The 99th Pursuit Squadron was formed on the 16th of January 1941, with the first class graduating on the 7th of March 1942. The commanding officer was Ben O. Davis, who would later command the 332nd FG. CPT. Charles B. Hall would be the first African American pilot to shoot down an enemy aircraft. The 99th supported allied invasions of Sicily and Italy and provided close air support for the U.S. 5th army, French, and polish Armies during the campaign. In more ways than one, the 99th Pursuit Squadron led the way by being the first squadron created, and deployed overseas. The 99th squadron in game attempts to recreate the standard of the original 99th with more focus on historical accuracy, involving formation and tactics. The 99th in game is a pure fighter group and extensively trains to master their craft.

The 100th Fighter Squadron was one of the “Tuskegee Airmen” Squadrons during WW2. The 100th mirrors the impact of all the 332nd fighter groups with a few distinctions. Roscoe Brown, who would later be the commander of the 100th, would be known for his duel and victory over a German 262 “JET” fighter plane. Some say it was the first jet fighter downed in aerial combat. The 100th was the ONLY 332nd Squadron to shot down the German 262 Fighter, with their total being 3. The 100th was one of the first units of the 332nd to also employ the Red Tail that is synonyms with the legend of the Tuskegee Airmen. This Squadron in game centers around collectivness and cohesiveness. We are a tight group that have a similar style of play, and routinely house some of the groups most capable pilots.

The 49th Fighter Group was activated on the 15th of January 1941 and has the distinct honor of being active for over 75 years. The Group conducted all operations in the Pacific Theater of Operations during WW2, and is credited with destroying 678 enemy aircraft during that time, a record that surpassed that of any other fighter group in the south-west Pacific. 43 pilots of the 49th would go on to become aces, including Maj. Richard Bong, who would score 22 of his 40 aerial victories while flying with the 49th. The 49th was equipped with P-40, P-47, P-38, and later P-51 aircraft. In the game, our 49th focuses heavily on the p-38, but will still fly previous mentioned Aircraft. Training is a focus with our group, to make sure we enhance the enjoyment of imersion within our gaming experience.

The 57th Fighter Group was a group of many firsts: first air unit to fly off an aircraft carrier in force, first US air combat unit in North Africa, and the first to modify the P47 for ground attack use. The unit was known to bring an abnormally high rate of its pilots back from missions in a time and theater where this was hard to do. Making use of the P-40F and K variants against 109F’s and G’s in Africa and later converting to the P-47D series which was used to great effect in Italy during Operation Strangle where large amounts of Axis supply was interdicted and destroyed they played a vital role in the war effort there. In IL-2, the 57th focuses on coordinated ground attack as well as fighter escort and working as a team to achieve objectives while trying to maintain a high survival rate.