The USAAF believed in the importance of strategic air bombardment as a war-winning concept. It was to be carried out in daylight by a planned 60 combat groups made up of 33 heavy, medium or light bombardment groups, 12 fighter groups for air cover and 15 observation or transport groups.

In July 1942 the first American B17 bombers and P38 fighters and crews arrived in Britain and by mid 1944 the Eighth Air Force had grown to become the biggest military air fleet ever seen. By this time, it had 122 bases, 200,000 personnel, 2,000 four engined bombers and 1,000 fighters.

Because of this vast organisational growth from absolutely nothing over 2½ years, the command structure was also to change and evolve, as were the identification markings displayed on the aircraft. For this reason, most of the generalisations in this commentary must be treated with caution.

At first, the bomb groups were divided into the First and Second Wings. By October 1942 there was also a Third and Fourth Bombardment Wing. By June 1944 The Eighth US Army Air Force heavy bombardment groups were split into three air divisions:

• 1st Air Division: covered Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. Their aircraft were identified by a triangle on the tail.
• 2nd Air Division: mainly in Norfolk and was predominantly flying B24 Liberators. The Headquarters of the 2nd were located at Ketteringham Hall, some three miles north east of Wymondham. Second Air Division planes carried a circle on the tail.
• 3rd Air Division: Elveden Hall was the Headquarters of this division of the 8th US Army Air Force. Broadly speaking the 3rd Air Division flew B17 Flying Fortresses out of Suffolk, but included B17 bases like Deopham Green, Fersfield and Thorpe Abbotts, in Norfolk. Some units had short periods flying B24s.

Aeroplane markings

Planes of the 3rd Air Division carried a square on the tail. The tail plane markings of triangle, circle and square were used on their own from 1942 to 1944. They contained identification letters denoting the Group. For example a square with an A was the 94th from Rougham, a B was the 95th from Horham and C was the 96th out of Snetterton. K in a square represented the 447th at Rattlesden.

These markings were extended in 1944 by coloured bands on the tail and stripes and chevrons on the wings, in an attempt to improve identification over longer distances.  As a general rule a squadron was made up of around 10 to 12 planes. There were normally 4 squadrons in a Bomb Group. A bomb group was usually based on one home airfield, although there were cases like the 388th at Knettishall who had a satellite station at Fersfield in Norfolk. Three Bomb Groups made up a Combat Wing and an Air Division could grow to around six or seven wings.