64th Fighter Interceptor Squadron F-89 Model

Fly with the 64th Fighter Interceptor Squadron in this handcrafted F-89 model. Each piece is carved from wood and handpainted to provide a piece you'll love.

The squadron was first formed as a P-40 Warhawk pursuit squadron in January 1941 as part of the Army Air Corps Northeast Defense Sector (later I Fighter Command) at Mitchel Field, New York. It trained in New England and provided air defense of the northeast after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

It was reassigned to the U.S. Army Middle East Force in Egypt, July 1942, becoming part of IX Fighter Command. It took part in the British Western Desert Campaign, engaged in combat during the Battle of El Alamein[citation needed] and, as part of Ninth Air Force, supported the Commonwealth Eighth Army's drive across Egypt and Libya, escorting bombers and flying strafing and dive-bombing missions against airfields, communications, and troop concentrations until Axis defeat in Tunisia in May 1943. The unit participated in the reduction of Pantelleria (May–June 1943) and the conquest of Sicily (July–August 1943).

The squadron supported the British Eighth Army's landing at Termoli and subsequent operations in Italy, being reassigned to Twelfth Air Force in August 1943. It flew dive-bombing, strafing, patrol, and escort missions.

In 1944, the squadron converted to P-47 Thunderbolt aircraft and flew interdiction operations in Italy. It moved to Corsica on 30 March 1944 to operate as a separate task force, and flew interdiction missions against railroads, communication targets, and motor vehicles behind enemy lines, providing a minimum of 48 fighter-bomber sorties per day.

The squadron participated in the French campaign against Elba in June 1944 and in the invasion of Southern France in August. It engaged in interdiction and support operations in northern Italy from September 1944 to May 1945.

The 64th flew its last combat mission on 2 May 1945. It remained in northern Italy after the end of the European War, demobilizing throughout the summer of 1945. It was reassigned to the United States in August 1945 without personnel or equipment and was inactivated at the end of August.

Cold War
Reactivated in August 1946 as part of Eleventh Air Force (Later Alaskan Air Command) as part of the air defense forces in the northwest Pacific. It provided air defense initially in the Aleutian Islands, then moved to Nome in early 1947 and to Elmendorf Air Force Base in the fall of 1947. Initially flew P-51 Mustangs, then became equipped with F-80 Shooting Star jet aircraft in 1948. Reassigned to Alaskan Air Command 10th Air Division and became a permanent part of the Alaskan Defense Forces throughout the 1950s, upgrading to the F-94 and F-89 dedicated interceptors.

Was reassigned to McChord AFB, Washington in 1957, upgraded to F-102A Delta Dagger as part of the 25th Air Division, 325th Fighter Group. Provided air defense of the Seattle area and the Pacific Northwest until 1966.

Vietnam war

64th FIS Convair F-102A-60-CO Delta Dagger 56-1064, Clark AB PI 1967
Was deployed by Air Defense Command to Clark Air Base, Philippines in 1966 as part of Pacific Air Forces to provide air defense of Luzon and northern Philippines. Flew F-102s from Clark, and rotated flights to bases in South Vietnam (including Da Nang Air Base) and Thailand to provide air defense against the unlikely event that North Vietnamese aircraft would attack, July 1966 – December 1969. Deployed temporarily to South Korea during the Pueblo crisis in January–June 1968. Inactivated in 1969 as part of the retirement of the F-102.