| 927th Air Refueling Wing | |
|---|---|
 6th Air Refueling Wing KC-135R Stratotankers concurrently flown by the 927th Air Refueling Wing. The aircraft carry unit markings for both wings. | |
| Active | 1963–present |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Type | Wing |
| Role | Aerial refueling |
| Part of |  Air Force Reserve Command |
| Garrison/HQ | MacDill Air Force Base, Florida |
| Engagements | Operation Desert Storm Operation Deny Flight Operation Enduring Freedom |
| Decorations | Air Force Outstanding Unit Award Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm |
| Website | https://www.927arw.afrc.af.mil/ |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Colonel Kurt Matthews |
| Deputy Commander | Colonel Brent Murrell |
| Command Chief | Chief Master Sergeant Vishal M. Rose |
| Insignia | |
| 927th Air Refueling Wing emblem(approved 5 June 1995)[1] |  |
| 927th Tactical Airlift Group emblem |  |
| Tail Code | Blue tail stripe "MacDill" in white |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Tanker | KC-135 Stratotanker |
The927th Air Refueling Wing (927 ARW) is a combat codedAir Reserve Component (ARC) wing of theUnited States Air Force. It is assigned to theFourth Air Force (4 AF) ofAir Force Reserve Command (AFRC) and is stationed atMacDill Air Force Base, Florida.
Thewing has over 900 personnel, with approximately 200 full-time officer and enlistedAir Reserve Technicians (ART) and 700 part-time Traditional Reservist (TR) officers and airmen. Anassociate unit of the6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW) of theAir Mobility Command (AMC), both units share and fly the sameBoeing KC-135R Stratotanker aircraft at MacDill AFB and at forward deployed locations. The 927 ARW also mirrors the 6 ARW in nearly every aircraft maintenance and mission support function with parallel squadrons. The only activity not replicated in the 927 ARW is a group level activity analogous to the 6 ARW's medical group which operates the MacDill AFB Clinic. 927 ARW medical personnel consist of an aerospace medicine squadron and an aeromedical staging squadron.
Ifmobilized to active duty, the 927 ARW is operationally-gained by AMC.
The mission of the 927 ARW is to provide a dedicated and prepared Total Force Team to fly, fight and win in air, space and cyberspace.
The wing directly supports the totally integrated Air Force mission by way of extending the global reach of United States air power through mission ready personnel and equipment while providing global air refueling and airlift operations.
The wing consists of 3 groups and 10 subordinate units including:
After May 1959, the Air Force Reserve flying force consisted of 45 troop carrier squadrons assigned to 15 troop carrier wings.[note 1] The squadrons were not all located with their parent wings, but were spread over thirty-five Air Force, Navy and civilian airfields under what was called the Detached Squadron Concept. The concept offered several advantages. Communities were more likely to accept the smallersquadrons than the largewings and the location of separate squadrons in smaller population centers would facilitate recruiting and manning.[3] However, under this concept, all support organizations were located with the wing headquarters.[4] Although this 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 Air Force Reserve units during theBerlin Crisis of 1961. To resolve this, at the start of 1962,Continental Air Command, (ConAC) determined to reorganize its Air Force Reserve wings by establishing groups with support elements for each of its troop carrier squadrons. This reorganization would facilitate mobilization of elements of wings in various combinations when needed.[5]
As a result of these organizational changes, the927th Troop Carrier Group (927 TCG) was established at what was thenSelfridge Air Force Base, Michigan on 11 February 1963 as the headquarters for the63d Troop Carrier Squadron (63 TCS), with the 63 TCS having been stationed at Selfridge AFB since November 1957.[6] Along with group headquarters, a Combat Support Squadron, a Materiel Squadron, and a Tactical Infirmary were organized to support the 63 TCS.
If mobilized to active duty, the 927 TCG was operationally gained byTactical Air Command (TAC), which was also responsible for its training. The 927 TCG's mission was to organize, recruit and train Air Force Reservists in the tacticalairlift of airborne forces, their equipment and supplies and delivery of these forces and materials by airdrop, landing or cargo extraction systems.
The 927 TCG was one of threeFairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar troop carrier groups assigned to the403d Troop Carrier Wing (403 TCW) at Selfridge AFB in 1963. The other groups were geographically separated units (GSUs) consisting of the928th Troop Carrier Group (928 TCG) atO'Hare Air Reserve Station atO'Hare International Airport, Illinois and the929th Troop Carrier Group (29 TCG) atDavis Field, Oklahoma.
The 927 TCG was redesignated the927th Tactical Airlift Group (927 TAG) in 1967 and flew the C-119 until 1969. The group was then redesignated as the927th Tactical Air Support Group (927 TASG) on 18 June 1969 and flew theCessna U-3 Blue Canoe aircraft until 1971.
Thegroup was once again redesignated as the927th Tactical Airlift Group (927 TAG) on 29 June 1971 and converted to theLockheed C-130A Hercules aircraft. Days later, on 1 July 1971, Selfridge Air Force Base was transferred to theMichigan Air National Guard and was renamedSelfridge Air National Guard Base, becoming the first major active Air Force base to come under control of theAir National Guard. The 927 TAG then became an Air Force Reserve (AFRES) tenant command at Selfridge ANGB.
During the Vietnam War, the 927 TAG's flying squadron routinely ferried dismantled aircraft and delivered equipment and supplies to South Vietnam with its C-119 and later C-130 aircraft. Unit personnel also supported humanitarian relief efforts during the 1973 New York and Pennsylvania floods, as well as hurricane disaster relief to Honduras in 1974 and forHurricane Hugo victims in 1989.
In 1975, with TAC's divestment of the C-130 fleet, the operational gaining command for the 927 TAG shifted to theMilitary Airlift Command (MAC).
During 1990, the 927 TAG deployed more than 400 airmen, plus unit aircraft and supplies, for six months to the Middle East in support ofOperation Desert Shield andOperation Desert Storm.
1992 saw numerous changes for the unit. The 927 TAG relinquished their C-130A aircraft, converted to an air refueling mission withBoeing KC-135E Stratotanker aircraft, and was redesignated the927th Air Refueling Group (927 ARG). This also coincided with major organizational changes across the Air Force the same year withStrategic Air Command (SAC), the former operator of KC-135 aircraft, being disestablished, and all KC-135 assets other than those in Alaska, Hawaii, Europe, and Asia being transferred to the newly-establishedAir Mobility Command (AMC). As a result, if mobilized to active duty, the 927 ARG would now be operationally-gained by AMC.
On 1 October 1994, the 927 ARG was redesignated as the927th Air Refueling Wing (927 ARW). From 1995 through 2004, the wing participated in numerous missions, operations and exercises around the world, including:
In 1997, the Air Force Reserve (AFRES) ceased to be a Field Operating Agency of Headquarters, Air Force (HAF) and became its own Major Command (MAJCOM), renamedAir Force Reserve Command (AFRC). The letters "AFRC" replaced the letters "AFRES" on the tails of all 927 ARW aircraft, but operational relationships with AMC remained unchanged. The wing also commenced transition from the legacy KC-135E to theBoeing KC-135R Stratotanker PACER CRAG variant.
During 1999, the 927th responded to Presidential Selected Recall Callup (PSRC) authority, deploying members on extended active duty in support ofOperation Noble Anvil andNATO'sOperation Allied Force.
The wing also responded within one hour after the11 September attacks in 2001, with the wing launching from their home station ofSelfridge Air National Guard Base and quickly providing refueling services for USAF fighter aircraft patrolling the North Central United States and other concurrent support of Homeland Defense as part ofOperation Noble Eagle. The 927th Security Forces Squadron was also initially activated for 12 months and extended for an additional 12 months in support of Operations Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom. The wing continued to supportOperation Enduring Freedom (Global War on Terrorism) through 2014,Operation Freedom's Sentinel through 2021, and continues to remain actively engaged in supportingOperation Noble Eagle (Homeland Defense).
In its2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) recommendations, DoD recommended to realign Selfridge ANGB. Under this recommendation, the 927 ARW would transfer its eight unit-owned KC-135R aircraft to the127th Wing (127 WG) of theMichigan Air National Guard, also based at Selfridge ANGB. The 927 ARW would then realign to an Active-Reserve Associate arrangement with the then-6th Air Mobility Wing (6 AMW) atMacDill Air Force Base, Florida in order to capture Air Force Reserve experience in the southeastern United States and enhance the combined units' overall capability.
In another recommendation, DoD recommended realigningGrand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, redistributing four of the319th Air Refueling Wing's KC-135R aircraft to MacDill AFB. The enlarged 6 AMW would then host an Air Force Reserve association arrangement with manpower realigned from Selfridge ANGB, with both units operating, maintaining and sharing the same (with the increase of aircraft reassigned from Grand Forks AFB) sixteen (16) KC-135R aircraft.[7]
In 2007, the wing began moving from Selfridge ANGB to MacDill AFB and formally established itself there on 1 May 2008.
In late 2014, the 6 AMW activated a second active duty air refueling squadron. While the 927 ARW continued to have only its single air refueling squadron, the wing benefitted from an increase in Primary Aircraft Authorized (PAA) for 6 AMW from seventeen (17) to twenty-four (24) KC-135R aircraft.
In 2019, the 6 AMW lost its resident airlift squadron and its threeC-37A Gulfstream V aircraft. As a consequence, the 6 AMW reverted back to its previous designation from 2001 as the6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW).
On 21 December 2021, theSecretary of the Air Force announced that the 6 ARW would become Main Operating Base 6 (MOB 6) for the newKC-46A Pegasus air refueling aircraft, eventually replacing the extant twenty-four (24) KC-135R Stratotanker aircraft at MacDill AFB with an equal number of KC-46A aircraft. Arrival of the first KC-46A at MacDill AFB is anticipated in late 2023/early 2024. As part of the 6 ARW's transition, the 927 ARW will also transition to the KC-46A.[8]
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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