 The third predecessor of the squadron was activated in August 1965 as the 4th Air Commando Squadron.Although nominally stationed at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, South Vietnam, the squadron was organized at Forbes Air Force Base, Kansas, where it trained as the first gunship unit in the Air Force for the next three months.It flew night combat missions in South Vietnam manning the Douglas AC-47 Spooky gunship beginning in November 1965.