110th Airlift Wing The 110th Airlift Wing ( 110th AW ) is a unit of the Michigan Air National Guard , stationed at Kellogg Air National Guard Base , Battle Creek , Michigan . If activated to federal service the Wing would be gained by the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command . Overview . The wing operates the C - 27J Spartan . The C - 27J is the newest cargo aircraft in the Air Force inventory . The missions that the C - 27J can undertake include direct support of Army units , homeland security , disaster response , and medical evacuation , as well as multiple other Federal and State requirements . The C - 27J has advantages over other Air Force cargo aircraft in that it is cheaper to operate , it can deliver small or medium - sized loads without wasted excess capacity , and it can operate out of short , unimproved airfields without requiring ground support . History . In 1956 the 172d Fighter - Interceptor Squadron ( FIS ) of the Michigan Air National Guard was authorized to expand to a group level , and the United States Air Force constituted the 110th Fighter Group ( Air Defense ) and associated support units and allotted them to the Air National Guard for activation . The 172d FIS became the group ' s flying squadron . Other squadrons assigned into the group were the 110th Material Squadron , 110th Air Base Squadron , and the 110th USAF Dispensary . In 1957 , the 172d FIS received a new aircraft , the RB - 57 Canberra , and a new mission – tactical reconnaissance . The resulting reorganization cost the 110th Fighter Group 40 percent of its manpower and its name – the group was inactivated and the 172d , now the 172d Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron , once again became Battle Creek ' s primary Air National Guard unit . The activation of a non - flying squadron , the 127th Reconnaissance Technical Squadron , helped prevent the loss of additional Guard members . In 1962 , the 110th Tactical Reconnaissance Group and support organizations were reactivated with Major Howard Strand serving as its commander . Major Strand departed in January 1965 to become deputy commander of the 127th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing at Selfridge AFB , Michigan . He returned again in 1974 to lead the 110th until 1981 . The 172d flew Canberras until 1971 , when it undertook the radical and unexpected transformation from the RB - 57 jets to the smaller , prop - powered Cessna O - 2 Skymaster . On 11 June 1971 , the 110th Tactical Reconnaissance Group became the 110th Tactical Air Support Group . In 1980 , the 110th saw a return to jet power when it reequipped with OA - 37 Dragonfly . In 1991 the 110th Tactical Air Support Group transitioned from the Dragonfly to the OA - 10 Thunderbolt II , and was redesignated the 110th Fighter Group . In June 1995 the 110th Fighter Group became the 110th Fighter Wing . In 1997 the wing took part in Operation Deny Flight . The 110th Fighter Wing served in both Iraq and Afghanistan , supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom . In May 1999 the 110th Fighter Wing was deployed to Trapani Italy in support of Operation Noble Anvil , the air operations over Kosovo . The 110th Fighter Wing underwent a major transition moving from the A - 10 aircraft to the Learjet C - 21A aircraft in 2008 . The C - 21 , which arrived in October 2008 , is a twin turbofan engine passenger aircraft , the military version of the Lear Jet 35A . With a crew of two , it can accommodate eight passengers and of cargo . For aero medical evacuations , it can carry one little litter or five ambulatory patients plus one flight nurse and two medical technicians . The 110th Fighter Wing was redesignated as the 110th Airlift Wing with no change in station . It changed from an Air Combat Command unit to an Air Mobility Command unit on 1 December 2009 . The base also witnessed the creation of a new unit , the 110th Air Operations Group ( AOG ) on 1 April 2009 . The 110th AOG is an organization supporting the 17th Air Force ( AFAFRICA ) . The 110th AOG has five squadrons that include medical , communications , logistics , operations and planning in a largely self - contained package . The wing has now transitioned to the C - 27J with no change in its designation or gaining command . Components . Groups Operational Squadron