolines. In 1945, VII Fighter Command's P-51 Mustang groups deployed to Iwo Jima to fly Very Long Range escort missions protecting B-29 Superfortresses over Tokyo — 1,500-mile round trips that were the longest fighter missions of the war.

7th Air Force — Bomb Groups CENTRAL PACIFIC · 1942–1945

Bombardment Group (Heavy)

The Grey Geese

B-17/B-24

Flying Fortress

Present at Hickam Field during the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941 — one of the hardest-hit units that morning. The 'Grey Geese' rebuilt and deployed to the Central and South Pacific, bombing Japanese bases across the Gilberts, Marshalls, and Philippines.

Squadrons

Bombardment Group (Heavy)

B-24

Liberator

Flew B-24 Liberators from bases across the Central Pacific. Bombed Japanese garrisons on Wake, Nauru, and the Marshall Islands before moving forward to the Marianas. Led the neutralization campaign against Iwo Jima ahead of the Marine assault.

Squadrons

Bombardment Group (Medium)

B-25

Mitchell

Flew B-25 Mitchell medium bombers on tactical strikes across the Central Pacific. Attacked Japanese positions in the Gilbert and Marshall Islands before moving to the Marianas to support operations against Iwo Jima and the Bonin Islands.

Squadrons

Bombardment Group (Heavy)

Kelly's Kobras

B-24

Liberator

'Kelly's Kobras' arrived in the Pacific in 1944, flying B-24 Liberators from Angaur in the Palau Islands and later the Philippines. Attacked Japanese shipping, airfields, and installations across the Western Pacific during the final year of the war.

Squadrons

7th Air Force — Fighter Groups CENTRAL PACIFIC · 1942–1945

Fighter Group

P-51

Mustang

First fighter group on Iwo Jima, landing on D+15 (March 6, 1945). Flew P-51 Mustangs on the first Very Long Range escort missions from Iwo Jima to Tokyo — 1,500 miles round trip — protecting B-29 Superfortresses over the Japanese homeland.

Squadrons

Fighter Group

P-51

Mustang

Created in Hawaii for island defense, the 21st transitioned from P-39 Airacobras to P-51 Mustangs for the VLR escort mission. Deployed to Iwo Jima in 1945 where they escorted B-29s on strategic raids against the Japanese home islands.

Squadrons

Fighter Group

P-47

Thunderbolt

Flew P-47 Thunderbolts across the Central Pacific from Hawaii to the Marianas to Ie Shima off Okinawa. Provided air defense, ground attack support, and escort missions during the campaigns to seize the island chain leading to Japan.

Squadrons

Fighter Group

P-47

Thunderbolt

Arrived at Ie Shima near Okinawa in mid-1945, flying P-47N Thunderbolts on long-range escort and ground attack missions against Japanese targets on Kyushu and the home islands during the final months of the Pacific war.

Squadrons

Fighter Group

P-47

Thunderbolt

Served as the primary air defense unit for the Hawaiian Islands during the final phase of the war. Equipped with P-47 Thunderbolts, the 508th maintained the defensive perimeter around the vital Pacific staging bases on Oahu.

Squadrons

Bomb Groups

Fighter Groups

31+

Squadrons