Idaho Air National Guard

The Idaho Air National Guard is composed of 3,000 Airmen and officers assigned to two flying wings and six geographically separated units (GSUs) throughout Idaho.

History

The 124th Wing was formed from the 405th Fighter Bomber Squadron that saw much action in Europe in WWII. It was given the Presidential Unit Citation in 1945 and later deactivated. In 1946 the 405th was activated and redesignated the 190th Fighter Squadron, Single Engine, Idaho Air National Guard. Colonel Thomas George Lanphier, Jr., credited with the shooting down of Admiral Yamamoto's plane in the South Pacific, was one of the founding members.

Aircraft assigned to the unit through its operations include:
*P-51 Mustang
*T-6 Texan
*A-26 Invader
*L-5 Sentinel
*Aeronca L-16
*C-47 Skytrain
*F-86 Sabre
*T-33 Shooting Star
*F-94 Starfire
*F-89 Scorpion - models A, B and L
*F-102 Delta Dagger
*C-54 Skymaster
*C-131 Samaritan
*F-4 Phantom II
*A-10 Warthog
*C-130 Hercules

Idaho Air National Guard Units

Idaho Air National Guard Headquarters

The Idaho Air National Guard Headquarters at Gowen Field, located at Boise Air Terminal

124th Aerial Port Flight

The 124th Aerial Port Flight is charged with preparing and recovering cargo, processing personnel and ensuring passenger service for transport missions

124th Air Support Operations Squadron

The 124th Air Support Operations Squadron mission is to provide forward air controllers in support of front line Army maneuver units to coordinate and control close air support missions of the Air Force and joint forces in support of the ground battle

124th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

The 124th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron is responsible for the delivery of safe, reliable aircraft to the 190th Fighter Squadron and the 189th Airlift Squadron

124th Civil Engineer Squadron

The 124th Civil Engineer Squadron is prepared to deploy within 28 hours, to provide engineering forces to support regional conflict missions, and to provide support for pre-attack, post-attack and passive defense measures. Engineering personnel include craftsmen, engineering officers and firefighters. CES will provide initial bed down support at a bare base, forward operations or follow-on sustainment for contingencies. In order to operate, participation in exercises are important; CES firefighters and command personnel participated in local Mass Casualties Exercise with a number of local civilian first responders

124th Communications Flight

The mission of the 124th Communications Flight is to provide 24-hour secure and non-secure telecommunications, data processing, and computer support to home station customers and tenants. The unit's multimedia section also provides visual information support in the form of still and video imaging to home-station customers and deployed flying units. The communications flight provides deployed flying units with secure long-haul radio support. Finally, they provide command, control, communications, and computer planning for the 124th Wing and subordinate units.

124th Maintenance Squadron

The 124th Maintenance Squadron and 124th Maintenance Operations Flight provides support to the Aircraft Maintenance Squadron sortie production and depth to sustain maintenance effectiveness. While aircraft generation focuses primarily on on-equipment maintenance, the maintenance squadron deals mostly with off-equipment and specialized component repair

124th Logistics Readiness Squadron

The 124th Logistics Squadron supplies the wing with fully trained personnel to ensure spare parts, equipment, fuel, vehicles, transportation, and contract services are delivered to the right people at the right place and on time to meet the wartime taskings and peacetime needs of the nation and the state of Idaho

124th Medical Group

The 124th Medical Group peacetime mission is to safely and effectively train health care personnel, promote health and well-being, and ensure that wing members are capable of performing worldwide duty. The unit provides medical support for an Air Reserve Component operational mission with a population of more than 1000 members. That support includes physical exams, immunizations, bioenvironmental/military public health, triage, trauma care, and stabilization for movement to a medical treatment facility. The medical squadron provides clinical nursing services, administrators, lab and x-ray services, a pharmacy, and physical therapy and dental services. As a community service, they annually perform physical exams on children as part of the Head Start program

124th Services Flight

The mission of the 124th Services Flight is to provide skilled personnel and operate quality facilities to sustain food service, lodging, mortuary affairs and related services in support of the 124th Wing and all aerospace power in peace and war

124th Mission Support Flight

The 124th Mission Support Flight provides personnel and educational support for all undertakings - both routine and extraordinary - of the 124th Wing. Personnel in the MSF maintain and process documentation for many wing members, from recruiting and retention to education, awards, and training. The MSF offers administration of the family support program and assistance with the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve program

124th Operations Support Flight

The 124th Operations Support Flight supports both the 190th Fighter Squadron and the 189th Airlift Squadron to maintain combat-ready status in the A-10 and C-130 aircraft. The unit is capable of worldwide deployment in order to execute the missions of air interdiction, combat search and rescue, close air support, and tactical airlift. The weapons and tactics shop ensures that critical weapons resources are provided to both flying squadrons to meet their high operations tempo during both peacetime training and wartime tasking.

The Intelligence Flight is responsible for intelligence support of the wing commander, staff, and operations personnel, providing important information on current orders of battle, potential threat systems and world situation hot spots. In addition, "Intel" conducts academic training for aircrews in preparation and practice for worldwide deployment

124th Security Forces Squadron

The mission of the 124th Security Forces Squadron is to train for installation and weapons systems security vital to the protection of all the resources located at Gowen Field. Once deployed, the SFS provides weapon systems security for alert non-nuclear aircraft and air base ground defense at main operating bases or collocated operating bases

124th Wing Staff

The 124th Wing Staff is the Wing Commanders direct staff. Their functions include; Legal, Financial, Safety, Public Affairs, Religious Support, Family Support, Command Post, Wing Planning, Equal Opportunity, Administrative and Executive Support. Their mission is to provide/assist in the command and support actions necessary to maintain two combat ready flying units, one air support operations squadron and a geographically separated unit(GSU), and other support organizations

190th Fighter Squadron

The 190th Fighter Squadron flies A-10 Thunderbolt II tank buster infantry support aircraft. Two British Scimitar armoured reconnaissance vehicles were attacked by an A-10 from the 190th FS (ANG) in the Iraq War of 2003, killing L/CplH Matty Hull and wounding five comrades. The A-10's gun camera footage of this attack was recently [http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2007060133,00.html leaked to UK media] .

189th Airlift Squadron

The 189th Airlift Squadron flies C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft carrying personnel and equipment around the world

266th Range Squadron

The mission of the 266th Range Squadron is to provide tactical aircrews from both the active duty Air Force - from the 366th Air Expeditionary Wing, Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho - and the Idaho Air National Guard - from the 124th Wing, Gowen Field, with the most realistic electronic combat training threat environment available. The 266th RANS is tasked to develop, maintain, and operate a simulated hostile electronic threat environment for aircrews to train

Future

In its 2005 BRAC Recommendations, the Department of Defense recommended to deactivate the 111th Fighter Wing (ANG) and relocate some of its assigned A-10 aircraft to the 124th Wing (ANG). This recommendation was part of a larger recommendation that would close Naval Air Station Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. DoD also recommended to realign Idaho ANG by distributing the four C-130H aircraft of the 124th Wing to the 153rd Airlift Wing (ANG), Cheyenne, Wyoming.

The new larger unit at Cheyenne would create a larger, more effective C-130 squadron size, and with its proximity to F. E. Warren Air Force Base, would allow it to host an active/ANG associate unit. Boise would become a more valuable A-10 base because of its proximity to air-to-ground ranges with scoreable strafing and bombing, threat emitters, and integrated air combat training.

Controversy

In 2003 an A-10 Warthog of the Idaho Air National Guard attacked vehicles of the British Army in Iraq. The attack killed one soldier Lance Corporal of horse Matty Hull and wounded several others. Trooper Christopher Finney was awarded the George Cross, Britain's highest award for gallantry displayed other than that displayed in the face of enemy fire, for his bravery in pulling his injured comrades from their burning vehicles. Trooper Finney also attempted to rescue L/Cpl Hull but was forced back by the force and heat of the continuing explosions surrounding the Scimitar vehicles which were being attacked. As well as the death of L/Cpl Hull five other members of the patrol were also injured. An inquest into the death of L/Cpl Hull found a series of errors in the decisions made by the US pilots prior to the attack, including an assertion by Forward Air Controllers that the pilots were acting independently and hastily, not waiting for clearance to fire and attacking the convoy of vehicles a second time whilst still doubting its identity.

"See also" Article on the incident

External links

* [http://www.idaho.ang.af.mil Idaho Air National Guard] official website
* [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/usaf/124wg.htm 124th history at GlobalSecurity.org]