The United States Air Force's 9th Intelligence Squadron is an intelligence unit located at Beale Air Force Base, California. The 9th is associated with Lockheed U-2 and Distributed Common Ground System operations. The squadron was first active during World War II as the 9th Photographic Technical Unit, serving in the European Theater of Operations. The 9th Reconnaissance Technical Squadron was active from 1948 through 1950 and again from 1966 through 1991, primarily as the photographic interpretation unit of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing. It was consolidated with the 9th Photographic Technical Unit in 1985 and the 9th Intelligence Squadron in 2009.
Mission
The 9th operates and maintains the $15M Deployable Shelterized System-Film, the Department of Defense's only mobile film processing capability, as part of the Air Force Distributed Common Ground System architecture. The unit also processes, exploits, and disseminates broad area, high-resolution imagery collected by the Lockheed U-2 to meet combatant commander requirements.
History
World War II
The squadron was first organized in France during the fall of 1944 as the 9th Photographic Laboratory Section. The section would provide processing of reconnaissance photography for XXIX Tactical Air Command. It continued this mission through V-E Day. It briefly acted as part of the army of occupation, returning to the United States in November 1945, where it was inactivated at the Port of Embarkation.
Strategic reconnaissance support
The second predecessor of the squadron was activated in July 1948 as the 12th Photographic Technical Squadron at Topeka Air Force Base, Kansas, where it was assigned to the 311th Air Division, which was the primary reconnaissance headquarters for Strategic Air Command. In 1949, SAC reorganized its reconnaissance assets, assigning the squadron to the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing and moving it to Fairfield-Suisun Air Force Base, California as the 9th Reconnaissance Technical Squadron. On 1 April 1950, however, the 9th Wing mission changed from long-range reconnaissance to strategic bombardment. Ten days later, the 9th Squadron moved to Rapid City Air Force Base, South Dakota, where it was assigned to the 28th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing. It was inactivated at the end of the month, with its assets forming the cadre for the 28th Reconnaissance Technical Squadron. The squadron was again organized in late June 1966, at Beale Air Force Base, California, where it absorbed the mission, personnel and equipment of the 4203d Reconnaissance Technical Squadron, which was discontinued the same day. The squadron processed reconnaissance products produced by the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing's Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird and, later, Lockheed U-2 Dragon Ladys until inactivating in July 1991.
Intelligence
The 9th Intelligence Support Squadron was activated at Beale in September 1991, the same day its predecessor was inactivated, assuming much of its mission, equipment and personnel. The squadron dropped "support" from its name in 2003, and in July 2009, the two squadrons were consolidated.
Lineage
; 9th Photographic Technical Unit
Constituted as the 9th Photographic Laboratory Section on 25 August 1944
