Formally activated in October of 1943 and led by Major General Claire Lee Chennault, already famous for his renowned American Volunteer Group (AVG) that was honored by the Chinese people as “Flying Tigers,” the Chinese-American Composite Wing (CACW) continued that proud legacy—but unlike the AVG, it was manned by personnel of both nations at every level of organization. A binational unit such as this had never been attempted before.

An Army Air Force press release explained this revolutionary concept:

”In the composite wing, Americans will not fight as units for the Chinese air force as the AVG did, but actually fly side by side with the Chinese. Some planes will have American pilots with Chinese crews. Most of the planes will be flown by all-Chinese crews. Occasionally, an American will be in the lead element, at other times in the wing elements, the idea being to give the Chinese squadron and group leaders the latest ‘know-how’ in tactics with American aircraft and to give them training in actual combat under the best American direction.” 

The CACW was “composite” in that its aircraft consisted of both fighters and bombers. Although designated as a wing, it never flew as a single unit; instead, its operational units were assigned to bases often located hundreds of miles apart across India and China. Originally commanded by Colonel Winslow C. Morse, the CACW eventually consisted of the 1st Bombardment Group equipped with B-25 Mitchells (two-engine medium bombers) and the 3rd and 5th Fighter Groups equipped with P-40s, many of them painted with the iconic "shark mouth" of the original Flying Tigers.

Each group was made up of four squadrons each: the 1st Bomb Group of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Bomb Squadrons; the 3rd Fighter Group of the 7th, 8th, 28th, and 32nd Fighter Squadrons; and the 5th Fighter Group of the 17th, 26th, 27th, and 29th Fighter Squadrons. These were Republic of China Air Force squadrons that had been assigned to the CACW and reorganized according to American military standards. Duplicate Chinese and American commands were established for both bomber and fighter groups. Colonel John A. Hilger, second in command on Jimmy Doolittle's famous raid in April 1942, was chosen as the 1st Bomb Group's American commander, while Major Lee Hsueh-yen became the Chinese co-commander. Because he had been shot down in the Tokyo raid and the 14th Air Force had a policy that prohibited airmen from flying combat missions after they had returned through enemy territory, Hilger was replaced by Lieutenant Colonel Irving L. ("Twig") Branch in September 1943.

The 3rd Bomb Squadron, activated in February 1944, was the final bomb squadron of the CACW to go into action, and it played a key role in this unique outfit. Like the previous three (the 2nd, 1st, and 4th, in that order), it trained in Karachi, India (now part of Pakistan) before moving on to China. Unlike the others, it first flew bombing and strafing missions against Japanese targets in Burma (now Myanmar) before making the move to China and provided air support to the recapture of Myitkyina, the largest town in upper Burma.  Its capture was essential because it was an important base of operations, used to attack air traffic over the Himalayas (called “the Hump” by American pilots).

Squadron personnel “flew the Hump” to China in September 1944, just in time to evacuate from their new base at Kweilin (now Guilin) because of the relentless enemy advance. They spent the next year battling chronic supply shortages and “filthy” weather conditions, dysentery and malaria, boredom and anxiety, and the Japanese. The 3rd Bomb Squadron went on to establish an enviable record of combat operations by the victorious conclusion of World War II. 

Read more of this engrossing story in The Spray and Pray Squadron: 3rd Bomb Squadron, 1st Bomb Group, Chinese-American Composite Wing in World War II!