Editing March Air Reserve Base (section)

===Postwar era===

====Tactical Air Command====
After the war, March was assigned to the new [[Tactical Air Command]] (TAC) as part of the postwar reorganization of the Army Air Force. March was allocated to TAC's [[Twelfth Air Force]]. The first TAC unit to be assigned was the [[1st Fighter Group]], under the command of Colonel Frank S. Perego, being reactivated at March on 3 July 1946, replacing and absorbing the assets of the wartime [[412th Fighter Group]]. At the time of its activation, the group's three squadrons (the 27th, 71st, and 94th Fighter Squadrons) flew [[P-80 Shooting Star|Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star]] (after 11 June 1948 F-80), America's first operational jet fighter.
[[File:1stfg-march-1947.jpg|thumb|[[Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star|Lockheed F-80s]] of the [[1st Fighter Group]], 1949. F-80C ''49-493'' undergoing maintenance, and F-80B ''45-8704'' behind it. ''45-8704'' is now on permanent display at the [[Aerospace Museum of California]], located at the former [[McClellan AFB]], near [[Sacramento]].]]
Few members of the 1st Fighter Group foresaw subsequent difficulties in the summer of 1946 as they trained with their new jet fighters. The 412th had reported in the summer of 1945 that the P-80 would be well suited for bomber escort, counterair, and ground support. The 1st Fighter Group trained for these and other possible strategic and tactical missions. Pilot inexperience and mechanical difficulties combined to give the P-80 a high accident rate, while parts shortages curtailed operational training. Even so, the 1st Fighter Group maintained a heavy schedule of demonstration flights that served to introduce the fighter to a curious public.<ref name='history' />

On 15 August 1947, the [[1st Fighter Wing]] was activated as part of AAF Regulation 20-15, "Reorganization of AAF Base Units and Installations," on 27 June 1947. This regulation, which laid out what became known as the [[Hobson Plan]], prescribed a standard organizational setup for all Army Air Force bases worldwide.<ref name='history' /> In 1947, the [[67th Tactical Reconnaissance Group]] (later Wing) was activated as part of a service-wide, wing-base test and assigned to March. When the wing was activated, only the 67th Reconnaissance Group was fully operational. The group was equipped with [[Douglas A-26 Invader|FA-26 Invaders]] (RB-26 after 1948) and [[P-80 Shooting Star|Lockheed FP-80s]] (RF-80s after 1948) and was integrated with the 1st Fighter Wing, performing a wide array of day and night photographic missions in southern California. Budget constraints, though, resulted in the wing's inactivation in March 1949.<ref name='history' />

====Continental Air Command====
In December 1948, Twelfth Air Force and March AFB were assigned from Tactical Air Command to [[Continental Air Command]] (ConAC), established on 1 December 1948. ConAC assumed jurisdiction over both TAC and the [[Air Defense Command]] (ADC). This move reflected an effort to concentrate all fighter forces deployed within the continental United States to strengthen the air defense of the North American continent.

The creation of ConAC was largely an administrative convenience: the units assigned to ConAC were dual-trained and expected to revert to their primary strategic or tactical roles after the air defense battle was won. The 1st Fighter Wing was subsequently transferred from Twelfth Air Force/TAC to [[Fourth Air Force]]/ ConAC on 20 December 1948. The first [[F-86]]As, assigned to the 94th Fighter Squadron, arrived on 15 February 1949. By the end of June the wing had received seventy-nine of its eighty-three authorized F-86s.<ref name='history' />

====Strategic Air Command====
On 1 May 1949, March became a part of the [[Strategic Air Command]] (SAC) and the [[Fifteenth Air Force]] (15AF). On 10 May, the 22d Bombardment Wing (22 BW) was reassigned to March from [[Smoky Hill Air Force Base]], [[Kansas]]. The 22d was equipped with the [[Boeing B-29|Boeing B-29 Superfortress]]. The 1st Fighter Wing was subsequently attached to the 22 BW on 1 July as the 22d Wing's headquarters was initially non-operational and its operational components were detached so it shared a commander with the 1st Fighter Wing. The 22d Bomb Wing became operational on 1 May 1949 and the 1st Fighter Wing was attached to it with both wings sharing the same commanding officer.<ref name='history' />

The new F-86A fighter developed numerous teething troubles during its first months of service, but 1st Fighter Group mechanics gradually overcame these difficulties. When the squadrons found themselves able to launch large formations on schedule, they competed to establish various formation records. The purpose of this exercise became clear in early January 1950, when the 1st Fighter Group deployed a sizable contingent of aircraft to participate in the filming of the [[RKO Pictures]] film [[Jet Pilot (film)|Jet Pilot]]. The group claimed a final formation record on 4 January when it passed a twenty-four plane formation (consisting of eight aircraft from each squadron) "before the cameras." (Note: The film was not released to theaters until October 1957, by which time the F-86A was obsolete).<ref name='history' />

The 1st Fighter Group formed its own aerial demonstration team in January 1950. The team, dubbed the "Sabre Dancers", was composed of five members of the 27th Fighter Squadron. The Sabre Dancers made what was probably their most widely viewed flight on 22 April 1950, when they performed before an [[Armed Forces Day]] audience at [[Eglin AFB]], [[Florida]], that included [[Harry S. Truman|President Harry S. Truman]], most of his Cabinet, and numerous other political leaders.<ref name='history' />

On 16 April 1950, the 1st Fighter Wing was redesignated as the 1st Fighter-Interceptor Wing. On 30 June 1950, the 1st Fighter-Interceptor Group was assigned to the 1st Fighter-Interceptor Wing, which was itself assigned to Fifteenth Air Force and SAC. On 1 July the wing was relieved from assignment to Fifteenth Air Force and SAC and assigned to the [[Fourth Air Force]] and ConAC. Two days later the wing issued orders establishing advanced parties of its headquarters and component organizations at [[George AFB|Victorville (later George) AFB]], [[California]]. The wing made its permanent change of station move to Victorville on 18 July.<ref name='history' />