Here's how you know
 **Official websites use .mil** .mil
 **Secure .mil websites use HTTPS** lock () https://


Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 Toggle navigation
            
            
            
            
            National Guard
                        Always Ready Always There
                    National Guard
            
            Search National Guard:
                        Search
                    Search
                        Search National Guard:
                            Search
    Home

    News
    
        Guard News

    Overseas Operations

    State Partnership Program

    News Features

    RSS Feeds

    Press Releases

    Transcripts

    Features
    
        Features by Year

    Posture Statement

    State Partnership Program

    Special Features

    About the Guard
    
        How We Began

    Air National Guard

    Army National Guard    
    
        DEERS Soldier Journey

    Leader Development Program

    History and Heritage

    I am the Guard

    NGB Official March

    Leadership
    
        CNGB

    VCNGB

    SEA

    DANG

    DARNG

    Joint Staff    
    
        J-1

    J-2

    J-3

    J-4

    J-5

    J-6

    J-7

    J-8

    Personal Staff    
    
        Inspector General

    General Counsel    
    
        Special Victims Counsel

    Public Affairs

    Executive Support Services

    Legislative Liaison

    Special Staff    
    
        Office of the Provost Marshal

    Office of the Joint Surgeon

    Director of Acquisitions

    Small Business Programs

    Chaplain

    Senior Leader Management Office

    Diversity Equity Inclusion

    Comptroller

    Resources    
        National Defense Strategy Implementation Guidance

    Community Engagement

    FOIA

    Fact Sheets

    Helpful Links

    Image Gallery
    
        News Images

    Graphics

    Historical Paintings

    Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

    Legislative Liaison

    Small Business Programs

    Social Media

    State Websites

    Videos    
    
        Featured Videos

    On Every Front

    2019 Videos

    2020 Videos

    2021 Videos

    Suicide Prevention

    Family Programs

    Environmental

    Trial Defense Service

    Holistic Wellness Challenge

    Contact Us  Home
  News
  Article View
 
 Download
 Details
 Share
 NEWS
 Aircraft name now honors a precious payload By Tech. Sgt Mike R. Smith
                National Guard Bureau
 JACKSON, Miss. - One of the Air Force's most modern cargo aircraft was named after the nation's oldest military decoration Nov. 20 in a ceremony here attended by Medal of Honor and Purple Heart medal recipients. The Mississippi Air National Guard's 172nd Airlift Wing named one of its C-17 Globemaster IIIs "The Spirit of the Purple Heart" and painted a Purple Heart medal nose art above its passenger door to honor the nation's combat wounded. The unit routinely flies aeromedical evacuation missions from Balad Air Base Hospital, Iraq, to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, and then on to Walter Reed Medical Center, District of Columbia, and has transported more than 19,000 patients since its mobilization for the mission in October 2005. The wing chose to name aircraft number 33113 because it flew the C-17's millionth-hour mission during an aeromedical flight from Balad in March 2006. Active duty, Guard and Reserve members, past and present combat veterans and their families, and political dignitaries gathered to dedicate the "The Spirit of the Purple Heart" with patriotic speeches, an aircraft tour and an unveiling of its nose art. Dignitaries included lieutenant governor-elect Phil Bryant, U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Mr. Gordon H. Mansfield and Maj. Gen. Harold Cross, the Mississippi adjutant general. Cross said the nose art will serve as a long-standing honor to the sacrifices combat wounded and their families make to protect the nation. "We will sign the vivid air with your honor as this Purple Heart slices through the sky ... and we will take care of our wounded, always, because they have taken care of us," said Cross. Cross' words echoed from the stage, set inside a huge C-17 hanger as the autumn sun cast long shadows from the aircraft parked outside. A slight breeze unfurled dozens of American flags held by members of the Military Order of the Purple Heart (MOPH) and other veteran's organizations. Tech. Sgt. Bobby Kinabrew, the aircraft's crew chief who helped coordinate the aircraft's naming, said the unit worked with members of the MOPH to select a name and nose art for his assigned aircraft. He said he felt compelled to push the naming request through his chain of command because his uncle is a retired Army sergeant major who received a Purple Heart for his service in Vietnam. After its approval, wing maintenance personnel as well as members of the Boeing company worked for two days using screen printing inks and stencils to paint the purple-, gold- and black-colored nose art onto the aircraft. "It looks wonderful in my eyes," Kinabrew said. "I hope it honors all of the recipients of the Purple Heart." Retired Army Col. Henry Cook, the MOPH's national commander, said that the nose art pays a fitting tribute to the medal. The MOPH's more than 40,000 combat wounded veterans are the self-proclaimed custodians of the medal. "It says so much because it honors everybody who flies aboard it who has made that sacrifice for this country ... now they come back in an aircraft that honors them," said Cook, who received his Purple Heart medal in World War II. The Purple Heart medal is one of the most recognized and respected medals in the U.S. military. It is awarded to servicemembers wounded in combat. It was created in 1782 by Gen. George Washington as a Military Badge of Merit. It's the oldest military decoration in the nation, and it was the first enlisted medal of any army of the 1700s. Gen. Douglas MacArthur resurrected the medal in 1931 as a way to recognize combat wounded.
 SHARE
 PRINT
 
 North Carolina Guard Welcomes New Zambian State Partnership
 By Lt. Col. Ellis Parks,
  Vermont Army Guard Soldiers Attend Brazilian Mountain School
 By Sgt. Denis Nunez,
  Idaho Air Guard Conducts Panther Shadow Exercise
 By Senior Master Sgt. Joshua Allmaras,
  More
 Idaho Air Guard Conducts Panther Shadow Exercise5/3/2024Massachusetts Guard Helps Host Crisis Leadership Seminar5/2/2024Massachusetts Air Guard Airmen Test New Air Combat Tactics5/2/2024 View more Guard News »
 Vermont Army Guard Soldiers Attend Brazilian Mountain School5/3/2024
New York Army Guard Soldiers Heading to North Africa4/30/2024
Pennsylvania National Guard Members Deploy to Africa4/19/2024 View more Overseas Operations News »
 North Carolina Guard Welcomes New Zambian State Partnership5/3/2024

Guard Leaders Stress NCOs Role in State Partnership Program5/3/2024

Enduring Partners 2024 Begins with Thai-US Airmen Exchange5/2/2024 View more State Partnership Program News »
 Back-to-school tools for military families8/11/2015DoD sends blended military retirement proposal to Congress6/16/2015First employment symposium held for National Guard spouses5/11/2015 View more Family Programs News »
 Home
 Site Map
 Privacy & Security Policy
 Link Disclaimer
 Web Policy
 DOD Information Quality
 DOD Open GovernmentFOIA
 No FEAR Act
 Accessibility/Section 508
 Contact Us
 Army Guard Careers
 Air Guard Careers
 USA.gov
                    
Staying Connected
    XYouTubeFlickrFacebookInstagram
                 
                
                

Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil