Happy 90th Anniversary to Alabama Air National Guard and the 106th-117th

-BIRMINGHAM AL- Based in Birmingham since 1922 the historic Alabama Air Guard celebrated their 90^th Anniversary on Friday night with a gala affair. Early in 1919, Major James Meissner, a famous World War I flying ace, organized some ten to twelve ex-aviators from the recent war. The club, called the Birmingham Flying Club, was nicknamed the "Birmingham Escadrille". Their primary goal was promoting aviation in Birmingham and in Alabama. On 21 January 1922, once federally recognized, the 135th Observation Squadron, Alabama National Guard was born.

Twenty-six officers and one hundred twenty enlisted men assigned to the squadron began developing the tract of land  for an air base. Before the end of July 1922 with seven Curtiss JN-4Ds and support equipment, the squadron was functioning as a flying unit under the direction of Major Meissner.

By 1 January 1923, the unit designation was changed to the 114th Observation Squadron and continued flying the JN-4D on observation missions from Roberts Field. Then on 1 January 1924, the designation was changed from the 114th Observation Squadron to the 106th Observation Squadron, Alabama National Guard.

Construction of modern hangars and buildings at Birmingham Municipal Airport funded by the government works project in began in 1935. In 1938, the unit moved into its present quarters at the Birmingham Airport. The hangars originally supported thirteen O-47 type aircraft. Eventually, the base was named after the colonel who helped ensure its construction, Colonel Sumpter Smith.

Since 1922, the unit has achieved an extensive history in military aviation, state and regional disaster assistance, community service and heroism in evolving aircraft and missions. The presence of the AL ANG 117^th / 106^th remains a significant economic contributor and source of pride for Birmingham. A few of their historic missions include:

Bay of Pigs- During the CIA-sponsored Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Cuban exile aircrews of Douglas B-26 Invaders were unable to maintain the extensive air support in the face of Cuban government forces, and several American advisers, formerly of Alabama Air Guard, flew covert attack missions. Four of them in two B-26s were shot down and killed. The involvement of the Alabama guard pilots surfaced in 1961, but the details of the operation were kept secret until the late 1990s.

Operation Desert Shield- On 24 August 1990, then Colonel James F. Brown, 117th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing Commander led a formation of six RF-4C Phantoms on what was believed to be the longest non-stop flight of six Phantoms in history. After each Phantom refueled in the air 16 (sixteen) times and after traveling more than 8,000 nautical miles (15,000 km) without landing, the flight terminated in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates at 1600 local time on 25 August 1990. The flight lasted 15.5 hours and included aerial refuelings from four different KC-10's and four different KC-135's. The 106th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron then operated out of the desert air base until December, 1990 flying reconnaissance missions in preparation for the eventual Operation Desert Storm. During those four months in 1990, one RF-4C Phantom was lost, claiming the lives of two of the 106th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron's aircrew members.

Air Refueling Wing- Over the next several years the 106th pioneered the practice of air-to-air refueling over water using KC-97 and KC-135 tankers to fuel RF-84s in test flights from Birmingham to Puerto Rico. In November 1994 the unit was re-equipped with KC-135R tankers. The units became the 106th Air Refueling Squadron and 117th Air Refueling Wing. The mission of the 117th Air Refueling Wing is to provide aerial refueling services to fighter squadrons or other military aircraft, allowing them to remain airborne longer and giving them almost unlimited range. B Meyer, FMI: http://www.117arw.ang.af.mil/ , http://www.117arw.ang.af.mil/history/