New Mexico Air National Guard
New Mexico Air National Guard | |
---|---|
Global War on Terrorism | |
Commanders | |
Civilian leadership | President Joe Biden (Commander-in-Chief) Frank Kendall III (Secretary of the Air Force) Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham (Governor of the State of New Mexico) |
State military leadership | Major General (NM) Kenneth Nava (Adjutant General of the State of New Mexico) |
Insignia | |
Emblem of the New Mexico Air National Guard |
The New Mexico Air National Guard (NM ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of New Mexico, United States of America. It is, along with the New Mexico Army National Guard, an element of the New Mexico National Guard.
As state militia units, the units in the New Mexico Air National Guard are not in the normal United States Air Force chain of command. They are under the jurisdiction of the Governor of New Mexico though the office of the New Mexico Adjutant General unless they are federalized by order of the President of the United States. The Adjutant General is MG (NM) Kenneth Nava. The New Mexico Air National Guard is headquartered in Albuquerque at Kirtland Air Force Base, and its commander is currently[update] Brigadier General Robert Reyner.
Overview
Under the "Total Force" concept, New Mexico 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 New Mexico 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 New Mexico Air National Guard consists of the following major unit:
- 150th Special Operations Wing (formerly 150th Fighter Wing)
- Established 7 July 1947 (as: 188th Fighter Squadron)
- Stationed at: Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque
- Gained by: Air Force Special Operations Command
- The 150 SOW is currently engaged in assuming part of the mission of the USAF 58th Special Operations Wing at Kirtland AFB. The future mission of the 150 FW will be to train aircrew in the HC-130P and HH-60G search and rescue aircraft, and the MC-130E Combat Talon I, MC-130P Combat Shadow, and CV-22 Osprey special operations aircraft.[1]
The New Mexico Air National Guard owns and uses the Cato/Smitty MOA, southwest of
The 150th Fighter Wing scheduled three Military Training Routes (MTR) that are wider than average to help dissipate the environmental effects of overflight. They usually get very few noise complaints. VR-176 is an MTR that accesses the White Sands Missile Range airspace and even though it is very wide, has the most noise avoidance areas. Every attempt is made to brief infrequent or transient users of VR-176 about the noise sensitive areas. VR 1195 and 1107 encompass the majority of eastern New Mexico.
New Mexico has some of the greatest flying weather in the country, three large supersonic training areas, five air-to-ground ranges (three manned, all scoreable), and three very large Military Training Routes.
History
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.[2]
The New Mexico Air National Guard was federally recognized on 7 July 1947 as the
18 September 1947, however, is considered the New Mexico Air National Guard's official birth concurrent with the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate branch of the United States military under the National Security Act.[2] The 188th's mission was changed from fighter bomber to interceptor in 1948.
Korean War
In December 1950, the unit was called to active duty for the Korean War. A total of 54 officers and 400 airmen were assigned to Long Beach Airport, California. Most unit members were then absorbed by other USAF units and dispatched to Japan and Korea. First Lieutenants Robert Lucas and Joseph Murray were killed while flying close air support missions in Korea. Captain Francis Williams and First Lieutenant Robert Sands were each credited with shooting down three Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 fighters. The unit was released from federal active duty in November 1952.
Cold War
In August 1953, the 188th FIS received their first jet aircraft, the F-80C Shooting Star. Between 1953 and 1957, the 188th was one of three squadrons of the 140th Wing, with headquarters in Denver, Colorado. In 1957, the 188th was presented the Spaatz Trophy and the Air Force Association Trophy for being the outstanding tactical unit of the Air National Guard for the period 1 January 1956 through 31 December 1956. In 1957, the unit was re-designated and federally recognized as the 150th Tactical Fighter Group. On 1 July 1961, the 188th Fighter Interceptor Squadron assumed 24-hour Air Defense alert status at Kirtland Air Force Base. In 1958, the 188th became the first squadron in the Air National Guard to receive the F-100 Super Sabre, 12 F-100As and two F-100Fs. This conversion raised unit strength to 956 officers and airmen.[3]
In April 1961, an aircraft malfunction caused an
In the fall of 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis put the 150th on an alert status that lasted for 90 days. Later, the 150th was reassigned from Aerospace Defense Command to Tactical Air Command and equipped with the F-100C fighter-bomber.
Vietnam War
In January 1968, the group was activated as a result of the
1970s
In New Mexico, units of both the Army and Air Guard were ordered to State duty in 1970 to assist local and State police during campus riots at the University of New Mexico.
In 1973 the 150th Tactical Fighter Group converted from the F-100C to the
During exercise "Bright Star '81", the 150th TFG set an A-7 and first endurance record of 111⁄2 hours flying non-stop from
Gulf War 1991
The 150th Fighter Group was partially activated in support of
War on Terror
Since the
2010 Combat Air Force Restructure
In 2009, it was decided to assign the 21 F-16C/D aircraft of the New Mexico ANG to other Air National Guard units in the
2013 to Present Day
Located on Kirtland Air Force Base that borders Albuquerque, New Mexico, on December 1, 2013 due to the Department of the Air Force restructuring and realignment, the 150th Fighter Wing was renamed as the 150th Special Operations Wing through a Total Force Integration with the 58th Special Operations Wing. This historic redesignation hails the activation of a new mission for the 150th from a fighter unit to a special operations training unit.
Currently, the 150th SOW has one
Today, the NM ANG is composed of State Headquarters, the 150th Special Operations Wing, 150th Maintenance Group, 150th Operations Group, 150th Mission Support Group, 150th Medical Group, 250th Intel Squadron, and 210th RED HORSE Squadron. In addition, the wing is assigned one C-26 support aircraft and supports both domestic and world-wide Combatant Commander taskings.
See also
- New Mexico Department Of Military Affairs
- New Mexico State Defense Force
- New Mexico Wing Civil Air Patrol
References
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
- ^ "150th Fighter Wing factsheet". Archived from the original on 2007-03-11. Retrieved 2010-11-02.
- ^ 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
- ^ a b "A Brief History of the 150th Fighter Group/188th Fighter Squadron".
- ^ "Shootdown: The death of the B-52 Ciudad Juarez".
- ^ "Fact Sheets : 150th Fighter Wing : 150th Fighter Wing". Archived from the original on 2007-03-11. Retrieved 2010-11-02.
- ^ "Last Two F-16s to Depart New Mexico's 150th Fighter Wing | Pearce for Congress". Archived from the original on 2010-10-01. Retrieved 2010-11-02.
- Gross, Charles J (1996), The Air National Guard and the American Military Tradition, United States Dept. of Defense, ISBN 0160483026
- New Mexico Air National Guard website