33rd Pursuit Squadron. 1930s pre-war fighter unit. RARE.
The squadron was redesignated as the 33rd Pursuit Squadron (Fighter) on 6 December 1939; It moved to Mitchel Field, New York in March 1940 after the breakout of World War II in Europe. It was redesignated as an interceptor squadron, and shortly afterwards received early-model Curtiss P-40C Warhawks.
The squadron was deployed to Iceland with P-40 Warhawk fighters as part of the Iceland Base Command (IBC) as part of a bilateral agreement with the Icelandic Government to provide air defense of their nation. Additional fighter squadrons were sent to Iceland after the United States entry into World War II, and the 33rd was reassigned to the new 342nd Composite Group in September 1942, and the squadron received additional Bell P-39 Airacobras. Along with the air defense mission, the 33rd also provided escort patrols for Air Transport Command operations flying through Iceland as part of the North Atlantic air ferry route, and antisubmarine patrols.
