Eastern Air Defense Force
 Air Defense Command | |
|---|---|
 Emblem of the Eastern Air Defense Force | |
| Active | 1949–1960 |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Role | Air Defense |
| Part of | Air Defense Command |
The Eastern Air Defense Force (EADF) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command being stationed at Stewart Air Force Base, New York. It was inactivated on July 1, 1960.
History
EADF was an intermediate-level command and control organization of Air Defense Command. It's origins date to 1 March 1949 when Continental Air Command (ConAC) reorganized Air Defense Command when it became an operating agency. Air defense units within the Continental United States (CONUS) were given to the Eastern and Western Air Defense Liaison Groups, with Western and Eastern Air Defense Forces activated on 1 September 1949.
EADF was originally assigned the area of the Continental United Stats (CONUS) east of a border aligned south from the Canada/Minnesota/North Dakota border to the Gulf of Mexico/Texas/Louisiana border, and eastward along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic Ocean. In 1951 Central Air Defense Force (CADF) was established and the EADF controlled-area west of the Appalachian Mountains was turned over to CADF.
Lineage
- Established as Eastern Air Defense Force and organized September 1, 1949.
- Discontinued July 1, 1960
Assignments
- Continental Air Command, September 1, 1949 – January 1, 1951
- Air Defense Command, January 1, 1951 – July 1, 1960
Stations
- Mitchel AFB, New York, September 1, 1949 – August 1, 1950
- Stewart AFB, New York, August 1, 1950 – July 1, 1960
Components
Air Divisions
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Wings
- Activated at Presque Isle AFB, Maine, 1 January 1951
- Assigned to Eastern Air Defense Force
- Inactivated 6 February 1952
- 33d Fighter Wing (Air Defense)
- Stationed at Otis AFB, Massachusetts
- Re-assigned to Eastern Air Defense Force 1 January 1951 from Air Defense Command
- Inactivated 6 February 1952
- Stationed at McGuire AFB, New Jersey as 52d Fighter All-Weather Wing
- Re-assigned to Eastern Air Defense Force 1 January 1951 from Air Defense Command
- Re-designated 52d Fighter-Interceptor Wing, 1 May 1951
- Inactivated 6 February 1952
- Stationed at Selfridge AFB, Michigan
- Re-assigned to Eastern Air Defense Force 1 January 1951 from Air Defense Command
- Inactivated 6 February 1952
- Federalized Maine Air National Guard, 10 February 1951
- Stationed at Dow AFB, Maine
- Moved to Grenier AFB, New Hampshire, 1 May 1951
- Moved to Larson AFB, Washington and re-assigned to Western Air Defense Force (WADF), 2 August 1951
- Federalized Connecticut Air National Guard, 2 March 1951
- Stationed at Brainard Field, Connecticut
- Moved to Suffolk County AFB, New York, 1 June 1951
- Inactivated and returned to state control, 6 February 1952
- Federalized Indiana Air National Guard, 10 February 1951
- Stationed at Stout Field, Indiana
- Moved to Baer Field, Indiana, 1 May 1951
- Re-assigned to Central Air Defense Force (CADF), 1 December 1951
See also
References
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
- USAF Aerospace Defense Command publication, The Interceptor, January 1979 (Volume 21, Number 1)
- Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-89201-092-4
- Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947–1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-12-9
- A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization 1946 - 1980, by Lloyd H. Cornett and Mildred W. Johnson, Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado
- Winkler, David F. (1997), Searching the skies: the legacy of the United States Cold War defense radar program. Prepared for United States Air Force Headquarters Air Combat Command.
