199th Fighter Squadron

199th Fighter Squadron
199th Fighter Squadron – Lockheed Martin F-22A LRIP Lot 3 Block 20 Raptor 03-4051
Active	5 October 1944 – present
Country	United States
Allegiance	Hawaii
Branch	Air National Guard
Type	Squadron
Role	Fighter
Part of	Hawaii Air National Guard
Garrison/HQ	Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, Honolulu, Hawaii
Nickname(s)	Mytai Fighters
Mascot(s)	Kuka'ilimoku
Tail Code	"HH"
Insignia
199th Fighter Squadron emblem
Tail Code	HH
464th Fighter Squadron emblem

The 199th Fighter Squadron (199 FS) is a unit of the

.

Overview

The 199th Fighter Squadron is a unit of the

, the Air Force's 5th generation fighter aircraft with a select component of active duty personnel acting in the cadre role. Its combination of stealth, supercruise, maneuverability and integrated avionics, coupled with improved supportability, represents an exponential leap in warfighting capabilities. The Raptor performs both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions allowing full realization of operational concepts vital to the 21st-century Air Force.

History

World War II

Established in late 1944 at Peterson Field, Colorado, as the 464th Fighter Squadron. Trained under

escort duty from Okinawa. For four months they received combat training for long-range escort, strafing, and dive-bombing. Training delayed due to P-47N aircraft non-availability, finally equipped in the late spring of 1945 with the long-distance fighters.

Deployed to Okinawa in June 1945 as part of the

, targeting enemy ships, railroad bridges, airfields, factories, and barracks in Japan, Korea, and China. On 8 August 1945 the group escorted B-29 bombers on a raid, shooting down several Japanese fighters.

The squadron flew some long distance fighter-bomber sweeps over Japanese Home Islands 1 July 1945 – 14 August 1945 but never performed operational B-29 escort missions due to the end of the war in August. Last "Ace in a Day" of World War II was 1st LT

of the 464th.

Remained in Okinawa until inactivated in May 1946.

Hawaii Air National Guard

The wartime 463d Fighter Squadron was re-designated as the 199th Fighter Squadron, and was allotted to the

. Its mission was the air defense of Hawaii.

Bellows Field, which was attacked during the 7 December 1941 Japanese attack on Oahu, was excess after World War II ended, and it served as home for the Hawaii Air National Guard.

In 1947, the costs to operate Bellows as an active Air National Guard station led the Territorial government to negotiate with the Army about its future. The Army indicated that it wanted to retain the field in a commissioned status but that it had no funds to maintain the field. The Army offered the Aviation Unit of the Hawaiian National Guard joint use of the field provided all maintenance was assumed by the Guard. A settlement was reached to move the 199th to

Hickam Field

, and to use excess facilities there.

Air Defense mission

The Very-Long-Range (VLR) F-47N was used for air defense patrols over the Islands and had a range which could extend its interception ability over a thousand miles from Hickam. The 199th was not federalized during the Korean War, however many of its members volunteered to serve.

The 199th joined the jet age in 1954 when it finally retired its aging Thunderbolts for

which could be controlled by Ground Control Interceptor station radar and could operate 24/7/365 in all weather conditions.

On 1 December 1960, the 199th was authorized to expand to a group level, and the 154th Fighter-Interceptor Group was established by the National Guard Bureau. The 199th FIS becoming the group's flying squadron. Other squadrons assigned into the group were the 154th Headquarters, 154th Material Squadron (Maintenance), 154th Combat Support Squadron, and the 154th USAF Dispensary.

Along with the change to Group status, on 7 December the Hawaiian Air National Guard began receiving Mach-1

and had been acquired in 1960 by permit from the U.S. Army to the Hawaii ANG.

The 154th flew the Delta Dagger throughout the 1960s, and although the Hawaii ANG was not activated during the

F-106

.

Tactical fighters

The last F-102A finally left ANG service in October 1976, when the 199th FIS of the Hawaii ANG traded in their Delta Daggers for

flight

After a decade flying the F-4C, the 154th received

, Alaska, which was upgrading to the F-15C model. The Eagles received from Alaska had been upgraded though the F-15 Multi-Stage Improvement Program (MSIP) and were used in an air defense mission, which the Hawaii ANG had taken over. In mid-1991, early F-15C versions were received, and the Hawaii ANG operated both the A and C models of the Eagle for the next two decades.

In 1989 with inactivation of the

. With these two sites, 24/7 air surveillance of the Hawaiian island chain is provided. The 154th Aircraft Control Squadron on Kauai also provides a mobile, self-sustainable, combat ready, forward extension and control element equipped to meet the Air Force's ground theater air control systems.

Modern era

In March 1992, with the end of the

was recognized and activated by the National Guard Bureau.

In 1995, in accordance with the Air Force "One Base-One Wing" directive, the 155th was changed in status to a Wing, and the 199th Fighter Squadron was assigned to the new 154th Operations Group.

In July 2010, the Hawaii Air National Guard welcomed the first of its new inventory of

, Virginia.

The F-22 is designed to counter advanced surface-to-air missile systems and next-generation fighters equipped with launch-and-leave missile capability. The F-15s were sent to the boneyard, the last Eagle leaving in 2011. The 199th operates with the active-duty 19th Fighter Squadron as their cadre unit, although the Hawaii ANG is responsible for seventy-five percent of the mission configuration. This is the first time an Air National Guard unit, the 199th Fighter Squadron, has taken the position of only having an active duty squadron as a cadre flying unit.^{[citation needed]}

Lineage

• Constituted as the 464th Fighter Squadron on 5 October 1944

Activated on 12 October 1944

Inactivated on 27 May 1946

• Redesignated 199th Fighter Squadron, Single Engine and allotted to the National Guard on 24 May 1946.

Received federal recognition and activated on 4 November 1946

Redesignated 199th Fighter-Bomber Squadron on 15 July 1952

Redesignated 199th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron on 19 November 1952

Redesignated 199th Tactical Fighter Squadron on 10 June 1976

Redesignated 199th Fighter Squadron on 15 March 1992

Assignments

• 507th Fighter Group
  , 12 October 1944 – 27 May 1946
• Hawaii Air National Guard, 4 November 1946

Gained by: Seventh Air Force

Gained by:

Pacific Air Command

, 15 December 1947

Gained by:

Far East Air Forces

, 1 June 1949

Gained by: Seventh Air Force, 5 January 1955

Gained by: Pacific Air Forces, 1 July 1957

• 154th Fighter-Interceptor Group
  , 1 December 1960
• 154th Tactical Fighter Group
  , 10 June 1976
• 154th Composite Group
  , 3 November 1978
• 154th Group
  , 15 March 1992
• 154th Operations Group, 1 October 1995 – present

Stations

Aircraft

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

External links