Mississippi Air National Guard

Not to be confused with Mississippi National Guard.

Mississippi Air National Guard

Emblem of Headquarters, Mississippi Air National Guard

Active| 1939–present
Country|  United States
Allegiance|  Mississippi
Branch|  Air National Guard
Type| state militia, military reserve force
Role| "To meet state and federal mission responsibilities"
Part of| Mississippi National Guard
United States National Guard Bureau
Headquarters| Jackson, Mississippi
Commanders
Civilian leadership| President Joe Biden
(Commander-in-Chief)
Frank Kendall III
(Secretary of the Air Force)
Governor Tate Reeves
(Governor of Mississippi)
Major General| Major General Edward H. Evans Jr., MS ANG
Insignia
Abbreviation| MS ANG
Aircraft flown
Transport| C-17 Globemaster III
Tanker| KC-135 Stratotanker

Military unit

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 a reserve of the United States Air Force and along with the Mississippi Army National Guard, an element of the Mississippi National Guard of the much larger United States National Guard Bureau.

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 Edward H. Evans, Jr.

## Overview

[edit]

Under the "Total Force" concept, Mississippi Air National Guard units are considered to be Air Reserve Components (ARC) of the United States Air Force (USAF). Mississippi ANG units are trained and equipped by the Air Force and are operationally gained by a Major Command of the USAF if federalized. In addition, the Mississippi Air National Guard forces are assigned to Air Expeditionary Forces and are subject to deployment tasking orders along with their active duty and Air Force Reserve counterparts in their assigned cycle deployment window.

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

[edit]

The Mississippi Air National Guard consists of the following major units:

* 172d Airlift Wing

Established 1 July 1953 (as: 183d Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron); operates: 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.[1]

* 186th Air Refueling Wing

Established 27 Sepatember 1939 (as: 153d Observation Squadron); operates: KC-135R Stratotanker and 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.[2]

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[3]
* 209th Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron

## History

[edit]

The Militia Act of 1903 established the present National Guard system, units raised by the states but paid for by the Federal Government, liable for immediate state service. If federalized by Presidential order, they fall under the regular military chain of command. On 1 June 1920, the Militia Bureau issued Circular No.1 on organization of National Guard air units.[4]

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 29 original National Guard Observation Squadrons of the United States Army National Guard formed before World War II. The 153d Observation Squadron was ordered into active service on 15 October 1940 as part of the buildup of the Army Air Corps prior to the United States entry into World War II.

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.[5]

The modern Mississippi ANG received federal recognition on 12 September 1946 as the 153d Fighter Squadron at Key Field, Meridian. It was equipped with F-47 Thunderbolts and its mission was the air defense of the state. 18 September 1947, however, is considered the Mississippi 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.[5]

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 September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, elements of every Air National Guard unit in Mississippi has been activated in support of the Global War on Terrorism. Flight crews, aircraft maintenance personnel, communications technicians, air controllers and air security personnel were engaged in Operation Noble Eagle air defense overflights of major United States cities. Also, Mississippi ANG units have been deployed overseas as part of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq as well as other locations as directed.

## See also

[edit]

* 1930s portal
* Aviation portal
* United States portal

* Mississippi Military Department
* Mississippi National Guard
* Mississippi State Guard
* Mississippi Wing Civil Air Patrol

## Notes

[edit]

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

## References

[edit]

1. ^ 172d Airlift Wing
2. ^ 186th Air Refueling Wing
3. ^ First Air Guard Assault Runway at Camp Shelby
4. ^ ANG Chronology 1908-2007, see also Brief History of the Minnesota Air National Guard and the 133rd Airlift Wing, 1.
5. ^ 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

[edit]

* Gross, Charles J (1996), The Air National Guard and the American Military Tradition, United States Dept. of Defense, ISBN 0160483026

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mississippi Air National Guard.

* 172d Airlift Wing
* 186th Air Refueling Wing
* 209 Squadron on the Air National Guard website

* v
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Air National Guard

| State and
territorial
units|

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Centers|

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| Wings|

| Composite|

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* 175th
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|

Air Control|

* 116th

Airlift|

* 103d
* 105th
* 107th
* 109th
* 120th
* 123d
* 130th
* 133d
* 136th
* 139th
* 143d
* 145th
* 146th
* 152d
* 153d
* 156th
* 164th
* 165th
* 166th
* 167th
* 172d
* 179th
* 182d
* 189th

Air Refueling|

* 101st
* 117th
* 121st
* 126th
* 128th
* 134th
* 137th
* 141st
* 151st
* 155th
* 157th
* 161st
* 168th
* 171st
* 185th
* 186th
* 190th

Attack|

* 110th
* 174th

Bomb|

* 131st

Fighter|

* 52d*
* 53d*
* 54th*
* 55th*
* 60th*
* 61st*
* 62d*
* 63d*
* 66th*
* 67th*
* 71st*
* 86th*
* 104th
* 106th*
* 111th
* 114th
* 115th
* 122d
* 124th
* 125th
* 132d
* 138th
* 142d
* 144th
* 148th
* 149th
* 150th
* 159th
* 162d
* 169th
* 173d
* 177th
* 180th
* 183d
* 187th
* 192d

Intelligence|

* 102d
* 181st
* 184th

Reconnaissance|

* 147th
* 163d

Regional Support|

* 194th

Rescue|

* 106th
* 129th

Special Operations|

* 150th
* 193d

Groups|

| Composite|

* 170th

|

Airlift|

* 135th*

Air Operations|

* 102d
* 152d
* 157th

Air Refueling|

* 112th*
* 127th
* 160th*

Combat Communications|

* 162d
* 163d
* 201st
* 226th
* 252d
* 254th
* 281st*

Cyberspace Engineering Installation|

* 251st
* 253d

Operations|

* 140th

Reconnaissance|

* 214th

Squadrons

| Flying|

| Air Command and Control|

* 128th

|

Airlift|

* 109th
* 115th
* 118th
* 130th
* 135th*
* 137th
* 139th
* 142d
* 143d
* 144th
* 155th
* 156th
* 158th
* 164th
* 165th
* 167th
* 169th
* 180th
* 181st
* 183d
* 186th
* 187th
* 189th*
* 192d
* 198th*
* 200th
* 201st
* 204th
* 249th

Air Refueling|

* 106th
* 108th
* 116th
* 117th
* 126th
* 132d
* 133d
* 141st
* 145th*
* 146th
* 147th
* 151st
* 153d
* 166th
* 168th
* 171st
* 173d
* 174th
* 191st
* 197th
* 203d

Attack|

* 103d
* 105th
* 111th
* 124th
* 136th
* 138th
* 160th
* 162d
* 172d
* 178th
* 184th
* 196th
* 214th

Bomb|

* 110th

Fighter|

* 100th
* 104th
* 107th
* 112th
* 114th
* 119th
* 120th
* 121st
* 122d
* 123d
* 125th
* 131st
* 134th
* 148th
* 149th
* 152d
* 157th
* 159th
* 163d
* 170th*
* 175th
* 176th
* 179th
* 182d
* 190th
* 194th
* 195th
* 199th

Rescue|

* 101st
* 102d
* 103d
* 129th
* 130th
* 131st
* 188th
* 210th
* 211th
* 212th

Special Operations|

* 150th
* 185th
* 193d

Training|

* 154th

Non-Flying|

| Air Control|

* 103d
* 109th
* 116th
* 117th
* 123d
* 128th
* 133d
* 134th
* 141st
* 176th
* 255th

|

Air Operations|

* 112th

Air Support|

* 113th ASOS
* 172d

Air Traffic Control|

* 243rd
* 245th
* 270th

Civil Engineering|

* 285th Civil Engineering Squadron

Combat Communications|

* 143d
* 147th
* 149th
* 206th
* 221st
* 222d
* 223d
* 225th
* 228th
* 231st
* 232d
* 234th
* 236th
* 239th
* 240th
* 242d
* 244th
* 256th
* 261st
* 262d
* 263d
* 264th
* 265th
* 267th
* 269th
* 271st
* 272d
* 280th
* 282d
* 283d
* 291st
* 292d
* 293d

Command and Control|

* 119th
* 127th
* 153d
* 222d

Engineering Installation|

* 130th
* 202d
* 205th
* 210th
* 211th
* 212th
* 213th
* 214th
* 215th
* 217th
* 218th
* 219th
* 220th
* 241st
* 243d
* 270th
* 272d

Force Support|

* 187th

Information Warfare Aggressor|

* 177th

Intelligence|

* 101st
* 117th
* 123d
* 152d
* 161st
* 194th
* 234th

Joint Communications Support|

* 224th
* 290th

Logistics Readiness|

* 187th

RED HORSE|

* 202d
* 203d
* 819th

Security Forces|

* 187th

Space Control|

* 114th

Space Operations|

* 111th
* 148th

Space Warning|

* 137th
* 213th

Special Operations Communications|

* 193d
* 280th

Special Tactics|

* 125th

* Asterisk (*) denotes an inactive unit

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States|

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Federal district
and territories|

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