Everything about 102nd Fighter Wing totally explained
The
United States Air Force's
102d Fighter Wing,
Massachusetts Air National Guard, is a fighter aircraft unit located at
Otis Air National Guard Base,
Massachusetts. The 102d Fighter Wing acts as the parent unit for the
101st Fighter Squadron, the
253rd Combat Communications Group,
267th Combat Communications Squadron, and the
202nd Weather Flight. It has lost its
F-15C Eagles, after flying them for 21 years, to the
104th Fighter Wing. It will be transitioning to an intelligence wing in sometime this year. It is the fifth oldest air guard unit in the nation.
Mission
The 102nd is preparing for a ground-based distributed radar installation. This change has come after it held a flying mission, which it held for 87 years. The change comes at a time when the Air Force has rearranged its needs and it decided that the
104th Fighter Wing would be more able to fly the mission that the102nd previously held. It also will supposedly save money in the short term.
History
1921-World War II
The
101st Observation Squadron was formed in 1921 as a unit of the Massachusetts National Guard. During
World War II, the unit was based in
France. It cared for the
Spirit of St. Louis when
Charles Lindbergh visited the state. In 1940, the 101st was inducted into federal service and was then moved from Logan Airport to Otis Field at Camp Edwards, Mass. During World War II, the unit served under the
Ninth Air Force as a reconnaissance unit. After serving in France, the squadron returned to the states in 1945 and was reactivated as a National Guard unit on July 29, 1946.
Post War Years
After the end of the war, it moved to
Logan International Airport. It stood on alert for many years. The 102d Fighter Group was formed in 1946 and assigned to the Massachusetts Air National Guard. In 1950, the 102d was recalled to active duty and assigned to the
Air Defense Command. Remaining at home station, wing stood runway alert throughout the
Korean conflict. From 1956 to 1976, the unit was headed by
Brigadier General Charles W. Sweeney, who flew the "
Fat Man" atomic bomb to
Nagasaki in 1945.
Berlin Crisis
During the summer of
1961, as the
Berlin Crisis unfolded, several USAF reserve units were notified on
16 August of their pending activation and recall to active duty. On
1 October the
MassachusettsAir National Guard 102nd Tactical Fighter Wing and its three fighter squadrons, the 101st, 131st, and 138th went on active duty at
Otis AFB.
Between 28 and
30 October, the 102nd TFW departed Logan International Airport to Phalsbourg. By
November 1, 26 of the wing’s
F-86H aircraft were on the ramp at
Phalsbourg-Bourscheid Air Base, France. The wing deployed 82
F-86H "Sabre"s. The 101st were marked with green stripes on their vertical stabilizers, the 131st with red stripes, and the 128th with yellow stripes. In addition 2
C-47 and 6
T-33 aircraft were assigned to the wing for support and training purposes.
The 102nd's primary mission was to provide close air support to NATO ground forces and air interdiction. This involved keeping its aircraft on 24/7 alert. Starting on
5 December, the 102nd began deploying to
Wheelus AB Libya for gunnery training.
During its time in Europe, the 102nd participated in several USAF and NATO exercises, including a deployment to Leck AB, West Germany near the Danish border. At Leck, ground and support crews from both countries exchanged duties, learning how to perform aircraft maintenance and operational support tasks.
On
7 May 1962,
Seventeenth Air Force directed that the 102nd TFW would deploy back to CONUS during the summer, and the 102nd TFW returned to the United States in July
1962, Regular USAF personnel, along with a group of ANG personnel who volunteered to remain on active duty formed the 480th Tactical Fighter Squadron of the newly activated
366th Tactical Fighter Wing.
Move To Otis
In 1968, the 102nd Tactical Fighter Wing moved to
Otis Air National Guard Base. The return to Otis for the 102d was fitting indeed. The
101st Observation Squadron, forerunner of the 102d Fighter Interceptor Wing, was the original occupant of the Otis Field and was instrumental in its construction on the Camp Edwards property. The original intent of Otis Field was for utilization by National Guard aircraft. The wing flew the
F-84F Thunderstreak until June 1971, when a squadron of
F-100D Super Sabres was transferred directly from units fighting the
Vietnam War. After making the transition to the "Hun," a shift in
Department of Defense military planning brought still more change to the 102nd and its mission. Mach 2
F-106 Delta Darts arrived on the 102nd's parking ramp. On
June 10,
1972, the unit officially became the 102d Air Defense Wing. Upon completion of transition, the wing commenced an air defense alert commitment on a 24-hour, 365-days-a-year basis. The wing participated in the interception of Soviet
TU-95 Bear bombers on many occasions, the first of which occurred off
Long Island in 1975. Many of these occasions included escorting the aircraft to Cuba. Other escort missions involved the escorting of drug smuggling planes and the identifying of one mysterious ghost plane, which turned out later to be a weather balloon. In 1972, the 102nd Fighter Interceptor Group along with it’s subordinate unit, the
101st Fighter Interceptor Squadron, was placed on an air defense alert mission. This mission was continued right up to January 24th, 2008.
On January 24th, 2008, the 102nd Fighter Wing officially flew its last patrol mission. After 35 years of being on constant alert status, the wing was officially ordered to stand down. The unit's wing commander, Colonel Anthony Schiavi, led the flight, accompanied by Major Daniel Nash, who also was one of the first responders for 9/11. Fire trucks were on hand when the team landed a half-hour later, giving the planes and the pilots the customary hose-down for the last time. The wing was responsible for airspace spanning the area from the Canadian border to
Washington D.C., which is about of area. The wing will transfer to an intelligence mission within the next few months. In the 87 years that the
101st Fighter Squadron, this day was probably the worst for its members. Those years are now a memory as the squadron is now without a flying mission.
Future
As soon as it was announced that the wing would be kept alive and
Otis Air National Guard Base would remain open, people began thinking of the future for the 102nd. There was talk that the wing could transition to an intelligence mission so that it could help support the war on terror. The plans hit a roadblock when it was announced that there were few funds left so that the wing could transition into it's new mission. It was finally confirmed when the governor announced that the wing would transition to an intelligence mission as soon as the planes were moved. Original plans only said that a Distributed Ground Station would be created at Otis. This didn't include the Air Guardsmen. The issue was finally resolved when the Air Force announced it's plans, right before the F-15's started to leave for Barnes. Some guardsmen and women have decided to stay with the 102nd so that they wouldn't have to uproot their lives and move to the other side of the state. Others have decided to follow the F-15's to Barnes and continue on with their flying careers. Those that have stayed are currently being retrained so that they can have an important part in the future of our nation. There are currently no known plans on the table in which the wing will fly again.
Major Command
Assignments
Supported NATO forces in Europe 1961-1962
24-hour Air Defense Mission 1972-2008
Assisted In Drug Interdiction missions in Panama 1991-1995
Supported operations in the Middle East 1999-2000
Supported Air Defense after 9/11
Previous Designations
» Section source: Philippe==
Current Units
102nd Operations Group
102nd Maintenance Group (???-2008?)
- 102nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron (???-2008?)
- 102nd Maintenance Squadron (???-2008?)
- 102nd Maintenance Operations Flight (???-2008?)
102nd Mission Support Group
- 102nd Civil Engineering Squadron
- 102nd Communications Squadron
- 102nd Logistics Readiness Squadron
- 102nd Security Forces Squadron
- 102nd Mission Suport Flight
- 102nd Services Flight
102nd Medical Group
253rd Combat Communications Group
Past Units
101st Fighter Squadron (1946-2008)
104th TAC Fighter Group
107th Fighter Interceptor Group
125th Fighter Interceptor Group
131st Tactical Fighter Squadron
138th Tactical Fighter Squadron
147th Fighter Interceptor Group
174th TAC Fighter Group
177th Fighter Interceptor Group
Bases Stationed
Otis Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts (1968-Present)
Logan International Airport, Massachusetts (1962-1968)
Leck Air Base (1961)
Wheelus Air Base (1961)
Phalsbourg-Bourscheid Air Base (1961-1962)
Logan International Airport, Massachusetts (1946-1961)
Aircraft Operated
» Section source: Philippe
Further Information
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