| 1st Fighter Wing | |
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1st Fighter Wing emblem |
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| Active | 1947-1952, 1956-present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Role | Fighter: air dominance |
| Size | 40 F-22 Raptor (May 2007) |
| Part of | Air Combat Command |
| Garrison/HQ | Langley Air Force Base |
| Motto | Aut Vincere Aut Mori "Conquer or Die" |
| Engagements | World War I World War II War in Southwest Asia |
| Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation (3 awards) Air Force Outstanding Unit Award (6 awards) |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Col. Kevin J. Robbins |
| Notable commanders |
Larry D. Welch Richard B. Myers John T. Chain, Jr. William R. Looney III Gregory S. Martin |
The 1st Fighter Wing (1 FW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command Ninth Air Force. It is stationed at Langley Air Force Base, Va. where it is a tenant unit, being supported by the 633d Air Base Wing.
Its 1st Operations Group (1 OG) is a successor organization of the 1st Fighter Group, one of the 15 original combat air groups formed by the Army before World War II. The 1 OG the oldest major air combat unit in the United States Air Force, its origins formed on 5 May 1918.
The wing was initially part of Tactical Air Command being formed at March Field, California in 1947 and was one of the first wings to be equipped with the North American F-86 Sabre in February 1949. Briefly a part of Strategic Air Command in 1949, it was reassigned to Air Defense Command in 1950 and provided air defense of the Upper Midwest of the United States until being reassigned to Tactical Air Command in 1970. The 1 FW was the first operational wing equipped with the F-15A/B Eagle in 1976; and in 2005, was the first operational wing equipped with the F-22A Raptor air superiority stealth fighter.
The commander of the 1st Fighter Wing is Col. Kevin J Robbins. The Command Chief Master Sergeant is Chief Master Sgt. Kevin J. Jurgella.
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Groups
Squadrons
Flights
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Trained in fighter and reconnaissance operations and supported strategic bombardment training, 1947-1950. Was integrated experimentally with a reconnaissance wing, 1947–1949, and with a bombardment wing, 1949–1950, sharing commanders during much of this time. Supported Operation Haylift, a humanitarian effort to deliver food to snowbound cattle in the western United States, 1949. Provided air defense in southern California from mid-1950 until inactivated in 1952. Provided air defense in the upper Midwest area, 1956 through 1969, then moved to central California, still in an air defense role.
In response to the Cuban Missile crisis, the Wing deployed personnel and aircraft to Patrick AFB, Florida, in October 1962. During their six-week stay at Patrick, the 1st flew 620 sorties maintaining an 80 percent mission capable rating.
During the Vietnam War, the Wing served as a transition unit for many pilots en route to or returning from Southeast Asia. As the decade came to a close, the units split again, serving across the nation: the 71st in Missouri, and the 94th in Michigan. In order to maintain the historic 1st Fighter Wing and provide a new combat training unit necessitated by the Vietnam War, Tactical Air Command inactivated the 15th Tactical Fighter Wing, and activated the 1st Tactical Fighter Wing at MacDill AFB, Fla., on 1 Oct. 1970. The personnel and equipment formerly of the 15th now served under the 1st. The squadrons of the 15 TFW were assigned to the historic wing: the 45th, 46th, and 47th Tactical Fighter Squadrons.
Completing the Wing's historic preservation, the commanders of the three squadrons participated in a shoot-out at the Avon Park Air Force Range to determine which squadrons would receive the designations of the 27th, 71st, and 94th. The commander of the 47 TFS marked the highest score, and chose the 94 TFS; the 46 TFS placed second, choosing the 27 TFS, leaving the 45 TFS with the squadron having the shortest history, the 71 TFS. The hostilities in Vietnam brought upon the Wing a new mission. Directed to "conduct combat aircrew academic and flight training in the tactics, techniques, and operations of assigned aircrew and associate equipment." the Wing provided training in the F-4E Phantom II and the B-57 Canberra. After training, most pilots continued onto service in Southeast Asia.
On 14 March 1974, the Air Force publicly announced plans to station the Air Force's first operational F-15 wing at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. Langley was chosen due to its heritage and ideal location for TAC's secondary air defense mission. After studying the heritage of its wings, TAC selected the 1st Fighter Wing as the unit to receive the first Eagle. On 6 June 1975, Tactical Air Command directed Ninth Air Force to move the 1st Fighter Wing from MacDill to Langley AFB. Although the designation of the unit moved, the majority of MacDill personnel remained in place, and served under the newly designated 56th Tactical Fighter Wing.
1st Tactical Fighter Wing personnel spent six months preparing for the arrival of the F-15. By the end of 1975, the Wing was ready for its new air superiority weapon, and on 18 Dec. 1975, Lt Col John Britt, Operations Officer, flew the Wing's first F-15 (a two-seat trainer) into Langley. Official welcoming ceremonies were held on 9 Jan. 1976, when Lt Col Richard L. Craft, 27th Fighter Squadron Commander, landed with the Wing's first single seat F-15. In recognition of its accomplishment of introducing the F-15 into the Air Force's operational inventory, the 1st Tactical Fighter Wing received its first Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, for the period 1 July 1975 – 31 Oct. 1976.
After achieving operational ready status, the Wing took the experience they had earned and utilized it on a program nicknamed "Ready Eagle." The 1st helped prepare the 36th Tactical Fighter Wing at Bitburg Air Base, Germany, for their reception of the F-15. The 1st assisted in the training of maintenance personnel and pilots. By 23 Sept. 1977, the wing provided Bitburg with 88 operational ready pilots, 522 maintenance specialists, and later trained an additional 1,100 maintenance personnel at Bitburg.
On 15 April 1977, the 1 TFW acquired a new mission, it assumed responsibility for the 6th Airborne Command and Control Squadron's EC-135 aircraft and crews, previously assigned to the 4500th Air Base Wing at Langley. The 6 ACCS flew EC-135 airborne command posts in support of US Commander-in-Chief Atlantic (USCINCLANT) with deployments throughout the Atlantic region until early 1992. 1st Fighter Wing participation in worldwide deployments and training exercises continued through the 1980s. The Wing served in countries throughout Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Central America.
The final F-15s left the 1st Fighter Wing on 3 September 2010, after operating the weapon system for nearly 35 years.[1]
The training and experience gained was called upon in the summer of 1990, when Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait. On 7 August 1990, the 27th and 71st Tactical Fghter Squadrons began deploying to Saudi Arabia as the first American combat units on the ground in Saudi Arabia, in support of the defense of the Arabian peninsula from further Iraqi aggression—an operation dubbed Operation Desert Shield. In all, the 1 TFW deployed 48 aircraft to the Persian Gulf. By 16 January 1991, when Desert Shield came to a close, the Wing amassed 4,207 sorties patrolling the Kuwait and Iraq border areas.
At 0115 local Saudi Arabia time, on 17 Jan. 1991, sixteen 1st Tactical Fighter Wing F-15s departed King Abdul-Aziz Air Base and flew toward Iraq to participate in Operation Desert Storm, the liberation of Kuwait from the Iraqis.
During the first night of the operation, Captain Steven W. Tate of the 71st Tactical Fighter Squadron, shot down an Iraqi Mirage F-1, which turned out to be the wing's only kill during the war. It was also the first combat credit awarded to the wing under command of the U.S. Air Force. Upon its return on 8 March 1991, the 1st Tactical Fighter Wing had amassed a total of 2,564 sorties during Operation Desert Storm.
The end of the First Gulf War did not bring an end to the Wing's support in Southwest Asia. Monitoring the southern no-fly zone, the 1st provided six-month coverage every year under Operation Southern Watch and Operation Northern Watch. In October 1994, when Saddam Hussein again placed forces near the Kuwaiti border, the Wing participated in a short-notice deployment, Operation Vigilant Warrior.
Operation Vigilant Warrior demonstrated the need for an Air Force capability of providing combat air power globally at short notice. This requirement resulted in the concept of the Air Expeditionary Force (AEF.) During AEF II, the 1st Fighter Wing deployed 12 F-15s and over 600 personnel to Shaheed Mwaffaq Air Base, Jordan, from 12 April - 28 June 1996. Wing members built and operated from the bare base, and provided support to Operation Southern Watch, supporting UN sanctions and enforcing the no-fly zones in Iraq.
On 25 June 1996, a fuel truck loaded with explosives detonated outside the Khobar Towers Housing area, in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The bomb kiled 19 Air Force members, including five airmen of the 71st Rescue Squadron, and consequently the 1st Fighter Wing relocated its Southwest Asia operations from Dhahran to Al Kharj.
On 1 Oct. 1991, the 1st Tactical Fighter Wing was redesignated 1st Fighter Wing; the 1st Fighter Group was redesignated as the 1st Operations Group and reactivated as part of the wing. The 1st Fighter Wing assumed responsibility of three additional missions—air control, airlift, and search and rescue:
The 1st Rescue Group was activated as part of the 1st Fighter Wing on 14 June 1995, to provide operational control of the Search and Rescue mission.
Two realignments ordered by Air Combat Command took effect on the same day, 1 April 1997. The most substantial one had been the 1st Rescue Group's reassignment to the 347th Wing at Moody Air Force Base. This move meant the loss of two types of aircraft, the HC-130P "Hercules" gunship, and the HH-60G "Pave Hawk" helicopter. When the Air Force decided to transfer 12th Airlift Flight to Air Mobility Command, another type of aircraft, the C-21, was removed from the 1st Fighter Wing's possession exactly four years after it had been assigned.
What made the wing's valued participation in this contingency unique is the fact it sent no aircraft in support of it, exemplifying the diversity of the 1st Fighter Wing's comprehensive mission. More than 150 personnel from 11 units within the 1st Fighter Wing deployed to the European theater in direct support of Operation Allied Force and associated operations such as Noble Anvil and Shining Hope.
Responsible for the worldwide mobility commitment to execute command and control operations, the 74th Air Control Squadron provided the largest contingent of 1st Fighter Wing personnel and equipment to Operation Noble Anvil. The 74th ACS set up their equipment outside Budapest, Hungary, to provide joint forces and theater commanders with an accurate air picture for conducting offensive and defensive missions. During Operation Allied Force, the 74th Air Control Squadron deployed to provide critical air control in the European Theater of Operations.
On Sept. 11, 2001, the 1st Fighter Wing took to the skies to simultaneously defend the east and west coasts of the US against further terrorist attacks. The wing's F-15s were among the first fighters on scene over Washington D.C. and remained on station continuously for the next six months. The 1st Fighter Wing simultaneously participated in the US homeland defense mission in Operation Noble Eagle; maintained its lead wing status in the USAF's expeditionary air force (AEF) rotations to Southwest Asia, Turkey, enforcing UN no-fly zone sanctions in Operation Southern Watch Operation Northern Watch until 2003; and deployed fighters to Keflavík, Iceland to fulfill NATO treaty obligations.
During the Second Gulf War in 2003, the 71st Fighter Squadron deployed again to Southwest Asia. In 2005, the 27th and 94th Fighter Squadrons became the first squadrons in the world to achieve operational status flying the F-22 Raptor.
The 1st Fighter Wing served as the host unit of Langley AFB from 1975 until 7 Jan. 2010. The wing relinquished two of its four groups to the newly reactivated 633d Air Base Wing, which assumed host duties for Langley AFB[2]. The change of command also was a pivotal step in the realignment consolidation of Langley AFB and Fort Eustis into Joint Base Langley-Eustis, which stood up in January 2010.[3].
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Authorized to display honors earned by the 1st Operations Group prior to 15 Aug. 1947.
Service Streamers. None.
Campaign Streamers.
Decorations.
Approved for 1st Operations Group on 10 February 1924 and for 1st Fighter Wing on 22 May 1957. The five stripes stand for the original five squadrons, and the crosses represent the group's five campaigns during World War I.
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
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