379th Air Expeditionary Wing The 379th Air Expeditionary Wing ( 379 AEW ) is a provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to Air Combat Command . As a provisional unit , it may be activated or inactivated at any time . The Wing is one of the largest , most diverse expeditionary wings in the Air Force , providing combat airpower and support for the Global War on Terrorism in Operations Iraqi Freedom , Enduring Freedom and through support of Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa . The wing and its associate units operate more than 100 aircraft , making the base a large hub for humanitarian airlift activity while providing mission - essential combat power , aeromedical evacuation and intelligence support for three theaters of operations . During World War II , the Wing ' s predecessor unit , the 379th Bombardment Group was a VIII Bomber Command B - 17 Flying Fortress unit in England . Assigned to RAF Kimbolton in early 1943 , the group flew more sorties than any other bomb group in the Eighth Air Force , and dropped a greater bomb tonnage than any other group . The combat record of the 379th was the most successful of all the Eighth Air Force heavy bomber groups , receiving two Distinguished Unit Citation s . Active for over 50 years , the 379th Bombardment Wing was a component organization of Strategic Air Command ' s deterrent force during the Cold War , as a strategic bombardment wing . - - 8 EAMS - - History . B - 47 era . The wing was reactivated as the 379th Bombardment Wing ( Medium ) on 1 November 1955 at Homestead Air Force Base in Florida ( replacing the 4276th Air Base Squadron ) . From 1 November 1955 to 31 May 1956 the unit was attached to the 813th Air Division at Pinecastle Air Force Base , Florida . Its operational squadrons were the 524th , 525th 526th and 527th Bomb Squadrons . Upon activation , the unit was bestowed the honors , history and colors of the World War II Eighth Air Force 379th Bombardment Group . In April 1956 , the wing began training for air refueling and strategic bombardment operations with the B - 47 E and KC - 97 G . It was an assigned unit to the 823d Air Division at Homestead Air Force Base , Florida , from 1 June 1956 to 9 January 1961 . During this time , the wing was attached to Sidi Slimane Air Base , French Morocco , from 6 March to 12 May 1957 during a REFLEX deployment coming under the control of SAC ' s 5th Air Division . Beginning in October 1960 , the wing began transferring its B - 47s to other SAC wings and became non - operational . B - 52 era . The 379th was reassigned to Wurtsmith Air Force Base , Michigan without personnel or equipment in January 1961 , assuming the aircraft , personnel and equipment of the discontinued 4026th Strategic Wing ( SW ) . The 4026th SW was a SAC Major Command controlled ( MAJCON ) wing that had been organized on 1 August 1958 . On 15 July 1960 , the 4026th was assigned its first operational unit , the 920th Air Refueling Squadron equipped with Boeing KC - 135A Stratotanker s . The 4026th was established by SAC in a program to disburse its Boeing B - 52 Stratofortress bombers over a larger number of bases , thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike . However , it never equipped B - 52s before being replaced by the 379th . The 853d Medical Group , 910th Air Refueling Squadron and the 67th Munitions Maintenance Squadron transferred to the 379th when it replaced the 4026th , but the remaining support units of the 4026th were discontinued along with the wing . With the B - 47 being programmed for retirement , and in order to retain the lineage of 379th , Headquarters SAC received authority from Headquarters USAF to discontinue the 4026th Strategic Wing and to activate an AFCON unit which could carry a lineage and history . SAC discontinued the 4026th and in its place the newly redesignated 379th Bombardment Wing , Heavy was moved from Homestead along with its 524th Bombardment Squadron on 9 January 1961 , assuming the resources of the inactivated 4026th . The 379th immediately resumed training for strategic bombardment and air refueling operations . Personnel and KC - 135 tankers from the 379th were deployed to forward bases in the Pacific to support combat operations over Southeast Asia from 1965 – 1975 , however its B - 52H aircraft remained at Wurtsmith on nuclear alert . In 1977 , the 379th exchanged their B - 52Hs for the conventional bomb capable B - 52G . In 1989 , the Air Force selected Wurtsmith as one of seven bases that would house LGM - 118A Peacekeeper ICBM Peacekeeper Rail Garrison . A Rail Garrison would address the survivability problem by which 25 trains , each with two missiles , would use the national railroad system to conceal themselves . It was intended that this system would become operational in late 1992 , but budgetary constraints and the changing international situation led to it being scrapped . Modern era . Retirement of the B - 52G began in the late 1980s , however the Gulf War of 1990 – 1991 resulted in a temporary delay in the inactivation of B - 52G units . Wurtsmith - based B - 52s were flown on missions against Iraq staged out of Prince Abdullah AB in Jeddah , Saudi Arabia . These planes were part of the " 1708th Bombardment Wing ( P ) " ' , a provisional wing formed from B - 52s out of Barksdale , Castle , Wurtsmith , and others . The planes arrived at dawn on the first day of the air war . One plane flew 29 missions out of Jeddah , the most of any bomber crew in the theater . During the Gulf War , 379th Bomb Wing aircraft carried the " Triangle K " tail flash in honor of their World War II predecessors and heritage . The 379th Bombardment Wing was inactivated on 30 June 1993 as a result of the 1991 Base Realignment and Closure process which closed Wurtsmith AFB . On the overcast foggy morning of 15 December 1992 , the last B - 52 , 57 – 6492 , Old Crow Express , was flown to Davis - Monthan Air Force Base .