USAF 67th Special Operations Squadron / Deployed / Combat Shadow Patch
From their base at RAF Mildenhall, the 67th Special Operations Squadron's MC-130P Combat Shadow flies single or multi-ship low-level air refueling missions for special operations helicopters, and infiltration, exfiltration, and resupply of special operations forces by airdrop or airland. The MC-130P primarily flies missions at low-altitude at night to reduce probability of visual acquisition and intercept by airborne threats.
The unit was constituted as the 67th Air Rescue Squadron on 17 October 1952. It was activated on 14 November 1952 at RAF Sculthorpe, England, and discontinued, and inactivated, on 18 March 1960 at Prestwick, Scotland. It was activated again on 10 May 1961, and organized on 18 June 1961 at Prestwick, Scotland. The unit was redesignated 67th Air Recovery Squadron on 1 August 1965, and then as the 67th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron on 8 January 1966.
It was transferred to Morón Air Base, Spain on 1 July 1966. On 15 January 1970, the 67th ARRS transferred to RAF Woodbridge, UK. The unit operated the Lockheed HC-130 fixed wing (also used as rotational support for their Detachment of H-3 helicopters stationed at Keflavik, Iceland) and Sikorsky MH-53 rotary wing aircraft.
On 1 June 1988 the unit was split into two units redesignated the 67th Special Operations Squadron for the HC-130 aircraft and the 21st Special Operations Squadron for the HH-53 rotary wing. On 1 April 1992 they moved to RAF Alconbury, UK. They are still active as the 67th SOS and have flown the HC-130 since 1965 (designated the MC-130P since 1996). It is currently stationed at RAF Mildenhall, UK.
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