and selected allied pilots in the F-4E Phantom II. In July 1971, the squadron became the 94th Tactical Fighter Squadron and was assigned to MacDill AFB, Florida, providing combat crew training for U.S. Redesignated the 94th Fighter Interceptor Squadron in 1950, the unit was assigned to the Western Air Defense Force at George Air Force Base, California. The “SPADs” flew the P-80 Shooting Star, America’s first operational jet fighter, while stationed at March Field, California beginning July 1946. During the war, the 94th recorded 124 aerial victories. During World War II, the unit won three Distinguished Unit Citations for actions over Salerno, 25 August 1943 Aversa, 30 August 1943 and Ploesti,, as part of the 1st Fighter Group. The squadron was soon on its way to March Field, Calif., with its P-38s. The 94th, nicknamed the “SPADs,” were on a temporary duty assignment to El Paso, Texas, when Pearl Harbor was bombed. The squadron even utilized the Lakota Indian head, the signature artwork of the Lafayette Escadrille and 103d, as the 94th emblem between WWI and WWII while the “Hat-in-the-Ring” was temporarily unauthorized. This was a very significant decision which allowed the heritage of the Lafayette Escadrille and 103d Aero Squadron to live on through the 94th. Air Service consolidated the lineage and honors of the 103d Aero Squadron with those of 94th. In 1924, in an effort to preserve the heritage of former WWI units, the U.S. Among the aircraft flown following World War I were the P-1, P-6, P-12B, Y1P‑16, P-26, P-35 and P-43. With such famous members as Eddie Rickenbacker, James Meissner, and Douglas Campbell, and under the mentorship of the Lafayette Escadrille’s most lethal pilot, Raoul Lufbery, the "Hat‑in‑the-Ring Gang" scored nearly 70 kills during the war, more than any other squadron, flying the Nieuport 28 and SPAD XIII.Īfter WWI, the 94th was reassigned to Selfridge Field, Mich., where it spent most of the years prior to WWII. The 94th is also credited with the last aerial victory of the war on 10 November 1918, one day before the Armistice. On 14 April 1918, Lieutenants Alan Winslow and Douglas Campbell each downed a German aircraft for the first aerial victories in squadron history. The 94th performed the first patrol flown by an American‑trained squadron in France during World War I, on March 6, 1918, flying the Nieuport 28. Organized as the 94th Aero Squadron at Kelly Field, Texas on 20 August 1917, the squadron began its long and prestigious history in air warfare. The squadron operates the world’s most advanced Air Dominance fighter, the F-22A Raptor, and is ready for global deployment as part of the 1st Fighter Wing. It is tasked to provide Air Superiority for the United States and allied forces by engaging and destroying enemy forces, equipment, defenses or installations. The 94th Fighter Squadron is one of the oldest and most decorated fighter squadrons in America's history.