| 123d Airlift Wing | |
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123d Airlift Wing emblem |
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| Active | 1947-Present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Type | Airlift Wing |
| Part of | Air National Guard |
| Garrison/HQ | Louisville International Airport, Kentucky |
| Motto | Fortune Assists The Brave |
The 123d Airlift Wing (123AW) is a Kentucky Air National Guard unit, part of the United States Air Force. It is located at Louisville International Airport, Kentucky.
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The wing comprises the entire Kentucky Air National Guard. It flies the Lockheed C-130 Hercules.
The 123d was formerly a tactical reconnaissance unit, known as the 123d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing. It flew RF-101 Voodoo and later RF-4 Phantom II aircraft before being redesignated as an airlift unit and converting to the C-130 in 1988.
The Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123d Fighter Group and 165th Fighter Squadron were created on May 24, 1946 as part of a nationwide redesignation of World War II Army Air Corps units. Under War Department orders, the insignia, World War II battle credits and honors of the 359th Fighter Group and 368th Fighter Squadron were transferred to the Kentucky National Guard with federal recognition coming on February 16, 1947. The “123d” designation actually dates to the 123d Cavalry Regiment, which can trace its lineage back to the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, which fought in the Civil War.
The Kentucky Air National Guard was assigned 25 P-51 Mustangs in May 1947. The unit’s aircrews rapidly attained a high level of combat readiness, and just two years later, the wing earned its first Spaatz Trophy — an award given each year to the premier Air Guard flying unit.
On October 10, 1950, during the Korean War, President Harry S. Truman placed the 123d Fighter Group on active duty and moved the unit from Standiford Field to Godman Field at Fort Knox, Kentucky. The unit’s P-51 Mustangs were ferried to the Far East, and several of the unit’s pilots volunteered for combat duty over Korea. Five of these pilots were lost in action, including Capt. John W. Shewmaker, for whom the Kentucky Air Guard base at Standiford Field was once named. The name was ordered changed in 1976 with the new designation of Standiford Field (ANG).
In November 1951, the wing was ordered to replace the Strategic Air Command’s 12th Fighter Escort Wing at Manston R.A.F., England. The 123d was equipped with F-84 “Thunderjets.” Aircrews participated in joint NATO deployments through June 1952. Deactivation and a return to peacetime status came in July 1952.
From 1956 through 1957, the unit flew the F-86 Sabre, but the following year, the unit’s mission was changed from air defense to reconnaissance with a conversion to the RB-57 “Canberra” aircraft. In 1965, the unit switched airplanes again, receiving the RF-101 “Voodoo” supersonic reconnaissance aircraft. Just prior to the arrival of the new airframes, the 165th was awarded its second Spaatz Trophy for superior combat readiness and flight training.
On January 26, 1968, the Pueblo Crisis precipitated the 123d’s recall to federal service. Now officially known as the 123d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, the unit flew just under 20,000 tactical flying hours and delivered nearly 320,000 reconnaissance prints to requesting agencies. Assigned personnel served on active duty for 16 months, returning to state service on June 8, 1969. The wing earned its first Air Force Outstanding Unit Award for its exceptional performance during this period.
During 1976, a no-notice conversion announced by the National Guard Bureau brought the two-seat RF-4C “Phantom II” to the KyANG. The unit attained combat-ready status within seven months — a record time. The Phantom years were marked with many overseas deployments, participation in international photo reconnaissance competitions and a remarkable flight safety record. In 1981, the unit placed first in the Air National Guard Photo Finish Competition and earned an unprecedented third Spaatz Trophy.
In May 1983 the unit reached another historic milestone when it earned the highest possible rating from Tactical Air Command during its Operational Readiness Inspection. This was the first time that a TAC unit had received an outstanding rating. On January 1, 1989 the unit was awarded its seventh Air Force Outstanding Unit Award — a record for any Air National Guard unit.
On January 8, 1989 the 123d was officially redesignated the 123d Tactical Airlift Wing and began conversion to the C-130B “Hercules” transport aircraft. By the end of the year, the unit had been involved in many worldwide airlift missions, including participation in exercise Volant Oak in Panama. The unit also participated in an airlift competition, Sentry Rodeo. The wing’s first humanitarian airlift came in the aftermath of Hurricane Hugo.
Although the 165th Tactical Airlift Squadron — the wing’s flying component — was not federally mobilized for Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, unit volunteers stepped forward to support the war effort. From August 1990 to March 1991, the 165th flew 1,240 airlift sorties worldwide in direct support of the Gulf War, the most for any Air National Guard unit. An additional 88 wing members were activated in support of Desert Shield/Storm.
The 123d received the 2000th C-130 straight off the assembly line in May 1992 as it began conversion to the C-130H model aircraft. Eight months later, the 123d deployed to Mombasa, Kenya, to fly relief missions into Somalia for Operations Restore Hope and Provide Relief. Citizen-soldiers from the 123d flew 150 sorties and transported 720 tons of relief supplies and 1,444 passengers into some of the hardest-hit areas in Somalia. When the world’s attention shifted to eastern Europe in February 1993, the 123d responded again, deploying in support of Operation Provide Promise. The unit’s all-volunteer force flew 1,082 airdrop and airland sorties and delivered 2,215 tons of food and supplies into war-torn Bosnia-Herzegovina. The wing deployed 451 personnel into Rhein-Main Air Base, Germany, over several rotations to support Provide Promise until May 1994.
In July 1994, the 123d answered another call for help and deployed within 72 hours of notification to fly relief missions into Rwanda and Zaire for Operation Support Hope. Operating out of Mombasa, Kenya, unit personnel flew 147 sorties over 300 hours, transporting 652.5 tons of relief supplies to the beleaguered Rwandan refugees. Personnel from the unit’s 205th Combat Communications Squadron also deployed to Haiti that year as part of Operation Uphold Democracy, providing satellite communications links for the theater commander.
In September 1994, the wing’s sustained record of achievement was recognized by award of the 1993 Curtis N. “Rusty” Metcalf Trophy, presented annually to the best Air National Guard airlift or air refueling unit. The wing also earned the ANG Distinguished Flying Unit Plaque and Air Force Flight Safety Plaque. In November 1994, the unit was granted its eighth Air Force Outstanding Unit award.
The wing returned to Bosnia in 1996 to provide airlift for U.S. and NATO troops who were protecting the fragile peace. More than 170 Kentuckians volunteered for the mission, which delivered 913 tons of cargo and transported 2,296 passengers. The wing also achieved the highest readiness rate of any unit in the theater.
That commitment to service continued in 1997, when the unit participated in several overseas deployments while offering a helping hand at home. More than 100 Kentucky Air Guard troops provided security forces, medical aid, communications links and civil engineering crews after record flooding ravaged several Kentucky communities.
The unit also made its presence felt overseas, offering civil engineering skills in Spain and airlift services in Saudi Arabia to support Operation Southern Watch, which enforces the no-fly zone in Southern Iraq. Other wing members deployed to Egypt as part of a multinational training exercise that integrated 7,000 troops from every branch of the U.S. military and six foreign countries.
The Kentucky Air Guard also hosted and orchestrated one of the nation’s largest celebrations of the Air Force’s 50th anniversary during Thunder Over Louisville, which drew nearly 1 million spectators in 1997.
In February 1998, the 123d Airlift Wing received its ninth Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, and it remains tied with the 116th Bomb Wing in Georgia as the most decorated unit in the Air National Guard. The following month, the unit accepted its sixth Distinguished Flying Unit Plaque, recognizing the 123d Airlift Wing as one of the top five Air Guard flying units in the nation for 1997, and a mere three months later, the wing was presented with the 15th Air Force Reserve Forces Trophy as the top reserve unit in the numbered air force.
1998 continued the 123d Airlift Wing’s tradition of global deployments with missions to Panama as part of Operation Coronet Oak and Ecuador for Nuevos Horizontes ’98. The latter operation, whose name means “New Horizons” in Spanish, was a Southern Command joint training exercise that gave Kentucky Army and Air Guard engineers the opportunity to fine-tune military skills while constructing clinics, schools and latrines in rural areas of the South American nation. Nearly 1,300 of the Commonwealth's citizen-soldiers participated in the effort, which also provided impoverished Ecuadorians with basic dental and medical care.
The following year, the wing returned to Bosnia once more to provide theater airlift for the continuing peacekeeping mission, now called Operation Joint Forge. More than 350 Kentucky aircrew, maintainers and support personnel deployed for the operation, along with about 200 members of the Ohio Air Guard’s 179th Airlift Wing.
The two units' C-130s flew nearly 500 sorties during the deployment, delivering 3,500 passengers and more than 1,000 tons of cargo to sites across Europe and inside Bosnia, including Sarajevo and Tuzla. The units also were tasked with helping stockpile equipment for what became Operation Allied Force, the NATO air campaign against Serbian forces in the former Republic of Yugoslavia. Working around the clock with the 37th Airlift Squadron at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, the Kentucky and Ohio crews flew more than 70 tons of fighter support equipment from U.S. bases in England and Germany to bases in Italy.
The wing’s eagerness to volunteer for such demanding missions — and to complete them with unparalleled success — was rewarded yet again in March 1999 when the 123d received an unprecedented second-consecutive 15th Air Force Reserve Forces Trophy.
Shortly thereafter, the unit began planning for a 90-day deployment to Muscat, Oman, to again support U.S. troops enforcing the no-fly zone in Southern Iraq. More than 160 KyANG personnel were joined by members of the Ohio Air Guard’s 179th Airlift Wing to support Operation Northern Watch. Together, the two units flew 345 sorties during their three-month tasking, delivering 895 tons of cargo and 1,122 passengers to destinations in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The mission, which was part of the Air Force’s first-ever Aerospace Expeditionary Force, concluded in December 1999.
By April 2000 the 123d Airlift Wing had received its 10th Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, and global deployments continued to mark the wing’s activities.
More than 580 Kentucky Air Guard members deployed overseas from Dec. 2000 to March 2001 as part of Air Expeditionary Forces based in Germany and Southwest Asia. Other unit members were sent to South America to participate in drug interdiction efforts. The largest contingent of Kentucky forces—nearly 470 aircrew, maintenance and support personnel—operated from Ramstein Air Base, Germany, in support of Operation Joint Forge, the multinational peacekeeping mission in Bosnia-Herzegovina. While there, unit members transported approximately 2,500 passengers and 410 tons of cargo to locations like Sarajevo and Tuzla, Bosnia; and Taszar, Hungary.
Other KyANG members deployed to Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey in support of operations Joint Forge, Southern Watch and Northern Watch. The latter two missions are responsible for enforcing no-fly zones imposed upon Iraq following the Gulf War.
After the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, unit members were tasked to participate in the war against terrorism and in homeland defense. Currently, more than 500 KyANG troops have been called to active duty for at least a year while scores of additional troops are serving on short-term duty as needed to support Operations Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom.
In the first half of 2002, the wing received three major honors recognizing its superior performance in 2001. The awards were the 15th Air Force Solano Trophy, given each year to the top reserve unit in the 15th Air Force; the Metcalf Trophy, given annually to the best tanker or airlift unit in the Air National Guard; and the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award—the wing’s 11th such honor.
In 2009, the Wing was awarded its 14th Air Force Outstanding Unit Award for accomplishments from Oct. 1, 2007 to Sept. 30, 2009. During those two years, the wing stepped up to perform numerous critical missions at home and abroad, deploying 759 personnel to 62 locations in 20 countries—many of them in harm's way.
For example, about 300 Kentucky Airmen and multiple C-130 aircraft were deployed to Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, from March through May 2009 to provide key airlift support for U.S. forces engaged with the enemy in Operation Enduring Freedom.
The unit maintained an unprecedented 100 percent mission-capable rate during the deployment, never missing a single scheduled flight due to aircraft maintenance issues while completing more than 1,500 combat sorties that delivered 3,900 tons of cargo and transported 20,000 troops throughout the theater of operations.
The wing also deployed more than 120 Airmen and two C-130 aircraft to the Caribbean in support of Operation Coronet Oak, an ongoing U.S. Southern Command mission to provide theater airlift capability for U.S. military and government agencies in Central and South America.
A third major overseas deployment saw more than 200 Kentucky Air Guardsmen and three C-130 aircraft deploy to Ramstein Airbase, Germany, from January through March 2008 and August through September 2009 as part of Operation Joint Enterprise. Kentucky aircrews transported more than 200 tons of cargo and 700 troops to 18 nations across Europe and Africa during their tours.
The unit was equally engaged back home. When Hurricane Gustav began closing in on the Gulf Coast in August 2008, the 123d Airlift Wing provided the facilities and support for relief agencies to evacuate more than 1,400 New Orleans residents to Louisville and then repatriate them after the danger had passed.
The wing also stood up the Air National Guard's first Contingency Response Group—a rapid-reaction "airbase in a box" with all the personnel, training and equipment needed to deploy to a remote site, open up a runway and establish airfield operations so that aid and troops can begin to flow into affected areas after a disaster.
The group was instrumental in responding to the statewide ice storm last year that left nearly 770,000 households without power and water for days. All told, the wing deployed more than 380 Airmen across the Commonwealth to clear roads, distribute food and water and conduct house-to-house "wellness checks" credited with saving two people from death by carbon monoxide poisoning.
The wing's combat readiness also was validated by an Air Mobility Command Unit Compliance Inspection, which awarded the 123d with an overall rating of "excellent."
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