The 827th Bombardment Squadron is a former United States Army Air Forces unit. It was last assigned to the 484th Bombardment Group at Casablanca Airport, French Morocco, where it was inactivated on 25 July 1945. The squadron was first activated as the 41st Bombardment Squadron as the United States expanded its military following the outbreak of World War II. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the squadron performed antisubmarine warfare missions off the Atlantic coast of the United States, and was redesignated as the 5th Antisubmarine Squadron. After the Army Air Forces antisubmarine mission was transferred to the Navy, the squadron acted as the cadre for a new Consolidated B-24 Liberator group as the 827th Bombardment Squadron. It served in combat in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, where it participated in the strategic bombing campaign against Germany. It earned two Distinguished Unit Citations for operations over Germany and Austria. Following V-E Day it operated with Air Transport Command, returning American troops to the United States until it was inactivated in theater in 1945. History Organization and antisubmarine warfare The squadron was first activated at Langley Field, Virginia in January 1941 as the 41st Bombardment Squadron, one of the original squadrons of the 13th Bombardment Group. The squadron was equipped with a mix of Douglas B-18 Bolos and North American B-25 Mitchells. In June, the 41st and its parent group moved to Orlando Army Air Base, Florida. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the squadron was ordered to search for German U-boats off the southeast coast. Although the Navy was responsible for long range patrolling, it lacked the aircraft to perform the mission and the Army Air Forces (AAF) performed the mission, even though its crews lacked proper training. As antisubmarine warfare assets were realigned to meet the growing threat in the North Atlantic, the 13th Group moved to Westover Field, Massachusetts. In October 1942, the AAF organized its antisubmarine forces into the single Army Air Forces Antisubmarine Command, which established the 25th Antisubmarine Wing the following month to control its forces operating over the Atlantic. Its bombardment group headquarters, including the 13th, were inactivated and the squadron, now designated the 5th Antisubmarine Squadron, was assigned directly to the 25th Wing. In July 1943, the AAF and Navy reached an agreement to transfer the coastal antisubmarine mission to the Navy. This mission transfer also included an exchange of AAF long-range bombers