The 317th Fighter Squadron was activated on 1 July 1942 at Theodore Green Airport, Providence, Rhode Island, as part of the 325th Fighter Group, the "Checker Tails". After six months of intensive training in the P-40 Warhawk, the 317th embarked for North Africa aboard the USS Ranger, in consort with its sister squadrons, the 318th and 319th. The 317th flew its first combat mission in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) under Twelfth Air Force on 17 April 1943. Flying P-40 Warhawks, P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs, the 317th fought in 13 separate campaigns where it earned two Distinguished Unit Citations in action over Italy and Sardinia. In October 1945, after the conclusion of the European air war, the 317th returned to the United States and was inactivated.