Mississippi Air National Guard
Mississippi Air National Guard | |
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KC-135 Stratotanker |
The Mississippi Air National Guard (MS ANG), commonly known as the Mississippi Air Guard, is the aerial militia of the State of Mississippi, United States of America. It is, along with the Mississippi Army National Guard, an element of the Mississippi National Guard.
As state militia units, the units in the Mississippi Air National Guard are not in the normal United States Air Force chain of command. They are under the jurisdiction of the Governor of Mississippi though the office of the Mississippi Adjutant General unless they are federalized by order of the President of the United States. The Mississippi Air National Guard is headquartered in Jackson, and its commander is currently[update] Major General Barry A. Blanchard.
Overview
Under the "Total Force" concept, Mississippi Air National Guard units are considered to be Air Reserve Components (ARC) of the
Along with their federal reserve obligations, as state militia units the elements of the Mississippi ANG are subject to being activated by order of the Governor to provide protection of life and property, and preserve peace, order and public safety. State missions include disaster relief in times of earthquakes, hurricanes, floods and forest fires, search and rescue, protection of vital public services, and support to civil defense.
Components
The Mississippi Air National Guard consists of the following major units:
- 172d Airlift Wing
- Established 1 July 1953 (as: C-17 Globemaster III
- Stationed at: Allen C. Thompson Air National Guard Base Field, Jackson
- Gained by: Air Mobility Command
- The 172nd Airlift Wing operates the C-17 Globemaster III, and has participated in an all-volunteer mobilization and activation since 2005, flying weekly missions into harm's way to return wounded patients of the Total Force safely back to the U.S.[2]
- Established 27 Sepatember 1939 (as: C-26 Metroliner
- Stationed at: Key Field Air National Guard Base, Meridian
- Gained by: Air Mobility Command
- The 186th ARW provides worldwide air refueling support to major commands of the United States Air Force, as well as other U.S. military forces and the military forces of allied nations flying the KC-135 Stratotanker.[3]
Support Unit Functions and Capabilities:
- 238th Air Support Operations Squadron, Meridian
- 248th Air Traffic Control Squadron, Meridian
- Gulfport Combat Readiness Training Center, Gulfport
- 255th Air Control Squadron, Gulfport
- Shelby Auxiliary Field #1, adjacent to Camp Shelby in Hattiesburg[4]
- 209th Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron
History
The
The Mississippi Air National Guard origins date to 18 August 1939 with the establishment of the 153d Observation Squadron and is oldest unit of the Mississippi Air National Guard. It is one of the
On 24 May 1946, the United States Army Air Forces, in response to dramatic postwar military budget cuts imposed by President Harry S. Truman, allocated inactive unit designations to the National Guard Bureau for the formation of an Air Force National Guard. These unit designations were allotted and transferred to various State National Guard bureaus to provide them unit designations to re-establish them as Air National Guard units.[6]
The modern Mississippi ANG received federal recognition on 12 September 1946 as the 153d Fighter Squadron at
A second Mississippi ANG unit, the 183d Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, was organized and federally recognized at Hawkins Field, Jackson and extended recognition as a new unit on 1 July 1953.
On 15 October 1962 the 153d Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron was authorized to expand to a group level, and the 186th Tactical Reconnaissance Group was allotted by the National Guard Bureau, extended federal recognition and activated. On 1 July 1965 the 183d Air Transport Squadron was authorized to expand to a group level, and the 172d Air Transport Group was federally recognized at Jackson.
Today, the 172d Airlift Wing (172d AW) flies weekly missions into harm's way to return wounded patients of the Total Force safely back to the U.S. The 186th Air Refueling Wing (186 ARW) provides worldwide air refueling support to major commands of the United States Air Force, as well as other U.S. military forces and the military forces of allied nations.
After the
See also
- Mississippi Military Department
- Mississippi National Guard
- Mississippi State Guard
- Mississippi Wing Civil Air Patrol
Notes
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
References
- ^ "Maj. Gen. Barry A. Blanchard promotion [Image 8 of 11]". DVIDS. 2022-03-05. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
- ^ 172d Airlift Wing
- ^ 186th Air Refueling Wing
- ^ First Air Guard Assault Runway at Camp Shelby
- ^ ANG Chronology 1908-2007, see also Brief History of the Minnesota Air National Guard and the 133rd Airlift Wing, 1.
- ^ a b Rosenfeld, Susan and Gross, Charles J (2007), Air National Guard at 60: A History. Air National Guard history program AFD-080527-040 Archived 2012-10-16 at the Wayback Machine
Further reading
- Gross, Charles J (1996), The Air National Guard and the American Military Tradition, United States Dept. of Defense, ISBN 0160483026
External links
- 172d Airlift Wing
- 186th Air Refueling Wing
- 209 Squadron on the Air National Guard website