153d Airlift Wing The 153d Airlift Wing ( 153d AW ) is a unit of the Wyoming Air National Guard , stationed at Cheyenne Air National Guard Base , Wyoming . If activated to federal service , the Wing is gained by the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command . Overview . The 153rd Airlift Wing ' s C - 130 Hercules mission is to perform the tactical portion of the airlift mission . The aircraft is capable of operating from rough , dirt strips and is the prime transport for air dropping troops and equipment into hostile areas . The C - 130 performs a diverse number of roles , including airlift support , Antarctic ice resupply , aeromedical missions , weather reconnaissance , aerial spray missions , firefighting duties for the U . S . Forest Service and natural disaster relief missions . Units . The 153d Airlift Wing consists of the following units : The 30th Airlift Squadron ( 30 AS ) is part of the United States Air Force ' s 19th Airlift Group , Little Rock Air Force Base , Arkansas . It is the first active - duty Associate Unit to an Air National Guard unit , associated with the 187th Airlift Squadron . History . On 1 July 1957 , the Wyoming Air National Guard 187th Fighter - Interceptor Squadron was authorized to expand to a group level , and the 153d Fighter Group ( Air Defense ) was established by the National Guard Bureau . The 187th FIS becoming the group ' s flying squadron . Other squadrons assigned into the group were the 153d Headquarters , 153d Material Squadron ( Maintenance ) , 153d Combat Support Squadron , and the 153d USAF Dispensary . The 153d FIG being assigned to the 34th Air Division , Air Defense Command and upgraded to F - 86L Sabre Interceptor s . Airlift mission . The most dramatic change came for the Wyoming unit in 1961 when it changed from an Air Defense Command Fighter - Interceptor unit to flying C - 119 Flying Boxcar s and airlifting medical patients , with the newly designated 187th Aeromedical Transport Squadron becoming part of Military Air Transport Service ( MATS ) . On 21 June 1963 the 187th received C - 121 Super Constellation aircraft and expanded its military airlift role to worldwide mission capabilities . Entering the realm of Southeast Asia and the Vietnam War , the Wyoming Air Guard flew its first mission into the Southeast Asia theater combat zone in late 1964 , and continued to do so throughout the Vietnam War years . In January 1966 , the unit became the 153d Military Airlift Group [ 153d MAG ] , under the Military Airlift Command [ MAC ] . In 1972 , the 187th received its first turboprop C - 130B Hercules aircraft , and became a Tactical Airlift Squadron . The C - 130 has proven to be one of the toughest and most versatile aircraft ever built , and which the unit continues to fly over 40 years later . In 1975 , the Wyoming Air Guard was selected for the unique role of aerial fire fighting . Two Wyoming C - 130s were equipped with Modular Airborne FireFighting System ( MAFFS ) and began water / fire retardant bombing of fires throughout the United States . Those fire fighting mission still continue through the present . In the meantime , the 153d Tactical Airlift Group expanded to regularly flying missions with the US Southern Command out of Howard AFB , Panama , as part of Operation Phoenix Oak . From supplying embassies in Central and South America , to searching for sinking ships in the middle of tropical storms , the Wyoming C - 130s and aircrews have carried out military and humanitarian missions , right up to the present day . Those missions continued through Operation Just Cause in 1989 - 90 when Panama was designated a combat zone . Beginning 5 August 1990 , the first day of Operation Desert Shield , and into Operation Desert Storm the Wyoming Air Guard flew continental U . S . and Central and South America missions . During that time , the Wyoming 187th Aeromedical Evacuation Flight and the 153d Clinic were both activated by order of the President of the United States , with a large number of those medical personnel being sent to Saudi Arabia . After the hostilities , Wyoming Guard members continued with Operation Provide Comfort , which supplied humanitarian aid to Kurdish people displaced by the Iraqi military . In April 1997 the Wyoming 153d Airlift Wing was reassigned to the Air Mobility Command [ AMC ] , and continued its federal and state airlift , fire fighting , and humanitarian missions . From November 10 to December 5 , 1997 the Wyoming Air National Guard flew 250 airborne fire - fighting missions in the jungles of Indonesia as Operation Thrust Rapid , No . 1 . This was the first time U . S . airborne fire fighting had ever been done outside of the continental U . S . Global War on Terrorism . As with the rest of the U . S . military , the wing ' s focus changed abruptly on Sept . 11 , 2001 . Responding immediately , the 153 AW became the first unit to resume flying , by answering the call to ferry blood donations around the western United States . By the end of September virtually all of the 153rd Security Forces Squadron had been called to active duty and assigned to active Air Force bases . As a result , numerous individuals volunteered to be activated as security forces augmentees , an assignment that lasted half a year for many . Three others volunteered for temporary civilian airport security duties . As the Global War on Terrorism expanded to include operations in Iraq and continued operations in Afghanistan , the 153rd Airlift Wing repeatedly answered the nations call . In addition to its ongoing commitment to MAFFS , Operation Joint Forge in Europe , and Coronet Oak in Latin America , the 153 AW maintained a two - year - long , two - aircraft commitment to Operation Iraqi Freedom during 2004 - 2005 . In 2006 and 2007 the unit returned to Afghanistan for two and three aircraft Aerospace Expeditionary Force rotations . On the home front , the end of 2007 found four aircraft responding to the great 2007 California wildfires . In Cheyenne the period 2004 - 2007 witnessed the 153 AW receiving a remodeled dining facility , a new Petroleum Oils and Lubricants [ POL ] facility , a new air operations building for Air Traffic Control and Aerial Port , and approval of a new squadrons operations building . Numerous temporary modular buildings also supported the unit . The time period 2006 - 2007 also witnessed a unique combination of active duty and National Guard forces in Cheyenne . In July 2006 the 30th Airlift Squadron , an active duty unit , stood up in Cheyenne , under the operational direction of the 153 AW . Known as an active associate unit , the addition of the 30 AS resulted in the 153 AW receiving an additional four C - 130 aircraft during 2007 , and increased the wing ' s aircraft strength from eight to twelve aircraft .