Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base is an Ohio Air National Guard installation located near Lockbourne in southern Franklin County. The base was named for the famous early aviator and Columbus native

Eddie Rickenbacker Edward Vernon Rickenbacker or Eddie Rickenbacker (October 8, 1890 – July 23, 1973) was an American fighter pilot in World War I and a Medal of Honor recipient.United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, 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 ...

121st Air Refueling Wing The 121st Air Refueling Wing (121 ARW) is a unit of the Ohio Air National Guard, stationed at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base, Columbus, Ohio. If activated to federal service, the Wing is gained by the United States Air Force Air Mobility ...

(121 ARW), which serves as the host wing and is an Air National Guard (ANG) unit operationally-gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC). Rickenbacker ANGB is part of a joint airfield operation as a tenant activity of the

Columbus Regional Airport Authority Columbus Regional Airport Authority (CRAA) oversees the operations of John Glenn Columbus International Airport, Rickenbacker International Airport, and Bolton Field Bolton Field is a public airport in Columbus, in Franklin County, Ohio, Uni ...

in a joint civil-military airfield arrangement with commercial airlines and other civilian aircraft operators utilizing the colocated Rickenbacker International Airport. Rickenbacker ANGB is also a joint military facility, with tenant activities of the

Ohio Army National Guard The Ohio Army National Guard is a part of the Ohio National Guard and the Army National Guard of the United States Army. It is also a component of the organized militia of the state of Ohio, which also includes the Ohio Naval Militia, the Ohio ...

(Army Aviation Support Facility #2), as well as Navy Reserve and

Marine Corps Reserve The Marine Forces Reserve (MARFORRES or MFR), also known as the United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) and the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, is the reserve force of the United States Marine Corps. It is the largest command, by assigned p ...

units and associated facilities. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the installation was a U.S. Army Air Forces training base known as Lockbourne Army Airfield, becoming an air force base in 1948 a few months following the establishment of the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, 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 ...

as an independent branch of the U.S. armed forces. The base was named Lockbourne AFB from 1948 to 1974 and later Rickenbacker AFB from 1974 to 1980. The facility was transferred from Strategic Air Command and the active duty Air Force on 1 April 1980 and turned over to the Air National Guard.

: Office of Air Force History 1984. . * Mueller, Robert, ''Air Force Bases Volume I, Active Air Force Bases Within the United States of America on 17 September 1982'', Office of Air Force History, 1989 * Futrell, Robert Frank (1983) ''The United States Air Force in Korea, 1950–1953'', Maxwell AFB, Alabama Office of Air Force History, * Lloyd, Alwyn T. (2000), ''A Cold War Legacy, A Tribute to Strategic Air Command, 1946–1992'', Pictorial Histories Publications * Rogers, Brian (2005). ''United States Air Force Unit Designations Since 1978''. Hinkley, England: Midland Publications. . * Turner Publishing Company (1997), ''Strategic Air Command: The Story of the Strategic Air Command and Its People''. Turner Publishing Company * Manning, Thomas A. (2005), ''History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002''. Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas * Shaw, Frederick J. (2004), ''Locating Air Force Base Sites, History’s Legacy'', Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, Washington DC.
USAAS-USAAC-USAAF-USAF Aircraft Serial Numbers – 1908 to present

ArmyAirForces.com

Strategic-Air-Command.com

Rickenbacker International Airport Official Website
br />(Source of much of early history and information about turnover to civil authorities) {{Authority control Installations of the United States Air Force in Ohio Installations of the United States Air National Guard Buildings and structures in Franklin County, Ohio Superfund sites in Ohio Military Superfund sites 1980 establishments in Ohio Military installations established in 1980

Further reading