 The 20th Helicopter Squadron was activated in 1956 to perform traditional helicopter missions with Piasecki H-21 Workhorses for the Tactical Air Command.It was inactivated in 1960.In 1965, the unit's Sikorsky CH-3 helicopters were transferred to Southeast Asia and the squadron began participating in unconventional warfare and special operations in Laos and North Vietnam as Operation Pony Express.