4733d Air Defense Group

The 4733d Air Defense Group is a discontinued United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 64th Air Division at Frobisher Bay, Baffin Island, Northwest Territories, Canada, where it was discontinued in 1958. The group was formed in 1957 when ADC assumed responsibility for air defense of Northern Canada from Northeast Air Command, including support for remote Distant Early Warning Line (DEW Line) radar sites. It also controlled two squadrons operating radars at dispersed locations. It was discontinued in 1958 and its DEW Line support mission transferred to the 4601st Support Group and its radar squadrons to the 4732d Air Defense Group in Newfoundland.

4733d Air Defense Group
Map of the DEW Line
Active	1957–1958
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Aircraft Warning and Control
Role	Air Defense
Part of	Air Defense Command

History

The group was organized in the fall of 1957 at Frobisher Bay by Air Defense Command (ADC) when ADC assumed the mission of Northeast Air Command (NEAC) after NEAC's inactivation.[1] The group was assigned two general surveillance radar squadrons,[2][3] stationed in the high latitudes of northern Canada, which had been assigned directly to NEAC's 64th Air Division. The group's mission was to provide detection and reporting of aircraft in the northern portion of North America and to support Distant Early Warning Line (DEW) radar sites. The group was discontinued in 1958 and the DEW support mission was taken over by 4601st Support Group (DEW), Paramus, New Jersey,[1][4][5] while its radar stations were reassigned to the 4732d Air Defense Group at Goose AFB, Labrador.[2][3]

Lineage

• Designated as the 4733d Air Defense Group and organized on 1 April 1957

Discontinued on 1 May 1958

Assignments

• 64th Air Division, 1 April 1957 – 1 May 1958[1]

Components

• 920th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron[2]

Resolution Island AS, Northern Territories, Canada, 1 April 1957 – 1 May 1958

• 926th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron[3]

Frobisher Bay AB, Northwest Territories, Canada, 1 April 1957 – 1 May 1958

Stations

• Frobisher Bay, 1 April 1957 – 1 May 1958

Commander

• Lt Col. Homer E. Chatfield, 1 April 1957 – 1 May 1958[6]

See also

• List of United States Air Force aircraft control and warning squadrons

References

Notes

1. Cornett, Lloyd H; Johnson, Mildred W (1980). A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization, 1946–1980 (PDF). Peterson AFB, CO: Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center. p. 89.
2. Cornett & Johnson, p. 104
3. Cornett & Johnson, p. 105
4. Abstract, History of 64th Air Div, Jan 1958 – Jun 1958 (accessed 20 January 2012)
5. Cornett & Johnson, p. 87
6. Abstract, History of 4733rd Air Def Gp, Apr 1957 – May 1958 (accessed 20 January 2012)

Bibliography

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

• Cornett, Lloyd H; Johnson, Mildred W (1980). A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization, 1946–1980 (PDF). Peterson AFB, CO: Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center.
• Leonard, Barry (2009). History of Strategic Air and Ballistic Missile Defense (PDF). , Vol II, 1955–1972. Fort McNair, DC: Center for Military History. ISBN 978-1-4379-2131-1.
• Winkler, David F.; Webster, Julie L (1997). Searching the skies: The legacy of the United States Cold War Defense Radar Program (PDF). Champaign, IL: US Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories. LCCN 97020912.