combat aircraft

II. With close air support as its bread

and butter mission, the wing provided

critical support for ground units not only

in the US, but during deployments to

Europe and Central America, embracing

a readiness for worldwide tasking.

In fact, in 1991, the unit received the

 rst ‘outstanding’ rating ever for any

 ghter command in a unit e ectiveness

inspection. That achievement was a  rst

for any active or reserve unit in the history

of Tactical Air Command.

Redesignated the 128th Fighter Wing,

under the newly formed Air Combat

Command, in 1992, it began conversion

to the F-16, which it continues to  y

to this day. In October 1995, the 128th

FW was renumbered as the 115th FW.

During 1997 and 1998 it  ew its  rst F-16

combat missions, deploying to Turkey for

Operation ‘Northern Watch’ and to Kuwait

for ‘Southern Watch’.

The 115th was tasked to provide

homeland defense from September

11, 2001 — the  rst time since 1974

that the wing was given a ‘24/7’ alert

commitment. In 2004 it deployed to

the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in

South-west Asia, and in 2006, 2008, and

2009 it went to Balad, Iraq, in support of

Operation ‘Iraqi Freedom’.

Forty active-duty personnel arrived

at Truax Field in February 2015 as the

495th Fighter Group, Detachment

176, joined the ranks of the 115th

FW. This partnership highlights the

USAF’s Total Force Integration (TFI)

construct, further strengthening

the bonds between active-duty, reserve,

and ANG components.

Even as the unit continues to support

worldwide contingency operations

and homeland air defense, all eyes are

to the future. The men and women

of the 115th^ FW are exceptionally

proud to have been chosen as the

second ANG F-35 squadron and look

to set the standard for the next several

decades. ‘It’s exciting,’ says Lt Col Charlie

‘Skipper’ Merkel, veteran  ghter pilot

and head of the newly formed

F-35 integration o ce for

the Wisconsin Air National

Guard. ‘It’s cutting-

edge and puts this

base on the map

worldwide.’

continental US capability. It was also
during the unit’s activation that the 176th
FS became the  rst in the ANG to  y the
F-89 Scorpion. However, this conversion
only lasted seven months before it
returned to the F-51. On October 31, 1952,
the squadron was o cially released from
active duty and fell back to the control of
the state government.
The following year, it was redesignated
as the 176th Fighter Interceptor Squadron
(FIS) and converted  rst to the F-86A
Sabre, but ultimately back to the F-89
in October 1955. During the next 12
years, the squadron’s role went from
that of stand-by reserve force to a critical
component in the air defense of the North
American continent.
The Scorpions were traded for F-102
Delta Daggers during 1965, ful lling a
round-the-clock alert commitment for the
next nine years. For its e orts, the 176th
was recognized as the best F-102 unit in
the US Air Force in 1972.

Modern era
The 176th left the  ghter business in 1974
but returned in 1981 under the  ag of the
128th Tactical Fighter Wing. This time, the
command  elded the A-10 Thunderbolt

Right: The

115th Fighter

Wing’s recently

painted 70th

anniversary

F-16C.

Scott Wolff

The wing

received

notifi cation this past

December that it has

become a preferred

candidate base

for the bed-down of

the F-35A Lightning II

http://www.combataircraft.net // November 2018 23