5th Liaison Squadron

The 5th Liaison Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was first activated during World War II as the 5th Observation Squadron. It served as a training unit for cooperation with field artillery until 1942, when that mission was assumed by the artillery. After training in the United States, it deployed to India in 1944, where it served in combat as the 5th Liaison Squadron until V-J Day, returning to the United States for inactivation in 1946. The squadron was active in the United States as a liaison and a helicopter unit. It was last active at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska in 1954.

Curtiss O-52 Owl

The 5th Observation Squadron was activated on 7 February 1942, at Post Field, Oklahoma as the 5th Observation Squadron (Special). The squadron replaced Flight E of the 16th Observation Squadron, which had supported the Field Artillery School since 1931. It was initially equipped with the Curtiss O-52 Owl observation aircraft, but also flew the Douglas B-18 Bolo bomber, and a number of light aircraft, sometimes called "Flivvers", "Puddle Jumpers" or "Grasshoppers."

The 5th was assigned directly to the Office of the Chief of Air Corps and attached to the Field Artillery School, providing aircraft for training with the school. However, in June 1942, the War Department decided that field artillery units would have "organic" aircraft assigned to serve as air observation posts (Air OP's). The planes would be flown and maintained by Field Artillery personnel, not members of the Air Corps, and the school to train them would be located at Post Field. As a result, the squadron was relieved of its attachment to the artillery school in August and moved to Marshall Field, Kansas to make way for the first class, which began arriving in September.

The squadron moved to Desert Center Army Air Field, where it supported units training at the Desert Training Center, later relocating to Thermal Army Air Field in September. It converted entirely to liaison aircraft in April 1943, becoming the 5th Liaison Squadron. Except for squadron staff officers and flight leaders, pilots of these light planes were enlisted men, typically holding the rank of Staff Sergeant. In October, the squadron moved to Alamo Army Air Field, Texas and prepared for movement overseas.

L-5 Sentinel, as flown by the squadron

In February 1944, the squadron departed the United States for the China-Burma-India Theater, arriving at Ledo Airfield, India in April. From August 1944 until May 1945, Tenth Air Force created the 1st Liaison Group, a provisional unit that included the 5th, along with the 19th, 71st and 115th Liaison Squadrons for operations. While in the CBI Theater it flew 33,904 sorties. In the course of 14 months of operations, 40 squadron aircraft were destroyed in accidents or by enemy action, on one occasion it lost three Stinson L-1 Vigilants in an attempt to rescue a downed bomber crew member from an improvised airstrip in a jungle clearing. Two squadron pilots were killed in the line of duty and two others were MIA and later declared dead. It evacuated over 4,000 casualties from makeshift jungle airstrips and carried hundreds of tons of equipment and supplies and thousands of passengers.

In addition, the squadron's pilots occasionally acted as forward air controllers, directing attacks against Japanese gun positions and troops. The squadron remained in theater until late 1945, then returned to the United States and was inactivated at the Port of Embarkation, Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, in January 1946.

A little over a year later, the squadron was activated at Greenville Army Air Base, South Carolina. It was inactivated there in April 1949.

A few months later, the squadron was redesignated the 5th Helicopter Squadron. It was activated at Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina in October 1949 and equipped with Sikorsky H-5 helicopters. It was inactivated in July 1952.

The squadron returned to its designation as a liaison unit and was activated at Sewart Air Force Base, Tennessee in September 1952. At Sewart, it trained for Arctic operations with de Havilland Canada L-20 Beavers. It moved to Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska in April 1953 and operated the Beaver from several locations in Alaska until inactivating in July 1954.

• Constituted as the 5th Observation Squadron (Special) on 28 January 1942

Activated on 7 February 1942 Redesignated 5th Observation Squadron on 8 August 1942 Redesignated 5th Liaison Squadron on 2 April 1943 Inactivated on 11 January 1946

• Activated on 15 October 1947

Inactivated on 1 April 1949

• Redesignated 5th Helicopter Squadron on 27 September 1949

Activated on 27 October 1949 Inactivated on 22 July 1952

• Redesignated 5th Liaison Squadron on 14 August 1952

Activated on 8 September 1952 Inactivated on 18 June 1954

• Air observation post

Explanatory notes

Citations

This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

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• Raines, Edgar F. Jr. (2000). Eyes of the Artillery: The Origins of Modern U.S. Army Aviation in World War II (PDF). Army Historical Series. Washington, DC: Center of Military History. ISBN 978-1-907521-66-9. OCLC 40890911. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 September 2015.