IV 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1411 

Honoring the service and commitment of the 111th Fighter Wing, 

Pennsylvania Air National Guard. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 27, 2010 

Ms. SCHWARTZ submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Armed Services 

RESOLUTION 

Honoring the service and commitment of the 111th Fighter 

Wing, Pennsylvania Air National Guard. 

Whereas the 111th Fighter Wing’s roots date back to the establishment of the 103rd Observation Squadron on 27 

June 1924, in the sod fields of the Philadelphia Airport; 

Whereas on 17 February 1941, the 103rd was ordered to active service, performing antisubmarine patrols off the 

coast of New England; 

Whereas the squadron deployed to the China-Burma-India 

(CBI) Theater of World War II in 1943, executing support operations for the duration of the war; 

Whereas the 391st Bombardment Group (Medium), constituted on 15 January 1943, earned the Distinguished 

Unit Citation for its service during World War II, perVerDate Mar 15 2010 06:05 May 29, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR1411.IH HR1411

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•HRES 1411 IH 

forming ground attack missions in France and the Low 

Countries in advance of the invasion of Normandy, and 

Germany in support of in and in the aftermath of the 

Battle of the Bulge; 

Whereas in 1946, both the 391st, then redesignated the 

111th Bomb group (Light), and the 103rd Squad were 

designated to the Pennsylvania Air National Guard; 

Whereas the 111th Composite Wing was activated in April 

1951, performing strategic bombing and reconnaissance 

missions in support of the United States efforts in the 

Korean War; 

Whereas in 1963, the 111th ended its 39-year history at 

Philadelphia Airport, and moved into new housing on the 

north end of the Willow Grove Naval Air Station; 

Whereas during the Vietnam War, the 111th conducted reconnaissance and observation missions, helping to coordinate critical communication between ground forces and 

fighter aircraft; 

Whereas in 1995, the newly designated 111th Fighter Wing 

volunteered for deployment to Kuwait, where they conducted Combat Search and Rescue alert, Kill Box flights 

over Iraq, Airborne Forward Air Control, and joint training missions in support of Operation Southern Watch; 

Whereas 1999, the 111th again deployed to Al Jaber, Kuwait, to support joint combat flight operations for Operation Southern Watch; 

Whereas immediately following the attacks of September 

11th, the 111th Fighter Wing voluntarily deployed on 

very short notice to support joint combat operations for 

Operation Southern Watch and Operation Enduring 

Freedom; 


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•HRES 1411 IH 

Whereas between 2002–2003, the wing was the lead unit for 

short notice, voluntary, out-of-cycle Air Expeditionary 

Force deployments to Bagram AB, Afghanistan, performing joint combat flight operations with U.S. Army, 

Special Forces and coalition ground troops despite total 

‘black out’ conditions, a substantial number of mines on 

and around the airfield, extreme weather conditions, and 

unremitting enemy shelling; 

Whereas in 2003, the 111th once again volunteered for deployment to Al Jaber, Kuwait, directly supporting coalition armor forces during the invasion from the Kuwaiti 

border; 

Whereas the 111th Fighter Wing was awarded the Air Force 

Outstanding Unit Award, with Valor, for voluntarily deploying to austere bases in two separate combat operations within a five-month period; 

Whereas the unit was also awarded the Reserve Family Readiness Award in 2003 and the Air National Guard Distinguished Flying Unit Award in 2004; 

Whereas in its 86-year history, the wing has flown aircraft 

that includes the JN–4 Jenny, PT–1 Trusty, BT–1, O– 

1 Bird Dog, O–2H Skymaster, O–11 Curtiss Falcon, O– 

38, O–47A, O–47B, O–49 Vigilant, O–52 Owl, O–57 

Grasshopper, P434–1, L–4 Grasshopper, L–1B Vigilant, 

P–39 Airacobra, P–40 Warhawk, B–25 Mitchell, P–38 

Lightning, A–26 Invader, B–26 Marauder, B–29 Superfortress, RB–29 Superfortress, F–51 Mustang, T–33 

Shooting Star, F–84 Thunderjet, F–94 Starfire, F–89 

Scorpion, C–97 Stratofreighter, U–3A Blue Canoe, O–2 

Skymaster, OA–37 Dragonfly, OA–10A Thunderbolt II, 

and the A–10 Thunderbolt II; 


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•HRES 1411 IH 

Whereas the members of the 111th Fighter Wing of the 

Pennsylvania Air National Guard have served with courage, selflessness, and compassion in every role they have 

been asked to fulfill, and have earned the respect and 

gratitude of the citizens of Pennsylvanian and all Americans; 

Whereas, while the Base Realignment and Closure Commission of 2005 removed the 111th’s flying mission, the unit 

will continue proudly serving the United States through 

new missions; and 

Whereas the ruling of the Base Realignment and Closure 

Commission of 2005 marks the ‘‘End of an Era’’ for the 

111th Fighter Wing at Willow Grove Naval Air Station: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) recognizes the exemplary service of mem3 bers of the 111th Fighter Wing of the Pennsylvania 

4 Air National Guard; and 

5 (2) honors and thanks all members of the 

6 111th Fighter Wing of the Pennsylvania Air Na7 tional Guard, past and present, for their tremendous 

8 contributions to the defense and security of the 

9 United States. 

Æ 


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