the Japanese Home Islands using Boeing B-29 Superfortresses. Many personnel were demobilized upon arrival at the port of embarkation; a small cadre of key personnel was formed and the group was then established at Sioux Falls Army Air Field, South Dakota in late May where the group was reformed with new personnel. After a period of organization, the group moved to Dalhart Army Air Field, Texas, where initial training was conducted with former II Bomber Command B-17 Flying Fortress; B-25 Mitchells and some B-29s. As the group was so far along in training, it moved to Grand Island Army Air Field, Nebraska in September where it became a regular unit of Continental Air Forces, receiving some of the last new B-29 aircraft manufactured by Boeing. In November, its 719th squadron was converted to a reconnaissance unit and redesignated the 46th Reconnaissance Squadron, Very Long Range (Photographic-Weather). On 21 March 1946, the 449th Bombardment Group became one of the initial ten B-29 groups assigned to Strategic Air Command (SAC). The group was inactivated on 4 August 1946 and its personnel, mission, and equipment were reassigned to the 28th Bombardment Group. Strategic Air Command 4239th Strategic Wing The origins of the 449th Bombardment Wing began on 1 July 1959 when SAC established the 4239th Strategic Wing (SW) at Kincheloe AFB, Michigan, an Air Defense Command (ADC) base, whose host was the 507th Fighter Group (Air Defense ) and assigned it to the 40th Air Division as part of SAC's plan to disperse its Boeing B-52 Stratofortress heavy bombers over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike. The wing remained a headquarters only until 1 June 1961 when the 70th Munitions Maintenance Squadron was activated to oversee the wing's special weapons. The 93d Bombardment Squadron (BS), consisting of 15 Boeing B-52 Stratofortresses, moved to Kincheloe from Homestead AFB, Florida where it had been one of the three squadrons of the 19th Bombardment Wing in August 1961. At the same time three maintenance squadrons and a squadron to provide security for special weapons were activated and assigned to the wing. Starting in 1960, one third of the squadron's aircraft were maintained on fifteen-minute alert, fully fueled and ready for combat to reduce vulnerability to a Soviet missile strike. This was increased to half the squadron's aircraft