181st Airlift Squadron The 181st Airlift Squadron ( 181 AS ) is a unit of the Texas Air National Guard 136th Airlift Wing located at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth , Fort Worth , Texas . The 181st is equipped with the C - 130H Hercules . History . World War II . Established in mid - 1943 as a P - 47 Thunderbolt fighter squadron , trained under I Fighter Command on Long Island and Massachusetts . Moved to England , arriving in January 1944 . Began operations with IX Fighter Command on 14 March and flew a fighter sweep over the English Channel coast of France . Made strafing and bombing attacks on airfields , rail and highway bridges , trains , vehicles , flak positions , and V - weapon sites to help prepare for the invasion of France . Supported the landings in Normandy early in June 1944 and began operations from the Continent later the same month . Aided in the taking of Cherbourg , participated in the air operations that prepared the way for the Allied breakthrough at St Lo on 25 July , and supported ground forces during their drive across France . Continued to support ground forces , participated in the assault against the Siegfried Line , and took part in the Battle of the Bulge ( December 1944 – January 1945 ) by attacking rail lines and trains , marshalling yards , roads and vehicles , armored columns , and gun positions . Operated with the Allied forces that pushed across the Rhine and into Germany . After V - E Day , served with the army of occupation , being assigned to United States Air Forces in Europe . Inactivated in Germany on 20 August 1946 . Texas Air National Guard . The wartime 395th Fighter Squadron was re - designated as the 181st Fighter Squadron , and was allotted to the Texas Air National Guard , on 24 May 1946 . It was organized at Love Field Airport , Dallas , Texas and was extended federal recognition on 27 January 1947 by the National Guard Bureau . The 181st Fighter Squadron was bestowed the lineage , history , honors , and colors of the 395th . The squadron was assigned to the Texas Air National Guard 136th Fighter Group and was equipped with F - 51D Mustang s . Air Defense . The mission of the squadron was the air defense of Texas . During the postwar years , the 181st primarily trained over the northern part of the state ; the 111th Fighter Squadron , based at Ellington AFB , Houston covered the south east , and the 182d Fighter Squadron , based at Brooks AFB , near San Antonio covered the Hill Country and west Texas . With the breakout of the Korean War in 1950 , the 136th Fighter Group was Federalized by the President of the United States and went on active duty . The 136th , along with the 111th and 182d Fighter Squadrons were transferred to Langley AFB , Virginia , eventually being deployed to Far East Air Force and going into combat over Korea . The 181st Fighter Squadron remained in Texas and was assigned directly to Texas Air National Guard control ; its mission was expanded to cover the air defense of the entire state . The 181st was re - equipped with the Very Long Range ( VLR ) F - 51H Mustang , which had been developed to escort B - 29 Superfortress bombers in the Pacific Theater from the Mariana Islands to the Japanese Home Islands . The F - 51H would allow the squadron to intercept any un - identified aircraft over any part of Texas . With the 136th Fighter - Interceptor Wing ' s return from the Korean War , the 111th and the 182d Fighter - Bomber Squadrons joined the 181st FBS with VLR F - 51H Mustang s . The 136th Fighter - Bomber Wing was assigned to the Central Air Defense Force , Air Defense Command ( ADC ) and resumed its postwar mission of Texas air defense . It wasn ' t until 1955 that the Texas Air National Guard received jets from ADC , receiving F - 80B and F - 80C Shooting Star s and the squadrons being re - designated as Fighter - Interceptor Squadrons . The 111th received F - 80C - 11 ( modified F - 80A to F - 80C standards ) Shooting Stars on 1 July 1955 , and on 1 July 1956 the 111th FIS commenced to participate in the active ADC runway alert program at Ellington AFB . The 182d at Brooks AFB received F - 80C Shootng Stars in August 1956 , replacing some of the last F - 51H Mustangs in the USAF inventory . The 181st at Love Field received F - 80Cs in January 1955 . On 1 July 1957 the 136th Fighter - Bomber Wing was re - designated an Air Defense Wing and reorganized along Air Defense Command lines . Combat units of the - Wing were selected by the Air Defense Command to man a runway alert program on full 24 - hour " Around the Clock " basis - with armed Jet Fighters ready to " scramble " at a moment ' s notice . This event brought the Wing into the daily combat operational program of the USAF , placing us on " the end of the runway " alongside regular USAF - Air Defense Fighter Squadrons . The obsolescent F - 80 day fighters were upgraded to the all - weather / day / night F - 86D Sabre Interceptor for all three squadrons by the end of the year . Air Refueling . In August 1961 , as part of an Air Defense Command re - organization , the 136th ' s assignment to Air Defense Command was terminated , and the wing was transferred to Tactical Air Command . As part of the reorganization , the Houston and San Antonio units of the Wing remained with ADC . The Dallas - based 136th Air Defense Wing became the 136th Air Refueling Wing and the 181st Fighter - Interceptor Squadron became the 181st Air Refueling Squadron under the TAC Ninth Air Force . The 181st ARS was equipped with KC - 97L Stratotanker s , its mission becoming the air refueling of primarily Tactical Air Command fighter aircraft . Also , the 181st was moved from Dallas Love Field to Naval Air Station Dallas ( Hensley Field ) , which ended a debate about the Texas Air National Guard operating from the expanding civilian airport . With the transfer of the interceptors and no previously qualified aircrew or maintenance personnel assigned the 136th went though a year of transition to the new mission and to achieve operational status . They did so in eight months , the previous " normal " time for the conversion was two years . In 1966 the squadron began a rotational deployment to Ramstein Air Base in support of Operation Creek Party . which provided USAFE an air refueling capability . The Creek Party deployment rotations lasted until 1976 , and over the decade the 136th saw millions of pounds of jet fuel off - loaded and millions of miles flown , all accident free . In July 1976 the KC - 97s were retired and the 136th was transferred to Strategic Air Command , receiving jet KC - 135A Stratotanker s . Under SAC , the 181st Air Refueling Squadron mission included the air refueling of B - 52 Stratofortress intercontinental bombers along with TAC and Aerospace Defense Command interceptors . Airlift mission . On 1 April 1978 , the 136th was reassigned from SAC to Military Airlift Command ( MAC ) , and was realigned to a Tactical Airlift Wing , being re - equipped with C - 130B Hercules transports . The new 136 TAW mission was airlift of troops , military equipment , cargo and aeromedical support . The 136th TAW and its subordinate units participated in numerous Cold War military exercises such as Team Spirit , Volant Oak , Red Flag , and Reforger . Other Joint Chief of Staff exercises included " Ember Dawn IV " in Alaska and " Brave Shield " in Europe . In 1979 , the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve assumed full responsibility for airlift operations in Panama . In mid - December 1989 , and continuing for several weeks , wing aircraft , air crews , and support personnel on deployment for exercise Volant Oak at Howard AFB , Canal Zone , Panama , flew combat airlift missions for U . S . Southern Command during Operation Just Cause in Panama . More than 100 combat sorties were flown by 146th aircraft and crews , with no casualties or damage to aircraft . In August 1986 the Wing received the new C - 130H aircraft . In August 1990 , the world was moving swiftly toward armed confrontation in the Persian Gulf . By late January 1991 , the 136th Airlift Wing had provided U . S . Central Command and U . S . Air Forces in Europe personnel , voluntarily and involuntarily activated , who participated in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm . Aircraft and air crews from the 181st Airlift Squadron flew two month - long tours of duty in Operation Volant Pine , a backfill of military airlifters to Europe by Air National Guard C - 130s . In 1997 , wing members deployed supporting State and Federal missions . During the period the unit played critical roles in support of DoD missions deploying to Oman and Saudi Arabia in support of Southern Watch , and in peacetime humanitarian airlift , among the many missions accomplished by the wing during the award period . On 1 October 1998 with the closure of Hensley Field , the 136th Airlift Wing moved to the former Carswell Air Force Base , now designated as Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth . As part of the Global War on Terrorism , the 136 AW has deployed numerous times totaling more than 6 , 000 Airmen since 9 / 112001 in support of Operation Noble Eagle , Operation Iraqi Freedom , Operation Enduring Freedom , Operation New Horizons , an average of six deployments per unit member .