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| 149th Fighter Squadron | |
|---|---|
 192d Fighter Wing’s F-22 Raptor flagship | |
| Active | 1942–1945; 1947–1952; 1952–2007; 2007–present |
| Country |  United States |
| Allegiance |  Virginia |
| Branch |  Air National Guard |
| Type | Squadron |
| Role | Air Dominance |
| Part of | Virginia Air National Guard |
| Garrison/HQ | Joint Base Langley–Eustis, Hampton, Virginia |
| Engagements | European Theater of Operations |
| Decorations | Distinguished Unit Citation French Croix de Guerre with Palm[1] |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Lieutenant Colonel Greg Ebert[citation needed] |
| Insignia | |
| 149th Fighter Squadron emblem |  |
| 328th Fighter Squadron emblem | .png) |
| 328th Fighter Squadron emblem[2] |  |
| Tail code | FF,[note 1] 192d FW underneath |
| World War II fuselage code[2] | PE |
The149th Fighter Squadron is a unit of theVirginia Air National Guard's192d Fighter Wing located atJoint Base Langley–Eustis, Virginia. The 149th is the firstAir National Guard fighter squadron to fly theF-22 Raptor.
The squadron was activated atMitchel Field, New York, although its formation occurred atBradley Field, Connecticut. and it trained withRepublic P-47 Thunderbolts at various bases in the northeast United States. While training, the squadron also served in theair defense of the northeast as part of theNew York Fighter Wing.[3][4] In mid-June 1943, the squadron moved toCamp Kilmer and sailed on theRMS Queen Elizabeth for England on 1 July.[5]
The squadron flew its first combat mission on 9 September 1943.[5] It concentrated on flying escort missions forVIII Bomber Command heavy bombers participating in thestrategic bombing campaign against Germany. From 20 February to 25 February 1945, it flew cover for bombers involved in theBig Week campaign against the German aircraft manufacturing industry.[3]
In April 1944 the squadron began to replace its Thunderbolts with longer rangeNorth American P-51D Mustangs. On 8 May, the squadron was escorting bombers on a raid onBraunschweig. It routed an attack by a numerically superior force of Germaninterceptors, continuing the fight until most planes had used all their ammunition and were running short on fuel, requiring the unit to return to base. For this action, the squadron was awarded theDistinguished Unit Citation. In addition to escort missions, the squadron flew counter air missions. Returning from its escort missions, it often engaged inair interdiction attacks.[3]
As the German Army launched the counteroffensive known as theBattle of the Bulge, a detachment of the squadron that included all of its air echelon deployed toAsch Airfield on 23 December 1944 to reinforceNinth Air Force flyingair support missions. On 1 January the detachment earned the squadron theFrench Croix de Guerre with Palm, when its airfield was attacked by 50Luftwaffe fighter aircraft, just as its planes were taking off for an area patrol. In the ensuing aerial battle, about half the attacking German aircraft were destroyed with no loss to the squadron. The detachment moved toChievres Airfield, Belgium in late January 1945, where it was joined by the rest of the squadron, coming under the control ofEighth Air Force again. From Chievres, it provided cover forOperation Varsity, the airborne assault to establish a bridgehead across theRhine.[3]
In April 1945, the squadron returned to England, flying its last mission on 3 May.[5] It was credited with the destruction of 142.5 enemy aircraft in combat.[6] FollowingV-E Day, many of the squadron personnel transferred for early return to the United States. The remaining personnel sailed on theRMS Queen Mary on 4 November 1945. After arriving in the United States, the squadron inactivated on 10 November 1945.[3][5]
The wartime 328th Fighter Squadron was re-designated as the149th Fighter Squadron, and was allotted to the Virginia ANG, on 24 May 1946. It was organized atByrd Field, Richmond, Virginia and was extended federal recognition on 21 June 1947. The 149th Fighter Squadron was entitled to the history, honors, and colors of the 328th. The squadron was equipped with F-47D Thunderbolts and was allocated to theFourteenth Air Force,Continental Air Command by theNational Guard Bureau.
The unit was called to active federal service on 1 March 1951. This activation temporarily resulted in the dissolution of theVirginia Air National Guard, as members were sent to various places, including for many, duty in theKorean War. The squadron was sent toTurner AFB, Georgia where it was assigned to the federalized108th Fighter-Bomber Group with a mission to provide fighter escorts toStrategic Air CommandB-50 Superfortress bombers on training missions. In December 1951 it was moved toGodman AFB, Kentucky where it replaced a unit deployed to England. It was released from active duty and returned to Virginia state control on 10 November 1952.
Upon return to state control, the squadron was reorganized as aB-26 Invader light bombardment squadron and allocated toTactical Air Command. In June 1957 a jurisdictional tug-of-war began betweenAir Defense Command andTactical Air Command occurred for control of the squadron. The unit was redesignated the 149th Fighter Interceptor Squadron and was scheduled to getF-86E Sabre jets. However, later that year, the unit became the Tactical Air Command-gained 49th Tactical Fighter Squadron, andF-84F Thunderstreaks began replacing the obsolescent B-26s.
At the height of theCold War in 1961, the squadron was federalized as a result of tensions concerning theBerlin Wall. Part of the squadron remained at Richmond in an active-duty status for about a year before being released. Twenty-two Virginia ANG members were sent toChaumont-Semoutiers AB, France, in December 1961 to support theUSAFE 7108h Tactical Wing, a deployed unit of the108th Tactical Fighter Wing, New Jersey ANG. They spent eight months in Europe.
On 15 October 1962, the 149th was authorized to expand to a group level, and the192d Tactical Fighter Group was established by the National Guard Bureau. The 149th TFS becoming the group's flying squadron. Other squadrons assigned into the group were the 192d Headquarters, 192d Material Squadron (Maintenance), 192d Combat Support Squadron, and the 192d USAF Dispensary.
During 1971, the squadron was assigned theF-105D Thunderchief, a battle-hardened supersonic fighter-bomber that was the backbone of America's fighter element during theVietnam War. The group's special tasking during the next 10 years included several deployments to Red Flag live-fire exercises atNellis AFB, Nevada and a Crested CapNATO deployment toRAF Lakenheath, England, in 1976.
In 1981, the unit transitioned to the VoughtA-7D Corsair II, a subsonic jet designed primarily for close-air support. The 10-year A-7 era included several deployments, to Ecuador, Norway, and to Panama, in support of the defense of thePanama Canal. A Virginia contingent competed inGunsmoke '85, the Air Force's tactical fighter competition, and the 149th was named the world's "Best A-7 Unit." The squadron also earned the General Spruance Safety Award and was recognized as having had the best Operational Readiness Inspection in theNinth Air Force during 1985. That string of accomplishments helped the squadron earn its firstUSAF Outstanding Unit Award, which was presented in 1987.
On 20 December 1989, the United States unleashedOperation Just Cause – the emergency dispatch of U.S. forces to Panama to try to oust Panamanian DictatorManuel Noriega, break up his army and pave the way for democratic elections. The Virginia Air Guard flew 59 Guardsmen and five A-7s toHoward AFB, near Panama City, on 20 January 1990 for its turn in the rotation. The 149th replaced the Ohio ANG's180th Tactical Fighter Group, whose A-7 pilots had flown 76 sorties in support of Operation Just Cause. Virginia was to send a similar contingent two weeks later to replace its first group. The Virginia Guard's mission differed from previous ones. Some elements of thePanamanian Defense Forces and the Dignity Battalions were suspected to be at large in provinces, and the squadron pilots supplied air cover for field operations and air reconnaissance of areas where enemy activity was suspected.
The unit soared into a new era of aviation technology in 1991, when it became the first Air National Guard unit to receive the Air Force's upgradedF-16 Fighting Falcon, the F-16C/D block 30. The 149th designation shortened somewhat during 1992 from 149th Tactical Fighter Squadron to 149th Fighter Squadron. This change reflected the adoption of the Objective Wing concept. The unit was initially assigned 24 single-seat F-16C models and two F-16D models. By early 1994, defense cutbacks had reduced the unit's assigned inventory to 18 F-16s, and eventually to only 15 fighter jets.
After the 149th FS became fully operational with the F-16, it was chosen as the lead unit in a four-state Air National Guard F-16 "rainbow" detachment deployed toIncirlik Air Base, Turkey, to supportOperation Provide Comfort II.
During that operation between 1 December 1993, and 15 January 1994, ANG pilots patrolled the no-fly zone over northernIraq to prevent Iraqi forces from inflicting damage on the villages of Kurdish minorities. This was the first time Air National Guard units had been called to active duty to serve in a peacekeeping role in the Mideast, following Iraq's defeat in 1991. The unit returned to Incirlik AB in February 1996 for another round of patrols over Iraq.
During October 1995, the parent 192d's designation was again modified to reflect unit restructuring within the Air Force and Air National Guard. This time the unit designation was changed from 192d Fighter Group to 192d Fighter Wing. The 149th was assigned to the new 192d Operations Group.
In December 2000, the squadron deployed to Southwest Asia and other locations in support ofOperation Southern Watch. In addition to Turkey and Kuwait, they were deployed toPrince Sultan Air Base and Eskan Village, Saudi Arabia;Aviano Air Base, Italy; and Qatar.
Also in December 2000, elements of the squadron were deployed on its first Aerospace Expeditionary Force assignment. A 130-person detachment went to Curaçao in theNetherlands Antilles as part of Operation Nighthawk, an effort to stop drug smuggling into the United States. Aside from strictly operational matters, the fighter wing also focused on community support, humanitarian assistance and military heritage.
In October 2005, Lt. Col. Phillip Guy became the first VANG pilot to transition toLangley AFB and fly the newF-22A Raptor in training missions and sorties alongside active duty Air Force pilots stationed there. The first two ship flight of VANG piloted F-22A's taking off from Langley AFB was successfully completed by 192nd FW pilots Lt. Col. Guy and Maj. Patrick DeConcini on 18 February 2006. Later in May, active duty personnel and Virginia guardsmen successfully completed tasking of a first ever joint-exercise requirement.
The last Unit Training Assembly was held in Richmond in September 2007. Remaining base personnel solemnly attended the 'Stand-down' ceremony in the main hangar and watched as the unit flag was rolled-up by Col. Jay Pearsall and then put away. Afterwards a single F-16 took off, turned and passed over the flight deck. The pilot dipped the wings of his jet and made a final fly-by, then continued on to bring the aircraft to its new location. This marked the closing chapter for an era of excellence as the 192d FW began its future with Langley's 1st Fighter Wing.
On 13 October 2007, the 192d FW was reactivated in a ceremony held at the27th Fighter Squadron, Langley AFB. Integration with the active duty 1st FW allows the Air National Guard to be at the forefront of the latest design of fighter craft. Set-up as a classic 'associate wing' the 192nd FW works directly with the 1st FW yet maintains its own unit identity and command structure. It shares in the support of mission requirements for the F-22A Raptor, but does not own any of the aircraft on station.
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This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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