9th Reconnaissance Wing The 9th Reconnaissance Wing ( 9 RW ) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command Twelfth Air Force . It is stationed at Beale Air Force Base , California . The wing is also the host unit at Beale . Its mission is to organize , train and equip the Air Force ' s fleet of U - 2R Dragonlady , RQ - 4 Global Hawk , and MC - 12 Liberty aircraft for peacetime intelligence gathering , contingency operations , conventional war fighting and Emergency War Order support . It is also assigned T - 38 Talons for U - 2 pilots to maintain flight hours due to the expensive U - 2 fuel . Its 9th Operations Group is a descendant organization of the 9th Group ( Observation ) , one of the 13 original combat air groups formed by the Army before World War II . During World War II , the 9th Bombardment Group ( Very Heavy ) was an air combat unit of the United States Army Air Forces . Active for over 60 years , the 9 RW was a component wing of Strategic Air Command ' s deterrent force throughout the Cold War , performing strategic reconnaissance on a worldwide basis . The 9 RW is commanded by Colonel Phillip A . Stewart . It ' s Command Chief Master Sergeant is Chief Master Sergeant Robert White . Overview . The 9 RW is responsible for providing national and theater command authorities with timely , reliable , high - quality , high - altitude reconnaissance products . To accomplish this mission , the wing is equipped with the nation ' s fleet of U - 2 , RQ - 4 and MC - 12 reconnaissance aircraft and associated support equipment . The wing also maintains a high state of readiness in its expeditionary combat support forces for potential deployment in response to theater contingencies . Units . The wing is composed of more than 6 , 500 personnel in four groups at Beale and multiple overseas operating locations : History . Fairfield - Suisun Air Force Base . On 1 May 1949 the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing was activated at Fairfield - Suisun Air Force Base , California , renamed Travis Air Force Base in 1951 . The Air Force also activated the re - designated 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Group and the 1st , 5th , and 99th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadrons . The 9th SRW ' s mission was to obtain complete data through visual , photographic , electronic , and weather reconnaissance operations . To carry out this mission , the wing flew RB - 29 Superfortress es and a few RB - 36 Peacemaker s . The 9th Reconnaissance Technical Squadron also joined the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing on 1 May 1949 . It also performed its mission with components of 5th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing , from November 1949 – February 1951 . The reconnaissance mission continued for only eleven months . On 1 April 1950 , the Air Force redesignated the 9th SRW as the 9th Bombardment Wing , Heavy , with similar redesignations of the 9th Group and the 1st , 5th , and 99th Squadrons . Seven months later , on 2 November , the wing and subordinate units were again re - designated to Bombardment , Medium with the transfer of the RB - 36s , leaving the wing at B - 29 Superfortress unit . In early February 1951 , the Air Force realigned its flying operation and placed the flying squadrons directly under control of the wings . The Air Force , therefore , placed the 9th Bombardment Group in Records Unit status , then inactivated the group on 16 June 1952 . On 4 January 1955 , the Air Force bestowed upon the 9th Wing the honors of the inactive 9th Group , the operational headquarters unit before and during World War II . Mountain Home Air Force Base . The 9th Bombardment Wing remained at Fairfield - Suisun AFB flying B - 29s until 1 May 1953 . On 1 May , the Strategic Air Command assumed jurisdiction of Mountain Home Air Force Base , Idaho , from the Military Air Transport Service and transferred the 9th Bomb Wing to the base . Developed for bomber training dring the war , Mountain Home AFB had recently been an Air Resupply And Communications Service special operations base for MATS , and had phased down its operations . MATS wanted to use Fairfield - Suisun as a West Coast aerial port . SAC could expand Mountain Home for a large bomber base and its relative isolation was also desirable away from the inherent problems of stationing jet bombers in the urban areas halfway between Sacramento and San Francisco , California . Although some personnel began arriving at Mountain Home early in April , the Wing and its B - 29s moved in May . Simultaneously , the 2d Air Refueling Squadron at Davis - Monthan AFB , Arizona , became the 9th Air Refueling Squadron and transferred to the 9th Bombardment Wing at Mountain Home AFB . With the arrival of the 9th Bomb Wing at Mountain Home , the base planned a vast construction program not only to accommodate the wing ' s personnel and offices , but also in anticipation of the acquisition of B - 47 s to replace the World War II - era obsolete B ‑ 29s . On 15 September 1954 , Colonel William C . Kingsbury , commander of the 9th Bomb Wing , landed at Mountain Home in the wing ' s first B - 47 " Stratojet " , The remainder of the planes arrived over the next few months . By June 1955 , the 9th BW was ready for a mobility test . Early that month , bombers and crews spanned the continent and the Atlantic Ocean for a 60 - day temporary duty assignment to a REFLEX base in England to test the wing ' s mobility training concept . In November 1955 , the 9th Bomb Wing ' s B - 47Es flew from MHAFB to New Zealand , a distance of , nonstop with the aid of aerial refueling . This was the longest point - to - point flight for any Strategic Air Command aircraft or unit up to that time . In the decade after World War II , the development of faster aircraft and missiles steadily reduced reaction time . With the arrival of the missile age , SAC had to be ready to launch its armada of nuclear bombers within 15 minutes for a retaliatory strike . After almost two years of planning , SAC developed a new organization . Nicknamed FRESH APPROACH and designed to ensure a 15 - minute response time , the new organization required extensive testing for practicality , mobility , and economy before command leaders were willing to discard the proven structure . On 1 July 1957 , the 9th Bomb Wing was one of three SAC units to begin " service - testing " the new deputy commander system of management . From July through December 1957 , the 9th Wing implemented FRESH APPROACH and worked out the " kinks " of the new organization . The test came during a large SAC mobility and overseas deployment exercise . The 9th BW was the only participating unit with the deputy - commander organizational structure . Between October 1957 and January 1958 , elements of the 9th Bombardment Wing and 9th Air Refueling Squadron scattered from Elmendorf AFB , Alaska to Andersen AFB , Guam . Although some problems occurred during the overseas mobility test , the 9th Wing Commander firmly supported the new concept . When the wing redeployed to Mountain Home AFB in mid - January 1958 , it remained in the FRESH APPROACH organizational structure . On 1 October 1958 , the Air Force officially adopted the deputy - commander concept and the 9th Bomb Wing became the first unit to officially convert to the new organizational structure . The change made it possible for the Air Force to launch an immediate retaliatory strike in response to nuclear attack on the United States . Massive retaliation became a cornerstone of national policy and an effective deterrent to perceived threats . For its meritorious service in testing and refining the reorganization , the 9th Bombardment Wing received the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award . To reflect its expanding role as a bomber - missile unit , the 9th Bombardment Wing became the 9th Strategic Aerospace Wing on 1 April 1962 . On 13 April the wing received its first HGM - 25A Titan I multistage intercontinental ballistic missile ( ICBM ) . The Wing continued to fulfill its nuclear deterrence role until 1966 . Between 1962 - 1965 , the 9th Bomb Wing operated several EB - 47E Stratojets , a classified program which were electronics countermeasure conversions of the standard B - 47E . These was equipped with what was known as the Phase IV ( or Blue Cradle ) ECM package , consisting of 16 AN / ALT - 6B electronic jammers mounted on a cradle inside the bomb bay . Some of the EB - 47ss carried a pressurized capsule inside the bomb bay that carried two electronics warfare officers that operated a suite of up to 13 different jammers that could focus on specific threats . On 8 November 1965 , SAC and Tactical Air Command completed a transfer agreement assigning Mountain Home to TAC effective 1 January 1966 , with TAC transferring Bergstrom AFB , Texas to SAC . The 9th Air Refueling Squadron , inactivated on 15 December 1965 . On 1 January 1966 the 9th Strategic Aerospace Wing became a tenant unit and was declared non - operational It began final phase ‑ out at Mountain Home AFB . The last B - 47E departed on 10 February and the personnel followed soon after . Beale Air Force Base . In July 1964 , President Lyndon B . Johnson announced the development of the Lockheed SR - 71 Blackbird strategic reconnaissance aircraft . This new and advanced aircraft would give SAC a reconnaissance capability that far exceeded any then available in terms of speed , altitude , and increased area coverage . In December 1964 , the Department of Defense announced that the 4200th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing would activate at Beale AFB , California on 1 January 1965 as the parent unit of the SR ‑ 71 . To prepare Beale AFB for its new mission , contractors lengthened the runway , remodeled the former Air Defense Command Semi - Automatic Ground Environment ( SAGE ) building , and constructed several new facilities , including 337 additional housing units . In January 1966 , the first SR - 71 touched down on the Beale runway . The first T - 38 Talon , a Northrop - built aircraft to be used as a trainer and chase plane for the SR - 71 , had arrived six months earlier . In October 1965 , Fifteenth Air Force suggested the 9th Bombardment Wing be redesignated as the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing to continue the history of the 9th . The Air Force accepted the suggestion and on 25 June 1966 , the 4200d SRW inactivated and the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing transferred to Beale to take its place . The Air Force also activated the 9th Reconnaissance Technical Squadron to replace the 4200d RTS . Both the 1st and 99th squadrons moved with the 9th , while the 5th inactivated . For the remainder of 1966 , the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing developed the organization and infrastructure necessary for SR - 71 operations . The wing included a Director of Intelligence and a Director of Tests , who monitored the exhaustive testing program in the primary stages . The wing also needed its own supply squadron to handle the specialized supplies and equipment this unique aircraft would need . When the 9th SRW passed the Maintenance Standardization and Evaluation Team ( MSET ) inspection in March 1967 , with the highest rating ever given a SAC wing , wing leaders knew their unit was ready . Vietnam War . The SR - 71 quickly became an important information source for U . S . commanders engaged in the Vietnam War . Until the end of the war in 1975 , the 9th SRW gathered photographic and electronic intelligence data on the Southeast Asian nations involved in the conflict . Despite the SR - 71 ' s speed and operating altitude , crews risked their lives daily to obtain the latest and best reconnaissance data . Rescuers used SR - 71 photos of North Vietnam to plan the 1970 raid on the Son Tay prisoner - of - war camp to free American Prisoners of war . Post - Vietnam era . Following the end of American involvement in Vietnam , the 9th SRW turned to more peaceful accomplishments . The most spectacular of these were the SR - 71 speed runs from New York to London and from London to Los Angeles . On 1 September 1974 , Major James Sullivan and his RSO , Major Noel Widdefield , flew their SR - 71 from New York to London in one hour , 55 minutes , 42 seconds , an average speed of . A Royal Air Force F ‑ 4M Phantom II had set the old record of four hours , 46 minutes in 1969 . A few days later , on 13 September , Captain Harold " Buck " Adams , with Major William Machorek as RSO , established another record , flying the from London to Los Angeles in three hours , 48 minutes . The wing ' s assault on speed records continued in 1976 . On 27 July , Major Adolphus Bledsoe , pilot , and Major John Fuller , RSO , flew the SR - 71 over the 1 , 000 - kilometer closed - course at , beating the Soviet MiG - 25 " Foxbat ' s " record of by more than . The next day , Captain Eldon Joersz , with Major George T . Morgan as RSO , broke the YF - 12A ' s record of 2 , 070 for the 15 - 25 kilometer straight course by flying . Also , on 28 July , Captain Robert Helt and his RSO , Major Larry Elliot , broke the YF ‑ 12A ' s altitude record for horizontal flight flying at a sustained altitude of feet . On 1 July 1976 , the 99th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron rejoined the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing as part of a realignment of SAC strategic reconnaissance units . The Lockheed U - 2R - equipped 100th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Davis - Monthan AFB , Arizona , the oldest SAC strategic reconnaissance wing , was inactivated and its aircraft were re - designated as the 99th SRS under the 9th SRW . It also transferred the 100th SRW ' s refueling and base support missions to the 9th Wing . The 349th and 350th Air Refueling Squadrons became part of the wing and the 9th Combat Support Group and 9th Supply , Transportation , Services , Security Police , and Civil Engineering Squadrons activated . The consolidation smoothed the reconnaissance tasking and response process . The consolidation 0f the 9th and 100th Stratospheric Reconnaissance Wings provided SAC with the following composite organization : The U - 2R , an improved version of the 1955 vintage U - 2A , could spend more time " on - station " and cover longer distances without refueling than the SR - 71 . It was also less expensive to operate . The 9th Wing continued to evolve as the Air Force ' s first TR ‑ 1 U - 2 variant arrived at Beale AFB on 1 August 1981 and the first production model was assigned six weeks later . Later , the Air Force would drop the TR - 1 designation and this aircraft series would also be called U - 2s . With the new aircraft ' s arrival , the Air Force activated the 4029th Strategic Reconnaissance Training Squadron on 1 August 1981 to train all TR - 1 and U - 2 pilots . The TR - 1s were transferred to the newly activated 17th Reconnaissance Wing in October 1982 . A descendent of the U - 2 , the Lockheed - built TR - 1 would gather tactical reconnaissance data at RAF Alconbury , United Kingdom for USAFE . In 1986 the Air Force changed the 4029th SRTS designation to the 5th Strategic Reconnaissance Training Squadron , renewing the 5th Squadron ' s longtime association with the 9th Wing . In February 1986 a devastating flood swept through the neighboring towns of Linda and Olivehurst . The wing welcomed 4 , 502 people forced from their homes by the flood . The base set up several centers to shelter and feed the evacuees until the water level dropped and they could return to their homes . As the importance of intelligence collection increased in the 1980s , the wing operated detachments ( permanent units ) and operating locations ( temporary sites ) around the world . The British government publicly announced , on 5 April 1982 , the stationing of the SR - 71 at Detachment 4 , RAF Mildenhall , United Kingdom . The wing also established Operating Location OLYMPIC FLAME ( OL - OF ) , a new U - 2 location at Patrick AFB , Florida , on 29 January 1982 . OL - OF became Detachment 5 on 1 January 1983 . As world events dictate the need for accurate and timely reconnaissance data , the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing has operated OL ' s and detachments around the globe , including South Korea , Panama , Okinawa , Cyprus , and Saudi Arabia . An Air Force Outstanding Unit Award ( 7th oak leaf cluster ) for the 1 July 1981 to 30 June 1982 confirmed the excellence with which the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing performed its expanded mission . In July 1989 the wing flew several missions over Ethiopia , searching for an airplane carrying Congressman Mickey Leland . Later , in October 1989 , at the request of the Federal Emergency Management Agency , the wing flew U - 2 photo missions over the San Francisco and Oakland areas after the strong Loma Prieta earthquake . A unique chapter of the 9th ' s history ended on 1 January 1990 when the SR - 71 retired . High maintainability and operating costs and the availability of similar intelligence from other sources convinced Air Force officials the aircraft was no longer vital to the national defense . But the Blackbird went out with gusto . On 28 March 1990 Major Don Watkins and his RSO , Major Bob Fowlkes , flew the last SR - 71 flight from Beale AFB to the United States Air Force Museum at Wright Patterson AFB , Ohio . In the last month of operations from Beale AFB , the SR - 71 set the following speed records : The above records were confirmed on 15 March 1990 after the initial release on 6 March 1990 , in the same corresponding order of 212 . 62 mph , 2153 . 24 mph , 2205 . 48 mph and 2242 . 48 mph Gulf War . The wing ' s most notable intelligence operation took place from August 1990 to March 1991 in Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm . In the largest U - 2 deployment ever , the wing flew more than 800 missions over the Persian Gulf region . U ‑ 2s tracked Iraqi troop and armor buildups , assessed bomb damage , and monitored a massive oil spill in the Persian Gulf . U - 2 pilots even alerted the anti - missile network of inbound Scud missile s . When the ground war ended and most troops returned home , 9th Wing personnel and the U - 2s remained in the region to help the United Nations verify Iraqi compliance with the terms of the cease ‑ fire agreement . The wing ' s KC - 135Q tankers also contributed during the 1991 Gulf War . Carrying U - 2 support people and equipment , the tankers allowed the wing to deploy immediately and begin flying reconnaissance missions over the region . During this initial deployment , the tankers escorted F - 117A stealth fighters to the war zone , then served as the F - 117 ' s primary refuelers during the war . Post Cold War . When the Air Force returned to the group organizational concept , on 19 September 1991 , the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing became , simply , the 9th Wing . This action also activated the 9th Operations Group ( lineal descendant of WWII ' s 9th Bombardment Group ) , the 9th Support Group , the 9th Logistics Group , and the 9th Medical Group . These new groups would streamline and consolidate wing operations . The reorganization strengthened the wing ' s chain of command by replacing deputy commanders with group commanders . Further Air Force reorganization moved the KC ‑ 135 tankers from Air Combat Command to Air Mobility Command in 1994 , therefore , on 1 October 1994 , the wing ' s designation changed again to the 9th Reconnaissance Wing to reflect a more specialized mission . Another step in the wing ' s restructuring , the 9th and 609th Organizational Maintenance Squadrons inactivated and the flightline maintenance people moved to the flying squadrons . Several former OMS elements ( tanker phase , U - 2 periodic inspections , aero repair , and the wheel and tire shop ) transferred to the 9th Field Maintenance Squadron , which was re - designated the 9th Maintenance Squadron . In 1994 Congress allocated $ 100 million to reactivate three SR - 71s . The Senate Appropriations Committee acknowledged that SR - 71 had a unique operational capability that no other system could match . Committee members believed the reasons for the aircraft ' s 1990 retirement were no longer valid . The 9th Reconnaissance Win activated Detachment 2 at Edwards AFB , California to support SR - 71 operations . The Air Force accepted the first renovated Blackbird on 28 June 1995 . The SR - 71 was again operational with a mission - ready crew on 29 August 1995 . In the early 1990s the wing ’ s personnel and aircraft provided reconnaissance coverage during the crises in Croatia and Bosnia - Hercegovina . Later , wing U - 2s verified compliance with the Dayton Peace Accords that ended the immediate crisis . Then , when Serbia began the “ ethnic cleansing ” of Albanians in Kosovo , Operation Allied Force halted the killing and restored order . During Operation Allied Force , 9th Reconnaissance Wing U - 2s provided over 80 % of the targeting intelligence for NATO forces . NATO leadership credited the U - 2 with the destruction of 39 surface - to - air missile sites and 28 aircraft of the Serbian military . President Bill Clinton exercised his line - item veto power at the time , however , and eliminated the Congressionally approved $ 39 million allocated to the SR - 71 program in the fiscal year ( FY ) 1998 budget . Detachment 2 immediately ceased operations . The United States Supreme Court later declared presidential line - item veto authority unconstitutional . The future of the SR - 71 program remained uncertain . Congress did not include funding for the program in its FY 1999 budget . On 7 April 1998 , Air Combat Command received a message from the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force ordering cessation of SR - 71 operations and disposal of all related assets . The last member of Detachment 2 left Edwards AFB , CA on 10 January 1999 . Upon transfer of the two remaining airframes to Air Force Materiel Command , Air Combat Command declared the SR - 71 retirement complete as of 15 July 1999 . Air Combat Command inactivated Detachment 2 , 9th Operations Group , Edwards AFB , CA on 1 August 1999 . Unmanned Aerial Vehicles . The 9th Reconnaissance Wing is the " single - point manager " for the RQ - 4 Global Hawk high - altitude reconnaissance fleets . Components . Wings Groups Squadrons Stations . Detachments : Emblem . The crest and motto were approved for the 9th Reconnaissance Wing on 1 July 1952 upon its inherited lineage of the 9th Bombardment Group . The shield , in black and green , represents the old colors of the Air Service parted by a wavy line representing the Rio Grande and the 1st Aero Squadron ' s operations in 1916 . On the gold band are four black crosses representing four World War I offensives , Aisne - Marne , Champagne - Marne , Meuse - Argonne , and St . Mihiel , in which squadrons later assigned to the 9th Wing fought . The crest recalls the service in Mexico of the 1st Aero Squadron . Awards / Decorations . " Air Force Outstanding Unit Award "