The unit operated chiefly against strategic objectives. The 707th flew its first mission on 16 December 1943 against shipping facilities in Bremen. The squadron arrived at its new base at RAF Filton in the east of England in early November. This aircraft was shot down 29 April 1944 on mission to Berlin. Identifiable is B-24J Liberator 42-100360. Combat in the European Theater Ĥ46th Bomb Group Liberators on their way to a target.
The 707th was part of the first United States Army Air Forces group to complete the Transatlantic hop from Brazil to Africa without the installation of additional bomb bay fuel tanks. The aircrews ferried their planes under the control of Air Transport Command via the southern route from Florida through Puerto Rico, Brazil, Senegal, and Morocco to England. The aircraft left Lowry on 20 October 1943 for staging at Lincoln AAF, NE. The ground echelon left Lowry on 18 October 1943 for Camp Shanks, New York and embarked on the RMS Queen Mary, sailing on 27 October 1943 and arrived in Greenock on the Firth of Clyde on 2 November 1943. The squadron lost one aircraft during this training. The unit headed for Alamogordo AAF, New Mexico in June 1943, but was diverted to Lowry Field, Colorado, where the squadron was filled out and advanced training was completed. The cadre departed for Orlando AAB, Florida for training with the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics, where they flew simulated combat missions from Montbrook AAF. It was one of the original squadrons of the 446th Bombardment Group.
The squadron was first activated on 1 April 1943 at Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona as the 707th Bombardment Squadron with an initial cadre drawn from the 39th Bombardment Group.
446th Bomb Group Liberators on their way to a target.
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