152d Fighter Squadron The 152d Fighter Squadron ( 152 FS ) is a unit of the Arizona Air National Guard 162d Fighter Wing located at Tucson Air National Guard Base , Arizona . The 148th is equipped with the F - 16 Fighting Falcon . History . Origins . In 1956 the United States Air Force , in an effort to upgrade to an all jet fighter force , required Air National Guard Aerospace Defense Command units to upgrade to jet - powered aircraft . The Rhode Island Air National Guard , 152d Fighter - Interceptor Squadron , stationed at T . F . Green Municipal Airport in Warwick , was scheduled to replace its aging F - 51D Mustang interceptors to F - 84 Thunderjets . However , National Guard authorities found themselves in a conflict over the use of T . F . Green Municipal Airport in Warwick with its controlling Airport Commission with regards to using the airport for tactical jet operations . Unable to resolve these differences and no suitable location in the state to move the squadron , the Air Force removed the jets from the state and the National Guard Bureau transferred the 152d Fighter Interceptor Squadron to the Arizona Air National Guard . However , the National Guard Bureau ' s desire to have an Air National Guard flying unit located in every state brought a new mission and the numeric designation to the Rhode Island Air National Guard , the 143d Air Resupply Squadron using propeller - driven aircraft . The " new " 152d FIS was activated as a new Arizona Air National Guard organization with no prior history or lineage ; the 143d Air Resupply Squadron was bestowed the lineage and history of the inactivated Rhode Island ANG 152d Fighter Interceptor Squadron . Arizona Air National Guard . Air Defense . Upon the unit ' s activation in Tucson , the 152d was equipped with F - 86A Sabre day fighters to use as interceptors . Its mission was the air defense of Southern Arizona . At that time of its arrival , its facilities at Tucson Municipal Airport consisted of an old adobe farmhouse and a dirt - floor hangar with enough space for three aircraft . In 1958 , the F - 100A Super Sabre arrived to supplement the F - 86s . Despite the facility limitations , the Air Defense Command ' s Headquarters 4th Air Force judged the 152nd FIS outstanding in accomplishing its air defense mission . It declared the unit " Best in the West " in the 1950s and the early 1960s . Late in 1968 the unit received its first of five Air Force Outstanding Unit Citations for converting from the F - 100 day - fighter to the all - weather F - 102 " Delta Dagger " interceptor aircraft in just 10 months . The unit did it faster and better than any other Air National Guard unit converting to the F - 102 . Fighter Training . On 1 July 1969 , the Arizona Air National Guard 152d Fighter Interceptor Squadron was authorized to expand to a group level , and the 162d Tactical Fighter Training Group was established by the National Guard Bureau . With the change of status , the new 162d TFTG was assigned to Tactical Air Command . The re - designated 152d Tactical Fighter Training Squadron became the group ' s flying squadron . Other squadrons assigned into the group were the 162d Headquarters , 162d Material Squadron ( Maintenance ) , 162d Combat Support Squadron , and the 162d USAF Dispensary . As part of Tactical Air Command , the 162d TFTG ' s mission was producing combat - ready pilots for the F - 100 aircraft . It was upgraded to the newer F - 100C Super Sabre , and the group graduated their first students in 1970 . Shortly afterward , the unit formed the Air National Guard Fighter Weapons School in Tucson . This school taught Air Guard and Reserve fighter pilots from throughout the country to effectively use advanced tactics and weapons technology . The unit received its second Air Force Outstanding Unit Citation for successfully continuing to train F - 100 students while completing the most challenging conversion in the unit ' s history . That tasking was to convert from F - 100s to A - 7Ds . In the early 1980s the Group also received the A - 7K , a two - seat combat - capable training aircraft . This was the first time an aircraft manufacturer produced a new aircraft specifically designed for Air National Guard use . The unit received its third Air Force Outstanding Unit Citation in the 1970s and began another dimension in training in 1983 when the unit added the A - 7 Fighter Weapons School . In 1985 , the unit began a unique dual training mission in the F - 16 and A - 7 aircraft . Conversion from the A - 7D / K started in 1986 when the 152d FS started to receive older F - 16A aircraft from other USAF units . The mission of the unit was to train combat - ready pilots for the Air National Guard ( Replacement Training Unit or RTU ) . This mission remained after the conversion , but the older airframes were not quite suited to fulfill this mission . Therefore , a number of more modern F - 16A block 15 airframes were introduced in the squadron after 1989 to be able to maintain a more modern training syllabus . The last of the A - 7Ds were retired in 1992 . In 1992 the ANG Staff decided to modernize the training that the squadron was providing to ANG crews as well as regular USAF units or NATO F - 16 pilots . Therefore , more modern F - 16C block 42 airframes were delivered to the squadron . This opened a lot of opportunities . This block is specifically designed for attack operations during day and nighttime . It uses the advanced LANTIRN pod and the squadron has been training other crews in the usage of these systems . In recent years these airframes have been further upgraded with the CCIP program to make it possible for them to reach 8 , 000 flying hours easily . A number of additions ( like a new MMC , an advanced AIFF system , etc . ) were added to these airframes to further modernize their operations and make it possible to adjust the training sequence to include these advanced electronics .