99th Air Refueling Squadron: Difference between revisions

99th Air Refueling Squadron
99th Air Refueling Squadron Patch
Active	15 July 1942 – 1 May 1944 1 July 1957 – 30 September 1973 1 October 1983 – Present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Aerial refueling
Part of	Air Mobility Command 18th Air Force 6th Air Mobility Wing/117th Air Refueling Wing 6th Operations Group/117th Operations Group
Garrison/HQ	Birmingham Air National Guard Base, AL
Decorations	MUA AFOUA w/V Device RVGC w/ Palm

The 99th Air Refueling Squadron (99 ARS) is part of the 6th Air Mobility Wing at Birmingham Air National Guard Base, Alabama. It operates the KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft conducting aerial refueling missions.

The squadron was an operational training unit from, October–November 1942 and a replacement training unit from, December 1942-May 1943 and November 1943-April 1944. It conducted Theater and overseas aerial refueling, beginning in 1958, including support of operations in Southeast Asia between 1965 and 1973. The 99th also had an airborne command post mission from, 1965–1970. It has flown worldwide aerial refueling missions since 1983 and airborne command post mission between 1984 and 1991.^[1]

The 99th supported operations in Grenada, 23–24 Oct 1983, Panama, 18–21 Dec 1989, Southwest Asia, Aug 1990 – Mar 1991, and over Bosnia, Jan–Feb 1995 and Aug 1996. It Provided personnel and aircraft for refueling aircraft enforcing no-fly zones over Iraq in 1996. In 1997 and 1998, unit resources refueled airplanes flying continuing missions along the border of Iraq in Southwest Asia. In 1998 and 1999, the squadron also supported operations over the former Yugoslavia. The squadron also refueled aircraft involved in antidrug operations over the Caribbean Sea in 1998. After the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C., on 11 September 2001, the squadron supported Operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, the transportation of Taliban and Al Qaeda detainees to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and counter-drug operations in South America.^[1]

In 2008, the squadron was deactivated at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. In 2009, it was reactivated at Birmingham Air National Guard Base, AL under the Chief of Staff of the Air Force's Total Force Integration initiative. The squadron and its personnel remain an active duty Air Force unit with administrative control falling to the 6th Air Mobility Wing at MacDill Air Force Base, FL. Operational direction for day-to-day taskings come from the 117th Air Refueling Wing at Birmingham, AL.

• Constituted as 9 Reconnaissance Squadron (Heavy) on 28 Jan 1942

Redesignated as 399 Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) on 22 Apr 1942

Activated on 15 Jul 1942

Inactivated on 1 May 1944

• Consolidated (19 Sep 1985) with 99 Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy, which was constituted on 12 Feb 1957

Activated on 1 Jul 1957

Inactivated on 30 Sep 1973

• Activated on 1 Oct 1983

Redesignated as 99 Air Refueling Squadron on 1 Sep 1991

Inactivated on 1 Sep 2008

• Activated on 1 Oct 2009.

• 88th Bombardment Group, 15 Jul 1942-1 May 1944
• 4050th Air Refueling Wing, 1 Jul 1957
• 499th Air Refueling Wing, 1 Jan 1963
• 99th Bombardment Wing, 1 Jan 1966-30 Sep 1973
• 19th Air Refueling Wing, 1 Oct 1983
• 19th Operations (later, 19th Air Refueling) Group, 1 Sep 1991-1 Sep 2008
• 6th Operations Group, 1 Oct 2009-Present

• B-17 Flying Fortress (1942–1944)
• KC-135 Stratotanker (1957–1973, 1983 – Present)
• EC-135 (1965–1970, 1984–1997)
• EC-137 (1991–1994)

• AFHRA 99th Air Refueling Squadron History