| 183d Fighter Wing | |
|---|---|
183d Fighter Wing emblem |
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| Active | 1948–Present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Type | Wing |
| Role | Fighter Support |
| Garrison/HQ | Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport |
| Nickname | Fighting Illini |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Colonel Michael A. Meyer |
The 183d Fighter Wing is an Illinois Air National Guard unit located at Capitol Airport in Springfield, Illinois. The history of this unit spans over 60 years and five aircraft. From the beginning, its members have made significant contributions to its response and leadership roles during state emergencies, and its active duty mission support of the United States Air Force.
The unit began as the 170th Fighter Squadron in Florida in 1948, but moved to Illinois. Since Base Realignment and Closure commission in 2005, the Wing has realized a two-fold mission.
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Previous mission: To provide combat ready aircraft, pilots, and required support personnel capable of global deployment to perform tactical, general purpose warfare as directed by major command authority.
After the end of World War 2 there was a great excess of unused fighter airplanes. The 170th roots began with the 305th Fighter squadron of the 338th Fighter group allocated to Air National Guard in May 1946 successively flying Bell P-39s, Republic P-47s, and Curtiss P-40s. On 30 September 1948 the unit was federally designated the 170th Fighter Squadron and transferred to the brand new Capitol Airport at Springfield, Illiniois, with P-51 D Mustangs as its first mission aircraft.
From the P-51 Mustang propeller aircraft to the F-16 Fighting Falcon—from the original 60 men to the current level of more than 1,050 personnel—from the early group operations in a committee room at the State Armory and flight operations conducted from a T-hangar ready room with the aircraft parked on perforated steel planking to the present 183d Wing commanded base occupying almost 100 acres (0.40 km2) at Capital Airport—the 183d Wing has a rich history and has come a long way during the past sixty years!
The P-51, which has been billed as the world's fastest propeller aircraft, was with the unit in May 1950 when they moved into a new hangar at Capital Airport, and was still with the unit in March 1951 when they were ordered to active duty for 21 months due to the Korean War. Upon their return to state control in 1952, they were given P-51H Mustangs followed by three T-33 Shooting Star jet trainers.Ħ
The next aircraft was the F-86 Sabre. The F-86 was assigned to the unit on 18 November 1953 and was their aircraft for about fifteen months.
On 2 February 1955, the first F-84F Thunderstreak aircraft arrived at Capitol Airport to be flown by the 170th. The F-84F had the longest stay with the unit. It was with the unit on 1 October 1961 when the 170th was called to active federal service due to the Communists' activities in West Berlin. The F-84F was the aircraft assigned when the 170th Fighter Squadron came under the command of the 183d Tactical Fighter Group in October 1962, and stayed with the unit through the first 9 years of existence for the 183d TFG. The 170th flew the F-84F for 17 years; longer than any other National Guard unit.
In October 1971 a 170th pilot was killed when his F-84F lost a wing during a training exercise at the Hardwood gunnery range in Findley, WI. All F-84F were immediately grounded and subsequently salvaged in Arizona. At the same time in 1971, the Air Force announced it was assigning some of its F-4 Phantom II fleet to the Air National Guard, and the 170th TFS of the 183d was the first Guard unit to receive the F-4 thus earning the nickname, "First with the Phantom".
On 31 January 1972, the first F-4 Phantom II arrived at the base. In April of that year, four more Phantoms were flown here by the unit's own pilots. And in April 1979, after some seven years of F-4 experience, the 183d Tactical Fighter Group and all assigned units were named recipients of the prestigious Air Force Outstanding Unit Award.
Conversion from the "C" model to the F-4D aircraft began on 1 January 1981. Some two years later, after smokeless version of the General Electric J-79 engine was developed by personnel of the 170th FS. The F-4Ds commenced a conversion program to the smokeless engine, thus eliminating the smoke trail, making it less visible and safer in combat situations, in addition to the environmental benefits. (In Viet Nam, Phantoms were known as the great smoking birds in the sky.) The Phantoms of the 183d were the first in the nation scheduled for the smokeless engine.
On 7 June 1989 the first two F-16s landed at Capital Airport and were received by the 183d. This was the beginning of the conversion from the F-4D to the F-16. 5 May 1990, marked the official acceptance of the F-16s by the 183d, therefore making the 183d a total F-16 fighting unit. The 183d Tactical Fighter group was placed under the command of the newly activated 183d Tactical Fighter Wing which was operationally gained by the 11 Air force Tactical Air Command (TAC). With the disestablishment of TAC in 1992, the 183d was redesignated as the 183d Fighter Wing and became operationally gained by the Air Combat Command (ACC).
In October of 2008, the remainder of the 183d's F-16s departed Capital Airport and were reassigned to other units in accordance with the BRAC commission of 2005, effectively deactivating the 170th Fighter Squadron in its maritime flight functions.
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