433rd Airlift Wing | |
|---|---|
 433rd Airlift Wing – C-5A Galaxy 69-0016 | |
| Active | 1949–1952; 1955–present |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Type | Wing |
| Role | Airlift |
| Size | 3,400 |
| Part of | Air Force Reserve Command |
| Garrison/HQ | Kelly Field Annex,Joint Base San Antonio, Texas |
| Nickname | The Alamo Wing |
| Decorations | Air Force Outstanding Unit Award Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Colonel Terry W. McClain |
| Insignia | |
| 433rd Airlift Wing emblem[a][1] |  |
| Patch with 433rd Troop Carrier Wing emblem[b][2] |  |
| Tail stripe | Forward, blue with white star; aft, red and white (Texas flag) |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Transport | C-5M Super Galaxy |
The433rd Airlift Wing, officially433d Airlift Wing, is an Air Reserve component of theUnited States Air Force. It is assigned toFourth Air Force,Air Force Reserve Command, stationed atKelly Field Annex,Joint Base San Antonio, Texas. If mobilized, the wing is gained byAir Mobility Command.
The 433rd Airlift Wing, the "Alamo Wing", organizes, equips and trains its approximately 3,100 ready reservists to achieve combat readiness according to training standards established byAir Mobility Command (AMC) andAir Education and Training Command (AETC).[3]
The wing performs peacetime missions and Air Expeditionary Force tasking compatible withAir Force Reserve Command training requirements and maintenance of mobilization readiness. When mobilized, the 433rd Airlift Wing provides the aircraft, crews, support personnel and equipment necessary to meet combat readiness objectives established by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, AMC, AETC and the gaining theater Combatant Commanders.[3]
The Alamo Wing is also the Air Force Reserve's only Formal Training Unit (FTU) providing initial and advancedLockheed C-5M Super Galaxy flight qualification for the total force – Reserve and Active Duty.[3]
The 433rd Airlift Wing consists of the following major units:
433rd Operations Group
433rd Maintenance Group
433rd Mission Support Group
433rd Medical Group
C-5M Formal Training Unit
The wing was first activated in thereserve as the433rd Troop Carrier Wing, replacing the12th Air Division atCleveland Municipal Airport on 27 June 1949 whenContinental Air Command (ConAC) reorganized its reserve units under thewing base organization system.[1] The ConAC reorganization also reflected PresidentTruman’s reduced 1949 defense budget, which required reductions in the number of units in the Air Force,[4] The wing was manned at 25% of normal strength but its combat group was authorized four squadrons rather than the three of active duty units.[5] The wing flew various trainer aircraft andCurtiss C-46 Commandos.[1]
The wing, along with all reserve combat and corollary units, was mobilized for the Korean war.[6] It was part of the first wave to bemobilized.[c] Upon activation in October 1950, the wing moved to Greenville Air Force Base (laterDonaldson Air Force Base), South Carolina,[1] receivingFairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar aircraft the following month. The wing began tactical training in March 1951. Itairlifted personnel and supplies toUnited States Army units in the field. It alsoAirdropped personnel and equipment during armyexercises.[citation needed]
The 433rd left Donaldson in July 1951 and arrived atRhein-Main Air Base, Germany in early August.[1] In Europe, it participated with U.S.,British, andFrench units in field training.[citation needed] In July 1952, the wing was inactivated and its mission, personnel and equipment were assumed by the317th Troop Carrier Wing, which was simultaneously activated at Rhein-Main.[1][7][8]
The Air Force desired that all reserve units be designed to augment the regular forces in the event of a national emergency. There were six reserve pilot training wings that had no mobilization mission, including the 8707th Pilot Training Wing atBrooks Air Force Base, Texas.[9] On 18 May 1955, the 8707th was discontinued and replaced by the reactivated433rd Troop Carrier Wing, again flying Curtiss Commandos.[10]
During the first half of 1955, the Air Force had begun detaching Air Force Reserve squadrons from their parent wing locations to separate sites. The concept offered several advantages: communities were more likely to accept the smaller squadrons than the large wings and the location of separate squadrons in smaller population centers would facilitate recruiting and manning. In time, the Detached Squadron Program proved successful in attracting additional participants[11] In keeping with this program, although the67th and68th Troop Carrier Squadrons were activated with wingheadquarters at Brooks,[12][13] when the69th Troop Carrier Squadron was activated in March 1956, it was stationed atTinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma.[14]
The wing flew airlift missions and participated in numerous training exercises, sometimes withspecial operations units.[1] In the summer of 1956, the wing participated in Operation Sixteen Ton during its two weeks of active duty training. Sixteen Ton was performed entirely by reserve troop carrier units and movedUnited States Coast Guard equipment FromFloyd Bennett Naval Air Station toIsla Grande Airport in Puerto Rico andSan Salvador in the Bahamas. After the success of this operation, the wing began to use inactive duty training periods for Operation Swift Lift, transporting high priority cargo for the air force and Operation Ready Swap, transporting aircraft engines, betweenAir Materiel Command's depots.[15]
TheJoint Chiefs of Staff were pressuring the Air Force to provide more wartime airlift. At the same time, about 150Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars became available from the active force. Consequently, in November 1956 the Air Force directed ConAC to convert three fighter bomber wings to the troop carrier mission by September 1957. Cuts in the budget in 1957 also led to a reduction in the number of reserve wings from 24 to 15.[16] In the adjustments resulting from these decisions, in November 1957, the 69th Squadron at Tinker transferred its aircraft and personnel to the newly activated305th Troop Carrier Squadron, then moved on paper toNaval Air Station Dallas, where it took the place of the448th Fighter-Bomber Wing, which was inactivated along with all its components.[14][17][18] The wing finally replaced its C-46s with Flying Boxcars at this time as well.[1]
With the closure of Brooks' runways and transition to a non-flying installation in 1960, the wing elements at Brooks moved the short distance toKelly Air Force Base.[1]
Although the dispersal of flying units was not a problem when the entire wing was called to active service, mobilizing a single flying squadron and elements to support it proved difficult. This weakness was demonstrated in the partial mobilization of reserve units during theBerlin Crisis of 1961 To resolve this, at the start of 1962, ConAC determined to reorganize its reserve wings by establishinggroups with support elements for each of its troop carrier squadrons. This reorganization would facilitate mobilization of elements of wings in various combinations when needed. However, as this plan was entering its implementation phase, another partial mobilization occurred for theCuban Missile Crisis. The formation of troop carrier groups was delayed until January 1963 for wings that had not been mobilized.[19] The906th and922nd Troop Carrier Group at Kelly, and the923rd Troop Carrier Group at Carswell were all assigned to the wing on 17 January.[1]
In February 1963, the 923rd Troop Carrier Group moved toCarswell Air Force Base, Texas.[20] Two months later, it was joined at Carswell by the916th Troop Carrier Group, which moved fromDonaldson Air Force Base, South Carolina. The 916th, unlike the wing's other groups, however, operated theDouglas C-124 Globemaster II, and in July, the group was reassigned to the442nd Troop Carrier Wing, although it remained at Carswell.[21]
By the mid-1960s, the wing was flying global airlift missions, as well as conducting the USAF'sLockheed C-130A Hercules pilot, navigator, flight engineer and loadmaster school. Between 1971 and 1985, the wing trained for tactical airlift missions, participating in joint training exercises. It provided airlift ofDepartment of Defense personnel, supplies, and equipment worldwide.[1]
The 433rd assisted theU.S. Forest Service by use of theModular Airborne FireFighting System. It airlifted other units overseas for deployments and conductedhumanitarian airlift operations. Between 1977 and 1985, the wing rotated personnel and aircraft periodically toHoward Air Force Base in thePanama Canal Zone. In 1985, it became the first Air Force reserve wing to fly theLockheed C-5A Galaxy, the largest USAF operational aircraft, and changed from a tactical to a strategic airlift missions. It also began training forair refueling. It tested a C-5A modified to transport space vehicles and in 1989 airlifted theHubble Space Telescope from California toKennedy Space Center, Florida.[1]
The Alamo Wing played a major role in providing aeromedical evacuation support as well as cargo relief duringOperation Just Cause the operation to removeManuel Noriega as president of Panama. In 1989. The wing was also a primary participant inOperation Desert Shield and Desert Storm when the wing's C-5As helped fly the massive airlift of supplies, heavy Army combat equipment, and troops to the Persian Gulf in 1990–91.[1] Additionally, 1,400 wing reservists of various career fields were called up to active duty and more than 500 deployed overseas in support of the conflict. Following the war, the wing participated inOperation Provide Comfort, when the airlift of food and supplies provided much-needed relief to the beleaguered Kurds of Turkey.[22]
The wing also assisted inOperation Provide Hope by transporting critical cargo to the Commonwealth of Independent States. And in 1992–93, the 433rd AW was the first reserve wing to fly relief missions and provide medical support to famine stricken Somalia duringOperation Restore Hope.[22]
The Alamo Wing again flew missions into Africa, this time to aid refugees fleeing Rwanda in 1994. In the same year, it helped in efforts to restore democracy in Haiti, and supported operations to halt renewed Iraqi aggression against Kuwait during Operation Phoenix Jackal.[22]
The wing played a critical role inOperation Joint Endeavor, hauling hundreds of tons of cargo as well as hundreds of duty passengers to Europe in support of NATO's peace initiative in Bosnia. Further, the 433rd AW became the first Reserve wing to deploy personnel to Germany, Hungary and Bosnia for 179 days as part of Joint Endeavor's support contingent—39 members of the 433rd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron. Then, in late 1996, the wing participated in Operation Desert Strike to once again help halt renewed threats by Iraq on the Kurdish population. In 1998, the wing was called again to participate in Operations Phoenix Scorpions I – III and in Operation Desert Fox when Iraq refused to cease manufacturing weapons of mass destruction.[22]
In early 1999, the Alamo Wing responded to another area of the world that threatened the peace and security, again in the Balkans. Wing C-5s and aircrews airlifted essential cargo and passengers to support the NATO-ledOperation Allied Force to halt Serbia’s policy of ethnic cleansing in neighboring Kosovo. After the peace accord with Serbia, the wing assisted in NATO’s efforts to resettle ethnic Albanians into a secure environment.[22]
The final C-5A Galaxy aircraft (tail number 70-0448) departed Kelly Field on 28 September 2016. The first of the eight Lockheed MartinC-5M Super Galaxy aircraft, arrived June 2016.[23]
The Alamo Wing once again responded to a national crisis in the immediate aftermath of terrorist11 September attacks on theWorld Trade Center in New York City andthe Pentagon. Hauling thousands of tons of cargo in support of America’s War on Terrorism, the wing proved yet again that it stands ready to answer the call whenever the United States faces a threat to its homeland and vital national interests.[22]
Over the years, the wing has also flown many humanitarian relief missions to aid victims of natural disasters, the latest being Central American aid in the wake ofHurricane Mitch.[22]
On 1 July 2007, the wing's356th Airlift Squadron assumed a training mission, becoming the Air Force Reserve's only Formal Training Unit (FTU) providing initial and advanced C-5M flight qualification for Air Mobility Command and Air Force Reserve Command aircrews, assuming a training role that had been previously assigned to the regular Air Force's97th Air Mobility Wing atAltus Air Force Base, Oklahoma. Over 70 selectively manned aircrew instructors train and produce up to 500 aircrew members in nine different curricula for pilots, loadmasters and flight engineers. Additional training functions and support are provided by the colocated 733rd Training Squadron Both squadrons are assigned to the wing's 433rd Operations Group. In addition to being the sole C-5 training organization for the entire US Air Force, the 356 AS also continues to provides airlift support for peacetime, contingency and humanitarian operations.[24]
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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