384th Air Expeditionary Wing The 384th Air Expeditionary Wing ( 384 AEw ) is an inactive unit of the United States Air Force . Its last assignment was with to the United States Central Command Air Forces , being stationed at Shaikh Isa Air Base , Bahrain . It was inactivated in 2004 . The wing ' s mission is largely undisclosed ; however , it is known that one of its missions was aerial refueling of combat aircraft . History . Cold War . The 384th Bombardment Wing of the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command was established at Little Rock Air Force Base , Arkansas on 1 August 1955 . With its establishment , the 384th Bomb Group was activated as the operational group of the wing , bestowing its World War II honors , heritage and colors to the new Wing . Operational squadrons of the wing were the 544th , 545th , and 546th Bomb Squadrons . It was equipped with the Boeing B - 47E Stratojet . The 384 BW accomplished a truly remarkable feat by being certified combat ready just nine months after receiving its first aircraft . Stringent SAC requirements called for a specified percentage of the crews to be certified in order for the wing to be considered combat ready . Since aircrew members were fresh out of student status , beginning to arrive about the same times the aircraft did , preparing the group to become fully combat ready was a tremendous task . The culture of the organization would accept nothing less than full effort , and when the newly formed wing was mission capable by September 1956 , it became the first such SAC wing to do so in such a short time . The 384 BW handled bomber alert duties , spending countless days and nights on alert status with their aircraft armed , fueled , and ready to go at a moment ’ s notice . 384th aircrews also commonly participated in REFLEX operations , spending short but continually recurring periods of time at forward locations around the world . The era of the Stratojet ended on 1 September 1964 when the 384 BW inactivated with the phaseout of the B - 47 from the USAF inventory . Aerial refueling . The 384th was reactivated on 1 December 1972 as the 384th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy at McConnell Air Force Base , Kansas with Boeing KC - 135A Stratotankers and took command of the 91st Air Refueling Squadron ( ARS ) . It was assigned to the 12th Strategic Missile Division , Fifteenth Air Force , Strategic Air Command . From McConnell , the wing deployed aircraft and crews on a worldwide basis , engaging in actual and simulated tactical and strategic operations , including air refueling support for the evacuation of South Vietnamese and Americans from South Vietnam in 1975 . The wing maintained proficiency in air refueling in support of SAC units and other units as directed . The wing was reassigned to Second Air Force , 19th Air Division on 1 July 1973 . On 30 September 1973 , a second KC - 135A refueling squadron , the 384th ARS was activated on the base , making McConnell an air refueling hub for SAC . The wing was again reassigned to Eighth Air Force , 19th Air Division on 1 January 1975 . In early 1983 , the 384 ARW ' s leadership learned that it would be the first wing to receive the new Boeing KC - 135R model tanker . The 91st and 384th ARW were both upgraded to the new model in 1984 . The " R " model had upgraded engines which produce much greater fuel efficiency than the older models , as well as having a higher on - board fuel storage capacity . The initial aircraft marking for both squadrons was a light blue / navy blue diamond checkerboard fin flash . B - 1B era . On 2 October 1981 , President Ronald Reagan announced a Strategic Modernization Program ( SMP ) , a key feature of which would be the procurement of 100 North American – Rockwell B - 1B bombers . The first production models entered the USAF inventory in March 1985 . It was announced by the Air Force that McConnell would be equipped with the B - 1B in 1987 . The 384th was redesigated as the 384th Bombardment Wing , Heavy on 1 July 1987 , and the 28th Bombardment Squadron was activated that date to fly the 25 bombers assigned to the wing . Aircrews for the initial cadre that formed the 28th BMS arrived for training at Dyess AFB , TX in October 1987 , with the first crews arriving for duty at McConnell AFB , KS in March - June 1988 . With the arrival of the B - 1s , the 91st ARS was inactivated , leaving the wing with one KC - 135 tanker squadron . The 91st was later reactivated in July 1988 with the new 301st ARW at Malmstrom AFB , Montana with KC - 135R aircraft . Throughout 1988 - 1989 , the Wing continued to train to the full capabilities of the B - 1B Bomber . The big push through 1989 was certifying all bomber crews in night terrain - following ( TF ) flying and for the Wing to become Mission Ready to perform its SIOP mission . These efforts paid - off with the 384 Bomb Wing winning the " BEST ORI IN SAC " award for 1989 . In addition , that year , the Wing achieved the " BEST B - 1B CREW " while performing in the 15th Air Force Bombing Competition . In 1990 , the Bomb Wing again won top honors in SAC . That year it recorded the highest score during an ORI by any Bomb Wing in the history of SAC and its B - 1B crews were rated OUTSTANDING in war fighting capability . In August 1990 , Iraq invaded neighboring Kuwait . McConnell tanker personnel and aircraft were deployed throughout the Middle East , performing refueling missions of Coalition aircraft in support of Operation Desert Shield / Desert Storm to help eject the invaders from the small kingdom of Kuwait . The wing ' s B - 1B aircraft , however , were not used in Desert Storm , the official reason being that the B - 1Bs were all needed to stand nuclear alert - which they did . However , at that time the B - 1B had been encountering a rash of turbofan blade failures that caused the aircraft to be grounded through most of Desert Storm . At the same time , required weapons testing for the safe release of conventional bomb delivery had encountered test problems , and the aircraft was not certified to drop conventional weapons until after the war ended . Modern era . With the end of the Cold War , the Air Force went though many changes . One of these changes was the Objective Wing concept , with created " Operation Groups " ( OG ) to place all operational aircraft squadrons under one organization . The 384th engaged this change on 1 September 1991 and was redesignated simply as the 384th Wing , with the 28th Bomb Squadron ( B - 1B ) and the 384th Air Refueling Squadron ( KC - 135R ) as its operational units . On 1 June Strategic Air Command was inactivated as part of a massive re - alignment of the Air Force command structure . The 384th was assigned to the newly established Air Combat Command ( ACC ) , a new command which replaced SAC , TAC and elements of Military Airlift Command ( MAC ) . The wing was again redesignated as the 384th Bomb Wing , and the 28th BS aircraft were assigned the tail code " OZ " . The 384th ARS was relieved from assignment to McConnell , and was reassigned to the 19th OG ( 19th Air Refueling Wing ) at Robins AFB , Georgia . As a result of a Base Realignment and Closure ( BRAC ) related realignment , March AFB , California was taken off active - duty status and assigned to the Air Force Reserve . As part of a program to keep historically significant wings active , its 22d Air Refueling Wing was reassigned to McConnell without personnel or equipment on 1 January 1994 . As a result , on 1 January , the 384th was redesignated as the 384th Bomb Group , as a unit under the 22d ARW . The USAF planned to return McConnell to being an air refueling hub , and as a result the B - 1 equipped 28th Bomb Squadron was reassigned without equipment or personnel to the 7th OG at Dyess AFB , Texas on 1 October 1994 and the 384th BG was inactivated on 30 September 1994 . Global War on Terror . The 384th AEW was in existence in an unidentified Middle Eastern location in June 2002 . From February – May 2003 , the 384 AEW was in existence at Sheik Isa Air Base , Bahrain . In 4 June , the 319th Air Expeditionary Group operating from Shaik Isa Airbase , Bahrain , was redesignated as the 384th Air Expeditionary Group , which was redesignated as the 384th Air Expeditionary Wing in 3 September . The Wing was inactivated in 2004 . Other reports have the 319th AEG operating from ' Base X ' in Oman , which other sources labelled Masirah Air Base . 70th Bombardment Squadron ( 1 August 1961 – 1 September 1964 )