Combat aircraft

While the US Air Force

was celebrating its 70th

anniversary in 2017,

the 4th Fighter Wing at

Seymour Johnson AFB in

was marking its 75th. As

the USAF’s largest F-15E

Strike Eagle wing, it’s a

unit that never stands still.

report and photos:

James Deboer

FOURTH

BUT

A

MERICAN VOLUNTEER

PILOTS who stepped

forward in 1940 to  y

alongside the Royal

Air Force in World War

Two were at the heart

of the United States Army Air Forces’ 4th

Fighter Group as the US formally joined

the European campaign in September

1942. It marked the birth of one of the
      most distinguished US military units, and
      one that continues to lead from the front
      in the modern US Air Force.
      Arriving at Seymour Johnson,
      situated in Goldsboro, North Carolina,

it’s impossible to miss the replica

Supermarine Spit re gate guardian that

is perched opposite the ‘Spit re Pub’. It’s

a poignant symbol of the history here,

which is keenly felt across the base. ‘It’s

been a great year for us celebrating our

75th anniversary because it connects

us with our heritage, which started 75

years ago in England,’ comments Col

Christopher ‘Forrest’ Sage, the current

commander of the 4th Fighter Wing.

Sage presides over four squadrons of

F-15E Strike Eagles at Seymour, and he

says, ‘The innovation and the desire to

 ght that lived in those airmen is the

FIRSTFIRST

FEATURE ARTICLE | 4TH FIGHTER WING

http://www.combataircraft.net January 2018

30

30-39 4th FW C.indd 30 23/11/2017 11:53