WHAT A WAY TO MAKE AN ENTRANCE! 6-SHIP FORMATION 494TH FS "PANTHERS" RETURN HOME • RAF LAKENHEATH

Six F-15E Strike Eagles of the 494th Fighter Squadron "Panthers" return home after months away and just look at their entrance in a 6-ship formation and into the break to land. Take note of their nose art and markings!

The 494th Fighter Squadron is a combat-ready McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle squadron based at RAF Lakenheath and are capable of executing strategic attack, interdiction, and counter air missions in support of United States Air Forces in Europe, United States European Command, and NATO operations. It employs the full array of air superiority and surface attack munitions to include the most advanced precision-guided weapons in the USAF inventory. The squadron is capable of deploying to any theater of operations in the world.

Their history starts them back in 1941 and were activated as a Southeastern Air District Army Air Corps training squadron, equipped with a variety of second-line aircraft, both single and twin engine, preparing its pilots and maintenance crews for eventual combat. After the Pearl Harbor Attack, the squadron flew antisubmarine patrols from, March–April 1942. Resumed aircrew training, many of the group's members went on to serve in squadrons stationed in Europe and the Pacific theaters.
Eventually coming under the AAF III Fighter Command in 1944, trained replacement pilots with P-47 Thunderbolts, Converted in January 1944 to an operational fighter squadron with the end of RTU training. Deployed to the European Theater of Operations (ETO), being assigned to the IX Fighter Command in England, March 1944.

On the 7th November 1945, the squadron inactivated but reactivated in 1952 and found themselves under the command of the 48th Fighter Bomb Wing based in Chamount AB, France, which are now the 48th Fighter Wing here at RAF Lakenheath. With F-84G Thunderjets, F-86s and then F-100 Super Sabres.

In 1960 The 48th TFW moved to RAF Lakenheath taking their three squadrons with them including the 494th TFS. In late 1971 the squadron started its conversion to the McDonnell Douglas F-4D Phantom II. With the arrival of the Phantoms, the F-4s adopted a common tail code of "LK". This tail code lasted only a few months as in July and August 1972 the 48th TFW further recoded to "LN".

In 1977, RAF Lakenheath's Squadrons transitioned to F-111s and the 494th participated in Operation El Dorado Canyon, the air raid on Tripoli, Libya on 14 and 15 April 1986. It flew combat missions in Southwest Asia from, January–February 1991 as part of Operation Desert Storm. It was after these operations that the 48th TFW were redesignated as the 48th Fighter Wing, meaning that the 494th also dropped the "Tactical", making them the 494th Fighter Squadron.

With all these changes, the squadron switched aircraft again, exchanging the F-111s (which stated to be retired in 1991) for the F-15E Strike Eagle in early February 1992. The Strike Eagle represented a change from a strictly ground attack role to a dual role mission for the 494th: air interdiction and air superiority.

#f15 #strikeeagle #f15strikeeagle #runway #letsride #usaf #usairforce #power #494fs #panthers #sendit #tedconingsby #oohyeah #love #life #trending #super #f15e

Official Ted Coningsby Merchandise
https://tedconingsby.co.uk/shop/
noTEDS
https://tedconingsby.co.uk/noteds/
Ted Social stuff
Instagram
  / ted_coningsby  
Facebook
  / tedconingsbyuk  
X
  / tedconingsby  
www.tedconingsby.co.uk

Ted Coningsby Membership:
Join our channel to get access to members only perks. In reality, we rely on your subscriptions to keep our channel growing, so this is a MASSIVE help and thank you to ALL of you who have subscribed. We go all over the country to get the footage we need for you to enjoy but this comes at a cost. Your membership will help fund us with the fuel and the equipment we need...
   / tedconingsby