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4721st Air Defense Group

Field	Value
unit_name	4721st Air Defense Group
image	538th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron F-104 56-841 1958.jpg
image_size	300
caption	[538th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron](538th-fighter-interceptor-squadron) F-104 Starfighter at Larson Air Force Base
dates	1956–1959
country
branch
type	Fighter interceptor
role	Air defense

The 4721st Air Defense Group is a discontinued group of the United States Air Force. Its last assignment was with the 4700th Air Defense Wing at Larson Air Force Base, Washington, where it was last active in 1959.

The group was formed to provide a single command and support organization for the two fighter interceptor squadrons of Air Defense Command that were tenants at Larson, a Tactical Air Command base. It was discontinued after the 322d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron moved in 1959, leaving only a single fighter squadron at Larson.

History

The 4721st Air Defense Group was organized in December 1956 at Larson Air Force Base, Washington to centralize supervision and support of the 322d and 538th Fighter-Interceptor Squadrons. Both squadrons were already stationed at Larson, flying radar equipped and Folding-Fin Aerial Rocket-armed North American F-86D Sabre interceptor aircraft, and assigned directly to the 9th Air Division. The 4721st was a tenant of Tactical Air Command (TAC)'s 62d Air Base Group, the host organization at Larson.

In July 1957, the base transferred from TAC to Military Air Transport Service, although the 62d Group remained the host unit. In the summer of 1957, both the 322d and 538th squadrons upgraded to later model Sabres equipped with data link to tie them directly into the Semi-Automatic Ground Environment command and control system. About June 1958, the 538th FIS converted to Lockheed F-104 Starfighters, armed with the M61 Vulcan 20mm rotary cannon and AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles.

In April 1959, the 322nd moved to Kingsley Field, Oregon and was reassigned out of the group as part of ADC's drawdown at Larson. The following month, the 4721st was discontinued and its remaining squadron, the 538th, was assigned directly to the 4700th Air Defense Wing.

Lineage

Designated as the 4721st Air Defense Group and organized on 1 December 1956 : Discontinued on 1 May 1959

Assignments

9th Air Division, 1 December 1956
25th Air Division, 15 August 1958
4700th Air Defense Wing, 1 September 1958 – 1 May 1959

Components

322d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 1 December 1956 – 1 April 1959
538th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 1 December 1956 – 1 May 1959

Stations

Larson Air Force Base, Washington, 1 December 1956 – 1 May 1959

Aircraft

North American F-86D Sabre: 1956–1957
North American F-86L Sabre: 1957–1959
Lockheed F-104A Starfighter: 1958–1959

Commanders

Col. Louis W. Ford, unknown –
Lt Col. John E. Gaffnery, – unknown

Notes

References

Bibliography

References

(23 September 2025). "1956 USAF Serial Numbers". Joe Baugher’s Serial Number List.
Cornett & Johnson, p. 89
"Abstract, History 9 Joint Defense Division, Jul–Dec 1958". Air Force History Index.
Cornett & Johnson, p. 125
Cornett & Johnson, p. 130
Maurer, p. 396
Maurer, p. 645
Ravenstein, p. 99
"Abstract, History 4721 Air Defense Group, Jan–Jun 1958". Air Force History Index.
"Abstract, History 4721 Air Defense Group, Jul–Dec 1958". Air Force History Index.

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

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