33rd Flying Training Wing (World War II)

The 33d Flying Training Wing is an inactive United States Army Air Forces unit. It was last assigned to the Central Flying Training Command, and was disbanded on 13 October 1946 at Randolph Field, Texas.

33d Flying Training Wing
Locations of airfields controlled by the 33d Flying Training Wing
Active	1942–1946
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army Air Forces
Type	Command and Control
Role	Training
Part of	Army Air Forces Training Command
Engagements	World War II World War II American Theater

There is no lineage link between the United States Air Force 33d Fighter Wing, established on 15 October 1947 at Roswell Army Airfield, New Mexico, and this organization.

The wing was a World War II Command and Control organization which supported Training Command Flight Schools in Central and Northern Texas and Oklahoma. The assigned schools provided phase III advanced two-engine flying training for Air Cadets, along with advanced B-25 Mitchell transition training for experienced pilots for reassignment to other flying units. Air Cadet graduates of the advanced schools were commissioned as Second Lieutenants, received their "wings" and were reassigned to Operational or Replacement Training Units operated by one of the four numbered air fores in the zone of interior.^[1]

As training requirements changed during the war, schools were activated and inactivated or transferred to meet those requirements.^[1]

• Established as 33d Flying Training Wing on 17 December 1942

Activated on 16 January 1943

Disbanded on 13 October 1946.^[2]

• AAF Gulf Coast Training Center (later Central Flying Training Command), 16 January 1943 – 13 October 1946 ^[2]

The schools of the wing used primarily the Beechcraft AT-7 and Cessna AT-17/UC-78 as their two-engine advanced trainer.

• Curtiss-Wright AT-9 high performance two-engine trainers were also used for high-performance fighter training
• Beechcraft AT-10s for two-engine bomber training.
• North American B-25s were used for two-engine transition training
• L-2, L-3, L-4, TG-5 and TG-6s were used for glider and liaison pilot training ^[1]

• Blackland Army Airfield, Texas, 16 January 1943
• Waco Army Airfield, Texas, 8 Jul 1944
• Randolph Field, Texas, (temporary 31 October 1945) permanent 5 August – 13 October 1946 ^[2]

• Army Air Forces Training Command
• Other Central Flying Training Command Flight Training Wings:

31st Flying Training Wing (World War II) Primary Flight Training

32d Flying Training Wing (World War II) Basic Flight Training

34th Flying Training Wing (World War II) Bombardier and Specialized Two/Four-Engine Training

77th Flying Training Wing (World War II) Advanced Flight Training, Single Engine

78th Flying Training Wing (World War II) Classification/Preflight Unit

80th Flying Training Wing (World War II) Navigation and Glider

  This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency