36th Wing
![]() | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (December 2012) |
36th Wing
Brig Gen Thomas B. Palenske | |
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Notable commanders | Ronald Keys |
Insignia | |
36th Wing emblem (approved 17 July 1952)[2] | ![]() |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/35/F-2A_%28530%29_of_6_Sqn_arrives_at_Andersen_Air_Force_Base%2C_-30_Jan._2009_a.jpg/220px-F-2A_%28530%29_of_6_Sqn_arrives_at_Andersen_Air_Force_Base%2C_-30_Jan._2009_a.jpg)
The
. The 36th Wing provides day-to-day mission support to more than 9,000 military, civilian, dependent and retired personnel and 15 associate units on the base.The 36th Wing has three major missions: operate Andersen Air Force Base via its subordinate 36th Mission Support and 36th Medical Groups; Provide power projection through an attached, rotational bomber force via its subordinate 36th Operations and 36th Maintenance Groups; and provide rapid air base opening and initial air base operation ability via its subordinate 36th Contingency Response Group. The 734th Air Mobility Squadron assists the 36th Wing in accomplishing this mission by operating Andersen's air cargo terminal on behalf of Air Mobility Command.
Units
- 36th Operations Group
- 36th Maintenance Group
- 36th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron
- 36th Maintenance Squadron
- 36th Munitions Squadron
- 36th Contingency Response Group
- 736th Security Forces Squadron
- 554th RED HORSE Squadron
- 36th Contingency Response Squadron
- 36th Contingency Response Support Squadron
- 644th Combat Communications Squadron
- 36th Medical Group
- 36th Medical Operations Squadron
- 36th Medical Support Squadron
- 36th Mission Support Group
- 36th Communications Squadron
- 36th Civil Engineering Squadron
- 36th Contracting Squadron
- 36th Logistics Readiness Squadron
- 36th Security Forces Squadron
- 36th Force Support Squadron
- Tenant Units
- 254th Air Base Group – Guam Air National Guard
- 337th Air Support Flight – Australia
- 497th Combat Training Squadron
- 624th Regional Support Group
- 734th Air Mobility Squadron
- Det. 1, 69th Reconnaissance Group
- Det. 2, Remote Tracking Station)
- Det. 602, AFOSI
- HSC-25 Island Knights
- United States Department of Agriculture
History
- For additional history and lineage, see 36th Operations Group
On 2 July 1948 the United States Air Force 36th Fighter Wing was activated at Howard Air Force Base, Panama Canal Zone. The former USAAF 36th Fighter Group became the operational component of the new Air Force wing. Active squadrons of the 36th were:
- 22d Fighter Squadron(F-80A/B, Red color band)
- 23d Fighter Squadron(F-80A/B, Blue color band)
- 53d Fighter Squadron(F-80A/B, Green color band)
United States Air Forces in Europe
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/F-84e-36fbw-1951.jpg/220px-F-84e-36fbw-1951.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/F-105D-Mystere-36thTFW-1964.jpg/220px-F-105D-Mystere-36thTFW-1964.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/F-4D_Phantom_22_and_53_TFS-Bit-1972.jpg/220px-F-4D_Phantom_22_and_53_TFS-Bit-1972.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/F-15-Bitburg.jpg/220px-F-15-Bitburg.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/F-15C_53FS_36FW_Aviano_1993.jpeg/220px-F-15C_53FS_36FW_Aviano_1993.jpeg)
As a result of the
On 20 January 1950, the wing was redesignated as the 36th Fighter-Bomber Wing when 89
The 36th FBW remained at Fürstenfeldbruck until 1952 when it was reassigned to the new
In August 1953, the
In August 1954, the wing was redesignated as the 36th Fighter-Day Wing. In 1956, the wing received the North American F-100 Super Sabre, marking the first time a wing in USAFE flew supersonic jets. On 15 May 1958, the 36th FDW was redesignated as the 36th Tactical Fighter Wing, with its squadrons redesignated as tactical fighter squadrons, because its missions had now grown to include delivery of tactical nuclear weapons.
In May 1961, the wing received the Republic F-105 Thunderchief. Formal USAFE acceptance of the Mach 2 fighter-bombers was held at the Paris Air Show on 3 June 1961. Deliveries of the F-105D model were completed in 1963, and the 36th carried on its Cold War mission of tactical nuclear weapons delivery. Twice in the early 1960s when Cold War tensions were elevated due to the 1961 Berlin Wall crisis and 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis the 36th rose to a high level of alert.
By 1966 the Thud was being phased out of NATO, being replaced by the
In October 1965, the 36th accepted command of the 71st Tactical Missile Squadron from the inactivated
In September 1969, the 36th TFW took responsibility for Spangdahlem Air Base West Germany until December 1971.
By 1976 a major modernization of USAFE was necessary. The
The solution was provided by the
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the 36th conducted routine training missions however the outbreak of the 1990–91 Gulf War put the F-15s of Bitburg into the heart of the conflict. The 36th's pilots and aircraft performed magnificently in Operation Desert Storm. Not a single F-15 aircraft was lost in combat during the war. On 13 March 1991, the deployed squadrons of the 36th returned in victory.
The celebration was brief, however, as the 36th deployed back to Incirlik Air Base, Turkey to support Operation Provide Comfort. Between 5 April and 25 May 1991, the 36th flew 285 sorties over Iraq. Just as before, not a single aircraft was lost in Iraq due to hostile fire.
On 1 October 1991 the wing was redesignated as the 36th Fighter Wing when the objective wing concept was implemented. The 525th Fighter Squadron was inactivated 31 March 1992 as part of the initial post Cold-War drawdown.
Bitburg Air Base was part of the 1993
The wing's combat readiness was tested in Southwest Asia as part of Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm and Proven Force. While flying combat air patrols during the war, the F-15s of the 36th were a strong deterrent to the air forces of Iraq. During Operation Desert Storm, the 36th was credited with downing 17 enemy aircraft in air-combat engagements. On 1 October 1994 the 36th Fighter Wing was inactivated and the final 36th Wing Commander, Brigadier General Roger E. Carleton, presented Bitburg Air Base to the German government.
Pacific Air Forces
The wing was reactivated at Andersen Air Force Base,
The 36th Air Base Wing was activated at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, on 30 September 1994. Under that designation, the wing lived up to its mission several times. In September 1996, the wing provided around-the-clock forward-deployment support to Air Combat Command
On 12 April 2006, the 36th Air Base Wing was redesignated as the 36th Wing. Prior to the redesignation, the wing had been using a temporary designation of air expeditionary wing. The change in the wing's official designation was meant to better align Andersen with its mission statement: "To provide a U.S.-based lethal warfighting platform for the employment, deployment, reception, and throughput of air and space forces in the Asia-Pacific region."
In February 2007, the 36th Operations Group was reactivated as a permanent subordinate unit to the 36th Wing, replacing the temporary 36th Expeditionary Operations Group.
Lineage
- Established as the 36th Fighter Wing on 17 June 1948
- Activated on 2 July 1948
- Redesignated 36th Fighter-Bomber Wing on 20 January 1950
- Redesignated 36th Fighter-Day Wing on 9 August 1954
- Redesignated 36th Tactical Fighter Wing on 8 July 1958
- Redesignated 36th Fighter Wing on 1 October 1991
- Inactivated on 1 October 1994
- Redesignated 36th Air Base Wing and activated on 1 October 1994
- Redesignated 36th Wing on 15 March 2006[2]
Assignments
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Components
- Wings
- 121st Tactical Fighter Wing: attached 12–27 May 1977
- 7149th Tactical Fighter Wing: attached 15 April – 15 September 1969[2]
- Group
- 36th Fighter Group (later 36th Fighter-Bomber Group, 36th Fighter Day Group, 36th Operations Group): 2 July 1948 – 8 December 1957 (not operational after 1 October 1956), 31 March 1992 – 1 October 1994; 15 March 2006 – present[2]
- Squadrons
- 1st Pilotless Bomber Squadron (later 1st Tactical Missile Squadron): attached 14 March 1955 – 15 April 1956.
- 7th Tactical Fighter Squadron: attached 2 March – 4 April 1973, 3 April – 3 May 1974, 4 October – 6 November 1975
- 9th Tactical Fighter Squadron: attached 12 September – 6 October 1970, 4 February – 15 March 1973, 6 September – 7 October 1975
- 18th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron: attached 12–28 April 1977.
- 22d Fighter-Day Squadron (later 22d Tactical Fighter Squadron, 22d Fighter Squadron), attached 1 October 1956 – 7 December 1957, assigned 8 December 1957 – 31 March 1992 (not operational 25 October 1976 – 30 June 1977)
- 23d Fighter-Day Squadron (later 23d Tactical Fighter Squadron), attached 1 October 1956 – 7 December 1957, assigned 8 December 1957 – 31 December 1971
- 32d Fighter-Day Squadron(later 32d Tactical Fighter Squadron, 32d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron: attached 1 October 1956 – 7 December 1957, assigned 8 December 1957 – 8 April 1960
- 39th Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron: attached 1 April 1969 – 31 December 1971
- 45th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron: attached 13 August 1948 – 25 March 1949
- 53d Fighter-Day Squadron (later 53d Tactical Fighter Squadron, 53d Fighter Squadron)], attached 1 October 1956 – 7 December 1957, assigned 8 December 1957 – 31 March 1992 (not operational, 1 February – July 1977)
- 71st Tactical Missile Squadron: 1 October 1965 – 30 April 1969
- 461st Tactical Fighter Squadron: attached 1 October 1956 – 7 December 1957, assigned 8 December 1957 – 1 August 1959
- 525th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron (later 525th Tactical Fighter Squadron): 1 November 1968 – 31 March 1992 (not operational, 9 March – 26 April 1977)[2]
Stations
- Howard Air Force Base, Panama Canal Zone, 2–25 July 1948
- Furstenfeldbruck Air Base, Germany, 13 August 1948
- Bitburg Air Base, Germany, 17 November 1952 – 1 October 1994
- Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, 1 October 1994 – present[2]
Shakey the Pig
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/Shakey_the_Pig.jpg/220px-Shakey_the_Pig.jpg)
Shakey the Pig is the wild boar mascot of 36th Munitions Squadron at Andersen AFB. The first boar given this name was captured in the late 1970s from the jungle near the munitions flight storage area, with the intention of slaughtering the animal and cooking it on a barbecue. The airmen relented and kept it as a mascot. When the incumbent mascot dies, another is caught from the jungle to take its place. It is rumoured that some Shakeys "were the guests of honor at more barbecues than people might imagine" and MSgt David Torelli has said at least one Shakey "was the main course at a local wedding dinner."[4]
List of commanders
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- Brig Gen Thomas B. Palenske, 30 June 2023 - present[5]
References
- Notes
- ^ Approved 14 August 1979. Ravenstein, p. 69
- ^ a b c d e f g h Robertson, Patsy (19 June 2017). "Factsheet 36 Wing (PACAF)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
- ^ 36th TFW Special Order AA-84, 29 September 1965
- ^ Kinkade, Mark (1 November 2002). "The Secret Life of Shakey the Pig". Airman Magazine. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2014. (link requires membership)
- ^ "Brig. Gen. Thomas Palenske takes command of the 36th Wing". 30 June 2023.
Bibliography
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
- Endicott, Judy G. (1998). Active Air Force Wings as of 1 October 1995 and USAF Active Flying, Space, and Missile Squadrons as of 1 October 1995 (PDF). Air Force History and Museums Program. Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ASIN B000113MB2. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
- Martin, Patrick (1994). Tail Code: The Complete History of USAF Tactical Aircraft Tail Code Markings. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Military Aviation History. ISBN 0-88740-513-4.
- Mindling, George; Bolton, Robert (2008). U.S. Air Force Tactical Missiles, 1949–1969: The Pioneers. Raleigh, NC: Lulu Press, Inc. LCCN 2008908364.
- Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). A Guide to Air Force Lineage and Honors (2d, Revised ed.). Maxwell AFB, AL: USAF Historical Research Center.
- Rogers, Brian. (2005). United States Air Force Unit Designations Since 1978. Hinkley, UK: Midland Publications. ISBN 1-85780-197-0.
- USAAS-USAAC-USAAF-USAF Aircraft Serial Numbers—1908 to Present [1]