German Air Force Patch 33 Jabog F 104 Starfighter 331 Staffel a

German Air Force Patch Jabog 33 F 104 Starfighter 331 Staffel Sqn Red a 1970s Nuclear Strike Buchel AB Embroidered on twill cut edge 122mm by 63mm four and thirteen sixteenth inches by two and one half inches.

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History 

Jagdbombergeschwader Jabog 33 Fighter Bomber Wing 33 was activated at to Buchel Air Base on 1 July 1958 equipped with F 84F Thunderstreak fighter aircraft on the redesignation of Waffenschule der Luftwaffe 30 Air Force Weapons School 30 and was assigned for NATO operations in December 1958. 

The Wing comprises a Headquarters and three Groups namely Flying Group Technical Group and Aerodrome Group. Flying Group controls the two flying Squadrons of the Wing 331 and 332. Technical Group provides aircraft technical services including maintenance and repair weapons and ammunition survival equipment fuelling Aerodrome fire protection. A special feature of Jabog 33s Technical Group is their training workshop which was established in 1962 for aircraft mechanics and added electronic equipment and systems EGS qualifications in 1983. Aerodrome Group provides non-aeronautical activities and tasks including transportation supplies Aerodrome security and defence runway and airfield repair. 

Jabog 33 deployed for a month long training exercise to Bandirma air Base Turkey in May 1959 and commenced its regular deployments to Decimomannu Air Base Sardinia to participate in NATO Dissimilar Air Combat Training exercises.  

The Wing commenced its transition to F 104G Starfighter aircraft in August 1962. Under NATO nuclear weapons sharing the US provided nuclear weapons for Germany as a non nuclear NATO state and for its military personnel to store handle practice and deploy the nuclear munitions but can only arm the bombs with authorization codes from the US Department of Defense. Jabog 33 began to train with the US Seventeenth Air Force in handling arming and delivering nuclear weapons with the F 104 Starfighter as the nuclear delivery platform armed with nuclear air to air and air to surface missiles as well as nuclear bombs. The US nuclear weapons were stored at Buchel Air Base under USAFs 702 Munition Support Squadron 702 MUNSS. JaboG 33 was the first Wing of the Luftwaffe to achieve 25000 flight hours on the F 104G Starfighter on 16 May 1966 the first to 200000 hours on 3 April 1982 and with its last F 104G flight on 30 May 1985 reached a total of 231900 hours.  

Jagdbombergeschwader 33 reequipped with Tornado IDS fighter bombers on 30 May 1985 tasked with Air Interdiction Offensive Counter Air Close Air Support and delivery of B 61 nuclear bombs. The Wing is also tasked to create quickly deployable reaction forces for secondment to ongoing operations participation in national and NATO operations and disaster response. Jabog 33 is the only remaining Wing in the German Air Force with the capability to deliver nuclear weapons. 

Abog 33 was redesignated Taktisches Luftwaffengeschwader TaktLwG 33 Tactical Air Force Wing 33 on 1 October 2013 following a restructuring of the German Air Force. 

This patch dates from the 1970s