The 79th Medical Wing was the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

's agent for Air Force and joint medicine within the

National Capital Region A capital region, also called a capital district or capital territory, is a region or district surrounding a capital city. It is not always the official term for the region, but may sometimes be used as an informal synonym. Capital regions can exis ...

. Activated on 10 May 2006, it was the largest wing within the

Air Force District of Washington The Air Force District of Washington (AFDW) is a Direct Reporting Unit of the United States Air Force. AFDW oversees Air Force operations in the Washington, D.C. region (also known as the "National Capital Region" or "NCR"). As a Direct Report ...

, and one of two medical wings in the Air Force. The

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...

was originally active as an infirmary at Youngstown Municipal Airport between 1955 and 1960. The 79th Medical Wing was headquartered at Malcolm Grow Medical Clinics and Surgery Center. The wing organized, trained, equipped, and provided medicine for Air and Space Expeditionary Force deployment, CONUS operations, and in support of joint operations within the National Capital Region. It was the East Coast hub for aeromedical evacuation aircraft returning sick or injured patients from the Atlantic area. The wing was also responsible for providing medical support to Presidential, Congressional, Joint and Air Staff special airlift missions. The 79th Medical Wing was inactivated, and its personnel, equipment, and facilities transferred to the 11th Medical Group, a component of the

11th Wing The 11th Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force District of Washington. It is the host unit at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C. on from June 2020. It previously was stationed at Joint Base Andrews, Maryl ...

, on 16 June 2017.

Air Defense Command 1955-1960

The

was first organized in August 1955 as the 79th USAF Infirmary at Youngstown Municipal Airport when the 79th Fighter Group was activated to replace the 502d Air Defense Group as part of

Air Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command (military formation), 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 est ...

's Project Arrow, a program to restore fighter units that had compiled memorable records in the two world wars.Buss, ''et al.'', p. 6 The unit absorbed the personnel and equipment of the 502d USAF Infirmary. In May 1957, the unit became the 79th USAF Dispensary, when the Air Force renamed its small medical units. The dispensary was discontinued along with the 79th Group in March 1960, when the ADC turned its facilities at Youngstown over to

Continental Air Command Continental Air Command (ConAC) (1948–1968) was a Major Command of the United States Air Force (USAF) responsible primarily for administering the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve. During the Korean War, ConAC provided the necessary au ...

for use as a

reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US vi ...

station.

Predecessors at Andrews

The wing started as a medical detachment consisting of one officer (Capt. Isadore L. Epstein) and 11 enlisted men, who reported to Camp Springs and set up a dispensary. The dispensary had an eight-bed ward, two private rooms, a pharmacy, a dental clinic with two chairs, an X-ray machine, a kitchenette, and offices. Five ambulances were available and Walter Reed General Hospital and Bolling Field Station Hospital were used for consultation and emergencies. Named after Maj. Gen. (Dr.) Malcolm Grow in 1962, the center was dedicated to a man who served as a field doctor in both world wars, in 1949 was selected at the first Air Force surgeon general, and was active in military medicine until his death in 1960. Originally named the USAF Hospital Andrews, construction began in June 1955 and was completed in May 1958 to the tune of $5.5 million. Staffed by Bolling and Andrews personnel, the facility opened 4 August 1958 and provided care to more than 75,000 area military personnel and their families. The dispensary was redesignated the 79th Medical Wing and activated to manage the facility in May 2006. Today, more than 600,000 eligible Department of Defense beneficiaries are in the National Capital Region. On a typical day in patient care, Malcolm Grow Medical Clinics and Surgery Center doctors and other healthcare workers see 930 outpatients, 90 dental patients, and 72 emergent care patients, and conduct seven surgical procedures, take care of 30 patients transitioning at the Aeromedical Staging Facility, and fill 1,963 pharmacy prescriptions. The wing was inactivated in June 2017, and facility management was transferred to the 11th Medical Group, which was simultaneously activated.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 79th USAF Infirmary on 20 June 1955 : Activated on 18 August 1955 : Redesignated 79th USAF Dispensary on 8 May 1957 : Discontinued on 1 March 1960 * Redesignated 79th Medical Wing on 5 May 2006 : Activated on 10 May 2006 : Inactivated June 2017

Assignments

* 79th Fighter Group, 18 August 1955 – 1 March 1960 *

, 10 May 2006 – June 2017

Components

* 79th Medical Group, 5 May 2006 – 1 October 2008 * 579th Medical Group, 10 May 2006 – June 2017 * 779th Medical Group, 1 October 2008 – June 2017

Stations

* Youngstown Municipal Airport, Ohio 18 August 1955 – 1 March 1960 *

Andrews Air Force Base Andrews Air Force Base (Andrews AFB, AAFB) is the airfield portion of Joint Base Andrews, which is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force. In 2009, Andrews Air Force Base merged with Naval Air Facility Washington to form Joint B ...

, Maryland, 10 May 2006 – June 2017

Notes

Bibliography

* Buss, Lydus H.(ed), Sturm, Thomas A., Volan, Denys, and McMullen, Richard F., History of Continental Air Defense Command and Air Defense Command July to December 1955, Directorate of Historical Services, Air Defense Command, Ent AFB, CO, (1956)

External links

79th Medical Wing Fact Sheet
''This article contains information that originally came from a US Government website, in the public domain.'' {{US Air Force navbox 0079 Military units and formations in Maryland Military units and formations established in 2006