| 435th Air Ground Operations Wing | |
|---|---|
 Anair traffic controller assigned to the wing's 435th Contingency Response Squadron observes aC-130 Hercules landing on ahighway strip during an exercise in Bulgaria in 2021 | |
| Active | 1949–1952; 1952–1965; 1968–1995; 2004–present |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Type | Wing |
| Role | Combat support; command and control and communications for deployed forces |
| Part of | |
| Garrison/HQ | Ramstein Air Base, Germany |
| Nickname | Flamingo Wing (1949–1965)[1] |
| Mottos | Citus et Certus (Latin for 'Swift and Sure') |
| Decorations | |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Colonel Leland K. Cowie II |
| Command Chief | CMSgt Jared S. Roman |
| Insignia | |
| 435th Air Ground Operations Wing emblem[a][2] |  |
| 435th Tactical Airlift Wing emblem[b][3] |  |
| 435th Troop Carrier Wing emblem[c][4] |  |
The435th Air Ground Operations Wing (AGOW) is an active wing of theUnited States Air Force (USAF), assigned toUnited States Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA). It is stationed atRamstein Air Base, Germany.[5]
The wing provides combat support, command and control and communications. Its principal subordinate units are the4th Air Support Operations Group, the 435th Communications Operations Group, and the 435th Contingency Response Group.[6]
The 435th AGOW comprises three groups. Each group supports a portion of the wing's mission.
The wing commander is Colonel Leland K. Cowie II, who assumed command on 18 June 2025. The wing command chief isCommand Chief Master Sergeant Jared S. Roman.[7]
Unless indicated, units are based at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.[8]
4th Air Support Operations Group
435th Communications Operations Group
435th Contingency Response Group
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In June 1949,Continental Air Command (ConAC), which had the responsibility to train reserve units, reorganized its reserve units under thewing base organization system. As part of this reorganization and unit reductions required by presidentTruman's 1949 defense budget,[9] the 435th Troop Carrier Wing was activated atMiami International Airport,[3] and formed itscadre from the inactivating49th Air Division and100th Bombardment Group.[10]Thewing was manned at 25 percent of normal strength but was authorized four squadrons rather than the three of active duty units.[11]
At Miami, the wing trained withC-46s under the supervision of the active duty 2585th Air Force Reserve Training Center.[12] The wing was ordered into active service in March 1951 for theKorean War. Along with other reserve units called to active duty, it formed theTactical Air Command'sEighteenth Air Force. The 435th's initial function was to train C-46aircrews for service in Korea.[13] The wing also trained withFairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars. Although it remained at Miami, the wing deployed twice while on active duty: toLaurinburg-Maxton Airport, North Carolina from 21 July until 1 September 1951 and toGrenier Air Force Base, New Hampshire from 2 January to 3 March 1952.[14] It was relieved from active duty and inactivated on 1 December 1952 and its mission, personnel and equipment were transferred to the regular456th Troop Carrier Wing, which was activated the same day.[2][15]
The wing was activated as a reserve unit the same day at the same station, but with the personnel and equipment of the inactive482d Troop Carrier Wing.[16] In the reserve, the 435th once again flew Curtiss Commandos[2] under the supervision of the 2585th Center. 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.[17] In addition, for the first time as a reserve unit, its flying was performed in unit tactical aircraft, rather than in trainers.[18]
During the first half of 1955, the Air Force began detaching reserve squadrons to separate locations. The dispersal of separate squadrons to smaller population centers was intended to facilitate recruiting and manning. One of the first three squadrons to move as this policy was implemented was the 78th Troop Carrier Squadron, which was activated atOrlando Air Force Base in April 1955 after having been inactivated at Miami the previous year.[19][20] In August 1956, the wing's 77th Troop Carrier Squadron left Miami forPinellas County Airport, Florida. The squadron's stay in the Tampa Bay area was brief, however, for in November 1957 it moved again, this time toNew Orleans Naval Air Station, Louisiana.[21] Only the 76th Squadron remained with group headquarters in Miami.[22] In 1957, the wing once again received C-119s.[2]
In 1958, the 2585th Center was inactivated and some of its personnel were absorbed by the wing. In place of active duty support for reserve units, Continental Air Command adopted the Air Reserve Technician program, in which acadre of the unit consisted of full-time personnel who were simultaneously civilian employees of the Air Force and also held military rank as members of the reserves.[23]
The 435th Troop Carrier Group was deactivated on 14 April 1959 when the 435th Wing adopted the Dual Deputy organization and the group's squadrons were assigned directly to the wing.[24][22][21][19] In 1960, the wing left Miami International Airport and moved south toHomestead Air Force Base, Florida.[2]
Although the dispersal of flying units under the Detached Squadron Concept 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.[25] The77th and78th Troop Carrier Squadrons converted to theDouglas C-124 Globemaster II in 1961,[21][19] and were ordered to active service for the crisis, although the76th Troop Carrier Squadron, which continued to fly the C-119, remained in reserve status. After training to become combat ready, the mobilized wing participated in worldwide airlift and tactical exercises. The wing returned to reserve status in August 1962 and the 76th Squadron was once more assigned.[2]
To resolve the mobilization problem, at the start of 1962 Continental Air Command 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 for wings that had not been mobilized.[25] The915th Troop Carrier Group at Homestead, the916th Troop Carrier Group atDonaldson Air Force Base, South Carolina and the917th Troop Carrier Group atBarksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, were all assigned to the wing on 17 January. That spring, the Air Force closed Donaldson and the 916th Group moved toCarswell Air Force Base, Texas and was reassigned. It was replaced by the908th Troop Carrier Group atBates Field, Alabama. The wing's other Globemaster group, the 917th, was reassigned in July and the wing once again flew Flying Boxcars as its tactical aircraft.[2]
The wing was deactivated in April 1965 and had its groups reassigned to other reserve wings.[2]
The wing was reactivated atRAF High Wycombe, England, on 24 December 1968 as the435th Military Airlift Support Wing and assigned toMilitary Airlift Command (MAC). It moved toRhein-Main Air Base, West Germany, on 1 July 1969. From Rhein-Main, the wing provided airlift control elements and aircraft maintenance support at aerial ports across Europe, the Middle East, Southwest Asia, and Africa.[2]
On 1 July 1975, the unit was redesignated the435th Tactical Airlift Wing. In addition to its operational mission, the wing assumed host responsibilities for Rhein-Main Air Base, which served as a major gateway for airlift transiting between the continental United States and forward locations in Europe.[3][1]
The wing supported theater airlift and aeromedical evacuation in Europe and the Middle East. Tactical airlift initially used rotationalLockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft; a permanently assigned C-130 squadron was established later. The wing supported joint and combined airborne training, humanitarian relief, contingency evacuations, and aeromedical missions.[2]
Elements of the wing, including the 37th Tactical Airlift Squadron, deployed toAl Ain, United Arab Emirates, from August 1990 to March 1991 in support ofOperation Desert Shield andOperation Desert Storm.[2]
On 1 April 1992, the wing was redesignated the435th Airlift Wing as part of the Air Force objective wing reorganization. After MAC inactivated later that year, the wing and Rhein-Main returned to USAFE control, while anAir Mobility Command organization assumed responsibility for operating the air terminal and supporting transiting mobility aircraft.[2]
From July 1992 through September 1994, the wing directed airlift operations supportingOperation Provide Promise, delivering humanitarian assistance to areas of the formerYugoslavia.[2]
As part of post–Cold War force reductions in Europe, the wing was inactivated on 1 April 1995, and remaining responsibilities at Rhein-Main transferred to successor USAFE and AMC organizations.[26]
The 435 AW was converted to a provisional expeditionary wing, the435th Air Expeditionary Wing, in February 2001, but was never activated as an expeditionary unit. It was returned to regular status in December 2003.[2]
In January 2004, the wing was reactivated as the435th Air Base Wing and assumed the overall host base support responsibilities atRamstein Air Base, Germany[2] as a non-flying unit.
In mid 2009, the 435th Air Base Wing was re-designated the '435th Air Ground Operations Wing, the second wing of its kind in the USAF. The 435th assumed mission areas previously performed by two86th Airlift Wing units – the contingency response group and the air and space communications group – along with the 4th Air Support Operations Group at Heidelberg, Germany.[2] The 431st Air Base Group was inactivated during an earlier ceremony. The remaining mission areas of the 435th (e.g., base support of Ramstein) were merged back into the 86th Airlift Wing.
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Unless otherwise indicated, units are based at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.[8]
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This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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