115th Airlift Squadron The 115th Airlift Squadron ( 115 AS ) is a unit of the California Air National Guard 146th Airlift Wing located at Channel Islands Air National Guard Station , Oxnard , California . The 115th is equipped with the C - 130J Hercules . The 115 AS is the oldest unit in the California Air National Guard , having almost 90 years of service to the state and nation . It is a descendant organization of the World War I 115th Aero Squadron , established on 28 August 1917 . It was reformed on 16 June 1924 , as the 115th Observation Squadron , and is one of the 29 original National Guard Observation Squadrons of the United States Army National Guard formed before World War II . History . World War I . The 115th Airlift Squadron traces its origins to the 115th Aero Squadron , organized at Kelly Field , Texas on 28 August 1917 . It was formed from three groups of recruits , one from Fort McDowell , Santa Rosa , California , made up of men from the Pacific Coast States . The second group came from Fort Bliss , El Paso , Texas , made up of men from Texas , Arizona and New Mexico . The third , and largest group reported from Jefferson Barracks , St . Louis , Missouri , and with it came recruits from the Mississippi Valley . At Kelly Field , the recruits were indoctrinated into the ways and means of the Army . Orders for the unit to serve overseas were received on 14 October , and with five other squadrons , the 115th departed on 31 October for the Aviation Concentration Center , Garden City , Long Island , arriving on 31 October . It was there that final arrangements were made for the trip overseas , complete equipment was drawn and a final few transfers were made . On 3 December , orders were issued for the 115th to move to the Port of Embarkation , Hoboken , New Jersey , where the men boarded the SS Huron , an impressed German ship that was used as a troop transport . After an uneventful cross - Atlantic voyage , the squadron arrived at St . Nazarire , France , on 20 December . The squadron was moved to a troop train and headed immediately for Tours Aerodrome , in central France . At Tours , the 115th was assigned to the 2d Air Instructional Center as a Supply Squadron . The men were assigned to warehouse duties , storing new equipment and all manner of supplies that arrived at the Center , and issuing and delivering the necessities of operating the Center to the various units and divisions of the station . The squadron was tasked in maintaining accurate inventory records and advising the Commander of shortages and ordering additional or new equipment from Depots in France . The 115th was also responsible for the operation of the various mess halls , with squadron members acting as cooks , bakers and performing dish washing duties . After the signing of the Armistice with Germany on 11 November , some men of the squadron were assigned to transportation and convoy duty , driving trucks performing collection of equipment from front - line units and also moving personnel back from the lines . The 636th Aero Squadron ( renamed 1 February 1918 ) returned to the United States in late March 1919 . It arrived at Mitchel Field , New York , where the squadron members were demobilized and returned to civilian life . California National Guard . Established by the Militia Bureau on 5 April 1924 , which authorized the immediate organization of the 115th Observation Squadron , 40th Division of Aviation , California National Guard . Initially the Unit held its meetings at Clover Field , Santa Monica , using Reserve Equipment planes for flying . Later on , the Squadron met at the National Guard Armory and also at the University of Southern California . In 1925 , several months after its organization , the Squadron moved to permanent quarters at Griffith Park , Los Angeles . On 3 June 1931 , the 115th Squadron participated in the National Air Corps maneuvers . Each airplane of the 115th Squadron that participated in the maneuvers had flown approximately one hundred hours including time from Griffith Park , Los Angeles , to Wright Field , Dayton , Ohio , and return . Chief of Staff of the United States Army , General Douglas MacArthur , commended the officers of the Aviation unit of the California National Guard , for the efficient manner in which they performed the work that was assigned to them during the National Air exercises at Dayton . The unit demonstrated a high degree of training and morale which placed them on an equal footing with the National Air Corps . World War II . In 1941 , the 115th was mobilized into the Army Air Corps , assigned to Fourth Air Force . Was sent to Sherwood Field , Paso Robles in northern San Luis Obispo County . The field was named for Captain George Sherwood , the first commander of the 115th Observation Squadron of the California National Guard . Sherwood was killed in 1935 while flying civilian mail near Burbank , ironically crash - landing in a cemetery . The squadron was the first military group to occupy Sherwood Field . The 115th included many photographers from southern California , some associated with the movie industry in civilian life . Sometimes Hollywood starlets would be brought to Paso Robles to entertain the troops . After the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor , the 115th flew antisubmarine patrol missions along the California coastline from several airfields in Southern California . Moved to Laurel Army Airfield , Mississippi in November 1942 and began training for combat reconnaissance duties , later becoming an Operational Training Unit ( OTU ) . Deployed to the China - Burma - India Theater ( CBI ) , becoming part of Tenth Air Force in India during November 1944 . Performed liaison and light reconnaissance flights over eastern India and Burma for American and British ground forces , then being reassigned to Fourteenth Air Force in China during July 1945 . Continued flights over western China until the Japanese surrender in August , remained in China until October when the squadron returned to India and was demobilized . California Air National Guard . The wartime 115th Liaison Squadron was re - activated and re - designated as the 115th Bombardment Squadron ( Light ) . It was allotted to the California Air National Guard , on 24 May 1946 . It was organized at Van Nuys Airport , California on 16 September 1946 . The 115th Bombardment Squadron was entitled to the history , honors , and colors of the 115th Liaison Squadron . The squadron was equipped with A - 26 Invaders and was assigned to the 146th Fighter Group , also at Van Nuys Airport by the National Guard Bureau . As part of the Continental Air Command Fourth Air Force , the squadron trained for tactical bombing missions and air to air combat . The unit was called to active federal service on 1 March 1951 for duty in the Korean War . It was sent to Langley Air Force Base , Virginia , and became a Tactical Air Command training squadron for pilots flying the B - 45A Tornado jet bomber . It was released from active duty and returned to California state control on 11 December 1952 . Air Defense . After the Korean War , the squadron was equipped with the long - range F - 51H Mustang and became a part of Air Defense Command . In February 1954 , it was equipped with F - 86A Sabre jet interceptors . By July 1955 the transition from the F - 51H Mustang to the F - 86A Sabre was complete . The squadron was re - designated a Fighter Interceptor unit with an air defense mission for the Los Angeles area . During the 1950s , the squadron received newer F - 86F Sabres in 1957 and later F - 86H Sabre day interceptors in 1959 . Strategic Airlift . In 1960 , the 146th FIW was reassigned to Military Air Transport Service , trading in its Sabre interceptors for 4 - engines C - 97 Stratofreighter transports . With air transportation recognized as a critical wartime need , the unit was re - designated the 146th Air Transport Wing ( Heavy ) . During the Berlin Crisis of 1961 , both the Wing and squadron were federalized on 1 October 1961 . From Van Nuys , the 115th augmented MATS airlift capability world - wide in support of the Air Force ' s needs . It returned again to California state control on 31 August 1962 . Throughout the 1960s , the unit flew long - distance transport missions in support of Air Force requirements , frequently sending aircraft to Hawaii , Japan , the Philippines , and during the Vietnam War , to both South Vietnam , Okinawa and Thailand . Tactical Airlift . The C - 97s were retired in 1970 and the unit was transferred to Tactical Air Command . It transitioned to the C - 130A Hercules theater transport , flying missions in support of TAC throughout the United States and Alaska . In 1973 the C - 130A models were transferred to the South Vietnamese Air Force and they were replaced by the C - 130B . During this period , both the 115th and its sister squadron , the 195th Tactical Airlift Squadron shared the same pool of aircraft . With the end of the Vietnam War , the California National Guard bureau decided to downsize the 146th Tactical Airlift Wing . With C - 130s units being transferred to Military Airlift Command , the junior 195th TAS was inactivated on 30 September 1974 . The personnel , equipment and aircraft of the 195th TFS were reassigned to the 115th TAS . In the early 1970s , USAF ' s " Total Force " policy brought the wing into full partnership with its Air Force counterparts by mandating co - operation and teamwork between Air Guard and active duty Air Force units in all phases of military airlift operations . As a result , in succeeding years the wing ' s C - 130s traveled to all corners of the world , airlifting troops , passengers , and cargo during training missions , exercise deployments , and real - world military operations to support Federal and State military airlift requirements . The 146th is one of only four C - 130 Air Guard and AF Reserve units whose contribution to the nation ' s aerial fire fighting capability includes equipment and techniques for efficient , effective suppression of large wildland fires from the air . Since 1974 , using the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System ( MAFFS ) units supplied by the U . S . Forest Service and mounted in four C - 130s , the wing ' s aerial fire fighting crews have been credited with saving many lives and countless millions of dollars worth of structures , forests , and brush land in California , and many other States and countries as well , taking part in over 5 , 000 aerial firefighting missions in California and across the Western United States saving valuable property , natural resources , and lives . The fire seasons of 1993 and 1994 were the worst on record . The Malibu fires of 1993 literally burned to the edge of the 146th AW ' s base . But it was in 1994 , with over 55 , 000 wildfires raging throughout the western States , that the 146th , along with three other MAFFS - equipped guard and reserve units flew nearly 2 , 000 missions , dropping fifty - one million pounds of fire retardant . The 146th 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 , which recently moved to Puerto Rico , a commitment still fulfilled . 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 December 1988 , after more than six decades of Air National Guard flying tradition in the San Fernando Valley , the 146th Airlift Wing began moving from Van Nuys to a brand new facility , built on Federal land leased to the State of California , adjacent to the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division , an active duty Navy flying installation . The 146th operates from the military airfield at the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division , along with Navy and other Federal aviation activities . By March 1990 , all but a small remnant of wing personnel had transferred operations to Channel Islands ANG Station . Shortly thereafter , the old Van Nuys facility was closed and turned over to the City of Los Angeles . On 30 April 1990 , the flag at Van Nuys ANG Base was lowered for the last time during a special ceremony . Modern era . In August 1990 , the world was moving swiftly toward armed confrontation in the Persian Gulf . By late January 1991 , the 146th Airlift Wing had provided U . S . Central Command and U . S . Air Forces in Europe more than 650 personnel , voluntarily and involuntarily activated , who participated in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm . Aircraft and air crews from the 115th 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 in excess of 10 , 000 days 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 and aerial fire fighting , among the many missions accomplished by the wing during the award period .