The 127th Air Refueling Group is a unit of the

Michigan Air National Guard The Michigan Air National Guard (MI ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Michigan, United States of America. It is, along with the Michigan Army National Guard, an element of the Michigan National Guard. The Michigan Air National Guard is a ...

, assigned to the

127th Wing The 127th Wing is a composite wing of the United States Air Force and Michigan National Guard. It is composed of approximately 1,700 Citizen-Airmen and provides highly trained personnel, aircraft, and support resources to serve the Michigan comm ...

Selfridge Air National Guard Base Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located in Harrison Township, Michigan, near Mount Clemens. Selfridge Field was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the Unit ...

, Michigan.

History

Established in 1962 when the Michigan ANG 171st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron was expanded to a Group. Was primarily a training unit flying second-line RF-84F Thundersteak reconnaissance aircraft for

Tactical Air Command Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. It was inactivated on 1 J ...

, upgrading to the newer

RF-101 Voodoo The McDonnell F-101 Voodoo is a supersonic jet fighter which served the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Initially designed by McDonnell Aircraft Corporation as a long-range bomber escort (known as a '' ...

in 1971. Reassigned to

Aerospace Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was established in 1946, briefly inac ...

(ADCOM) in 1973, equipped with

F-106 Delta Dart The Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft of the United States Air Force from the 1960s through to the 1980s. Designed as the so-called "Ultimate Interceptor", it proved to be the last specialist interceptor i ...

interceptors. Performed air defense duties of the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

and

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

area until 1978 when ADCOM was merged into Tactical Air Command. Continued air defense mission for

ADTAC Air Defense, Tactical Air Command (ADTAC) was a Named Unit of the United States Air Force, and operated at the Numbered Air Force echelon of Tactical Air Command. It was responsible for the air defense of the United States, and was last statione ...

component of TAC with

F-4 Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bow ...

s, transferring to

First Air Force The First Air Force (Air Forces Northern; 1 AF-AFNORTH) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Its primary mission is the air defense of the Co ...

when ADTAC was replaced in 1985. Upgraded to

F-16A Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful ...

s in 1990. Transferred to

Air Mobility Command Air Mobility Command (AMC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the U.S. Air Force. It is headquartered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, east of St. Louis, Missouri. Air Mobility Command was established on 1 June 1992, and was formed from elements ...

in 1993 when the group became a

C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 ...

Tactical Airlift unit. Inactivated in April 1996 when the 127th Fighter Wing and 191st Airlift Group were merged due to the One-Base, One Wing policy. Reactivated in May 1999 as a group under the 127th Wing, operating the C-130 airlift element of the composite wing. Inactivated in September 2007 with the realignment of Selfridge and transfer of the C-130s and the transition to the

KC-135 Stratotanker The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of transpo ...

due to BRAC 2005. The 191st Group was inactivated, however the 191st Operation Support Flight, 191st Maintenance Squadron, 191st Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, 191st Maintenance Operations Flight and the

171st Air Refueling Squadron The 171st Air Refueling Squadron (171 ARS) is a unit of the Michigan Air National Guard's 127th Wing (127 WG) located at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Michigan. The 171st is equipped with the KC-135T Stratotanker. History World War ...

were reassigned to the 127th Air Refueling Group, 127th Wing.

Lineage

* Established as the 191st Tactical Reconnaissance Group on 11 September 1962 and allotted to the Air National Guard : Activated on 1 October 1962 : Redesignated 191st Fighter-Interceptor Group c. 21 July 1972 : Redesignated 191st Fighter Group on 15 March 1992 : Redesignated 191st Airlift Group on 15 July 1994 : Inactivated on 1 April 1996 * Activated on 1 May 1999 : Redesignated 127th Air Refueling Group, 30 September 2007,

Assignments

* 127th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 1 October 1962 *

835th Air Division The 835th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force (USAF) organization. Its last assignment was to Twelfth Air Force of Tactical Air Command (TAC) at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, where it was inactivated on 30 June 1971. The di ...

, 1 July 1967 * 127th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, 1967 * 102nd Fighter-Interceptor Wing, c. 21 Jul 1972 * 144th Fighter-Interceptor Wing * 127th Wing, 15 March 1992 – 1 April 1996 * 127th Wing, 1 May 1999 – present

, 1 Oct 1962 – 1 April 1996 : Gained by

, 1 October 1962 : Gained by

, c. 21 July 1972 : Gained by

, 1 June 1978 : Gained by

Air Combat Command Air Combat Command (ACC) is one of nine Major Commands (MAJCOMs) in the United States Air Force, reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force (HAF) at the Pentagon. It is the primary provider of air combat forces for the Air Force, and i ...

, 1 June 1992 : Gained by

, 1 October 1993

Components

* 171st Tactical Reconnaissance (later Fighter-Interceptor, later Tactical Fighter, Later Fighter, Later Airlift) Squadron, 1 October 1962 – 1 April 1996; 1 May 1999 – 30 September 2007

Stations

Detroit Wayne County Metropolitan Airport Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport , usually called Detroit Metro Airport, Metro Airport, or simply DTW, is a major international airport in the United States covering effective December 30, 2021. in Romulus, Michigan. It is the primar ...

, Michigan, 1 October 1962 *

Selfridge Air Force Base Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located in Harrison Township, Michigan, near Mount Clemens. Selfridge Field was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the Uni ...

(later Selfridge Air National Guard Base), Michigan, 1 July 1971 – 1 April 1996; 1 May 1999 – 30 September 2007

Aircraft

RF-84F Thunderstreak The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak was an American swept-wing turbojet fighter-bomber. While an evolutionary development of the straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet, the F-84F was a new design. The RF-84F Thunderflash was a photo reconnaissance version. ...

, 1962–1971 *

RF-101C Voodoo The McDonnell F-101 Voodoo is a supersonic jet fighter which served the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Initially designed by McDonnell Aircraft Corporation as a long-range bomber escort (known as a '' ...

, 1971–1972 *

, 1972–1978 *

F-4C Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bow ...

, 1978–1986 *

F-4D Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bo ...

, 1986–1990 *

, 1990 *

, 1993–1996; 1999–2007 *

, 2007–Present

References

Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations

Bibliography

191st Airlift Group Lineage and History
*Rogers, B. (2006). United States Air Force Unit Designations Since 1978.

External links

{{US Air Force navbox Groups of the United States Air National Guard Military units and formations in Michigan Air refueling groups of the United States Air Force