World War I The
109th Airlift Squadron traces its origins to the
109th Aero Squadron, organized on 28 August 1917 at
Kelly Field, Texas. The men of the squadron were from almost every section of the United States, recruited largely though the
Columbus Barracks, Ohio and the Recruit Depot at Fort Thomas, Kentucky. At Kelly Field, the squadron was put into indoctrination training, with drills, hikes, guard duty, fatigue work and other things that are done in military training camps. Once basic indoctrination training was completed, the 109th was ordered for overseas duty, being ordered to report to the Aviation Concentration Center,
Garden City, Long Island on 24 October. It was there that final arrangements were made for the trip overseas, complete equipment was drawn and a final few transfers were made. The squadron left Garden City on 7 December 1917 in a train bound for
St. John's, Newfoundland, arriving on 10 December. There, it boarded the and proceeded across the Atlantic and arrived at
Liverpool, England on 26 December. It then moved by train to the English Channel port of
Southampton, where it waited at a Rest Camp for several days before crossing to
Le Havre, France on 28 December. It again waited for transportation at Le Havre before finally arriving at the Replacement Concentration Center, AEF,
St. Maixent Replacement Barracks, France, arriving on 2 January 1918. On 17 January 1918, the squadron was again moved, this time to
Romorantin Aerodrome, in central France. There, along with the 75th Aero Construction Squadron and the 116th Aero Squadron, it was part of the first regular detachments of Americans to be stationed at the airfield. It was quartered in French barracks at the Camp de Bluets, on the outskirts of the town of Romorantin. Members of the squadrons were at once put into construction work to develop the Air Service Production Center No. 2. Work was performed in erecting buildings and also the construction of a railroad line into the camp next to the airfield. After several weeks of basic construction at the camp, much of the work was transferred to Chinese laborers who began to arrive and the Americans were placed in charge of details of these workers. On 1 February, the designation of the squadron was changed from the 107th to the 802d Aero Squadron.
Minnesota National Guard In 1920 the Minnesota National Guard organized an aviation squadron, the 109th, on paper. On 26 September 1920 the Adjutant General, the Assistant Adjutant General, and Captain Ray S. Miller rented a Curtiss Oriole biplane to launch an 8-day flight to
Washington D.C. Their aim was to have the 109th Observation Squadron recognised as the first federally recognized National Guard flying squadron. Subsequently, the 109th Observation Squadron, the predecessor to today's Minnesota Air National Guard, passed muster inspection, and was federally recognized by the Militia Department on 17 January 1921. It was the first National Guard aviation squadron to receive federal recognition following the
First World War. On recognition or beforehand the squadron was assigned as a divisional observation unit for the
34th Division of the National Guard. It began flight operations, flying the
JN-6H "Jennys" in 1923. The 109th had nine aircraft in their inventory, and the Jenny was the first aircraft assigned the 109th Observation Squadron in 1922. However, before they would receive the "Jennys" the squadron had to move from Curtiss Field in St. Paul to Speedway Field in Minneapolis. The 109th flew out of Speedway Field, a former auto race track. Jennys were flown by the 109th through the end of 1927.
World War II It was called to federal duty in 1941 (
World War II). The
109th Observation Squadron was assigned to the
67th Observation Group at
Esler Field, Louisiana in August 1941. The Squadron flew antisubmarine patrols along the
Gulf of Mexico coastline after the
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The 109th was transferred to the
European Theater of Operations (ETO), August–October 1942, becoming part of the
VIII Fighter Command of
Eighth Air Force and then in late 1943 it came under the command of the
IX Fighter Command of
Ninth Air Force. In May 1943 it was renamed into the 109th Reconnaissance Squadron and then the 109th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron in November 1943 and then another name change in 1945 to the 109th Reconnaissance Squadron. In addition to flying photo reconnaissance missions in support of the strategic bombing missions in the ETO, the 109th flew photo reconnaissance missions in preparation for the
D-Day landing at Normandy. The squadron also flew
photo reconnaissance missions over the V-1 bomb sites in France. The squadron returned to the US in September 1945 and was inactivated in March 1946.
Minnesota Air National Guard The
109th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron was reactivated as the
109th Fighter Squadron and allotted to the National Guard on 24 May 1946. It was organized at
Wold-Chamberlain Field, Minneapolis, and was extended federal recognition on 28 August 1947. The 109th Fighter Squadron was equipped with
F-51D Mustangs and was assigned to the
133d Fighter Group. The new unit's mission was the air defense of Minnesota.
Air defense On 2 March 1951 the 109th was federalized and brought to active-duty due to the
Korean War. It remained assigned to the 133d Fighter-Interceptor Group and initially was moved to
Holman Field, St. Paul when activated. It was returned to Wold-Chamberlain Field, Minneapolis on 28 June for the remainder of its activation. It was reassigned to the
Air Defense Command (ADC)
31st Air Division on 6 February 1952, and returned to the control of the State of Minnesota on 1 December 1952. After the Korean War, the squadron was re-formed by 1 January 1953 and resumed its air defense mission. Was upgraded by ADC in 1954 to the dedicated
F-94A Starfire all-weather interceptor. With this new aircraft, the mission of the 109th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron changed from day interceptor to day and night all-weather interceptor. In 1958 the 109th again upgraded to the improved
F-89H Scorpion.
Strategic airlift In 1960, the 109th was reassigned to
Military Air Transport Service (MATS), trading in its air defense interceptors for 4-engines
C-97 Stratofreighter transports. With air transportation recognized as a critical wartime need, the unit was re-designated the 133d Air Transport Group (Heavy). During the
1961 Berlin Crisis, both the Group and squadron were federalized on 1 October 1961. From Minneapolis, the 109th ATS augmented MATS airlift capability worldwide in support of the Air Force's needs. It returned again to Minnesota 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 1971 and the squadron was transferred to
Tactical Air Command (TAC). It transitioned to the
C-130A Hercules theater transport, flying missions in support of TAC throughout the United States and Alaska. In 1974 the unit was returned to
Military Airlift Command (MAC) when TAC transferred out its troop carrier mission. 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 unit'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 unit has been upgraded over the years with newer C-130E aircraft in 1981 and currently flies the C-130H, which it received in 1995. 2011 marked the 90th anniversary of the 1921 decision to make Minnesota's 109th Aero Squadron the first federally recognized National Guard flying unit in the country. To commemorate the heritage of the Minnesota Air National Guard, the 133d Airlift Wing hosted an Air Expo, welcoming upwards of 15,000 members of the community to the base to celebrate. During 2011, the 109th Airlift Squadron deployed 528 Airmen to 17 countries, serving in support of U.S. operations worldwide, including humanitarian missions to Africa, Honduras and Indonesia. The squadron provides combat-ready air crews, support personnel, and aircraft for the airlift of passengers and cargo anywhere in the world. Upon direction of the Governor, the unit furnishes personnel and equipment, including aircraft, to assist in natural disaster relief or to safeguard life and property in Minnesota. ==Lineage==