Established on 30 July 1940 as the
127th Observation Squadron, and activated in August 1941. Initially the squadron had 115 men in its ranks. It was, however, still short of officers since it only had nine officers but was authorized a total of thirty-one. Moved to
Sherman Field at
Fort Leavenworth, by November 1941 the squadron had one BC-1, one
North American O-47A, one
Douglas O-38E and several
L-1 Vigilants. All of the aircraft were single engine observation/liaison planes.
World War II The 127th was ordered to federal service on 6 October 1941, became a training unit for observation and
liaison pilots. According to the original plans, the squadron was to be based at
Brownwood Army Air Field, Texas until the "emergency" was over and it could return to its home base at Wichita. The 7 December 1941
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor changed all plans for American military units. A number of 127th personnel were off the base that Sunday (7 December) and returned to find it almost impossible to get back on base. The squadron was moved to
Tullahoma Army Air Base, Tennessee. Tullahoma Army Air Base was situated in close proximity to
Camp Forrest, Tennessee, a major infantry center. Trained on missions cooperating with the 33d and 80th Infantry divisions, both of which were stationed in the vicinity. At the same time the
124th Observation Squadron from the
Iowa National Guard was stationed at Tullahoma. Beginning in 1942, the squadron was assigned to the
75th Observation Group (headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama) for its higher headquarters. The squadron left Tullahoma on 5 September 1942, for
Barksdale Field, Louisiana to participate in the largest war games ever staged by the United States Army. During the
Louisiana Maneuvers the 127th worked in close cooperation with their 75th Group headquarters. On 19 August 1943, the 127th was reassigned to the
I Air Support Command (headquarters at
Morris Field, North Carolina). This command would soon become the I Tactical Air Division. Beginning in April 1944 the squadron received indications that it would not remain a training organization much longer. On 10 November 1944, three years after mobilization, the squadron left the United States for India. It arrived at
Bombay, India on 10 December 1944, being assigned to the
Tenth Air Force in the
China Burma India Theater. Squadron pilots were constantly involved in duties supporting the
British Army. Their missions included such activities as photographic and reconnaissance duties, evacuation of wounded, supply drops, courier duties, and cargo flights. They were entrusted with secret messages, regular mail and with transporting fresh blood to the front. Their operations were directed from the Tactical Air Command headquarters of the
XV Corps of the British Army (their actual higher headquarters in this period was the
2d Air Commando Group). The
127th Liaison Squadron (Commando) cooperated with the British Army from the beginning of the Burma offensive in February until the latter part of April 1945. Through this campaign, every pilot that participated (with one exception) flew sufficient hours and missions to entitle him to an
Air Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster, the
Distinguished Flying Cross, and most of the pilots were eligible for a second Oak Leaf Cluster to the Air Medal. After the end of the war, was moved to Okinawa where the unit was inactivated.
Kansas Air National Guard The
squadron was redesignated the
127th Fighter Squadron and allotted to the National Guard on 24 May 1946. It was organized at
Wichita Army Air Field, and was extended federal recognition on 7 September 1946. The 127th was equipped with
F-51D Mustangs and was assigned to the
Missouri ANG 131st Fighter Group, however it was placed under the Kansas Military Department for operational control. The F-51 was flown until December 1949, when the unit received the
F-84C Thunderjet fighter.
Korean War activation The 127th was federalized on 10 October 1950 due to the
Korean War. It was assigned to the federalized
Oklahoma ANG 137th Fighter-Bomber Group and equipped with F-84G Thunderjets. Along with the Oklahoma ANG
125th Fighter Squadron and
Georgia ANG 128th Fighter Squadron, the
137th Fighter-Bomber Wing was scheduled for deployment to the new
Chaumont-Semoutiers Air Base, France, as part of the
United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE). By 27 November, the 137th Wing assembled at
Alexandria Air Force Base, Louisiana for conversion training in the newer F-84Gs. Deployment of the wing was delayed, however, by the need to transfer pilots to Korea from training and delays in receiving engines for the F-84Gs, as well as the ongoing construction at Chaumont. Training and delays continued throughout 1951. Due to these delays, many of the activated National Guard airmen were released from active duty and never deployed to France. With mostly regular Air Force personnel and all the delays behind them, the remaining Guardsmen departed Louisiana on 5 May 1952 for Europe, however, the 128th inherited a base that was little more than acres of mud where wheat fields used to be. The only hardened facilities at Chaumont was a concrete runway and a handful of tarpaper shacks. The 127th wound up being stationed by USAFE at
Neubiberg Air Base, West Germany until the facilities in France were suitable for military use. The aircraft arrived at Chaumont on 25 June, being the first USAF tactical air fighters to be based permanently in France, albeit working mostly in tents and temporary wooden buildings on their new base. The Guardsmen of the 127th ended their active-duty tour in France and returned to the United States in late June, leaving their F-84 Thunderjets in Europe. The squadron was inactivated and returned to the Air National Guard on 10 july.
Cold War Upon the its return to Wichita, the
127th Fighter-Bomber Squadron was again assigned F-51D aircraft due to the shortage of jets created by the Korean War. In June 1954,
F-80C Shooting Star jet fighters were assigned, followed by designation of the unit to the 127th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, and assignment of the
F-86L Sabre all-weather interceptor in January 1958 being used in an air defense mission for
Air Defense Command. The unit converted to the
F-100C Super Sabre, and was designated the
127th Tactical Fighter Squadron in April 1961, being gained by
Tactical Air Command upon mobilization. On 1 October 1962, the 127th was authorized to expand to a group level, and the
184th Tactical Fighter Group was established. The 127th became the group's flying squadron. Other elements assigned into the group were the 184th group headquarters, 184th Material Squadron (maintenance and supply), 184th Combat Support Squadron, and the 184th USAF Dispensary. In January 1968, following the North Korea seizure of the , the unit was ordered to extended active duty, and deployed to
Kunsan Air Base, South Korea. The unit was assigned to the
354th Tactical Fighter Wing until release from active duty and return to state control in June 1969. On 25 March 1971, the squadron was designated the
127th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron and acquired the
F-105 Thunderchief aircraft, receiving
Vietnam War returning aircraft. As the USAF Combat Crew Training School, the unit conducted pilot training in the F-105 for nine years. On 7 August 1979, the unit received its first
F-4D Phantom II, and on 8 October 1979, was designated as the
127th Tactical Fighter Squadron. In August 1988, the 127th graduated its final Fighter Weapons Instructor Course Class. The squadron converted as the second
F-16 Fighting Falcon training squadron. The last F-4D departed from on 31 March 1990.
Post Cold War era In July 1993, the squadron changed gaining commands and became part of the new
Air Education and Training Command. In July 1994, the squadron was designated at the
127th Bomb Squadron and again became part of the
Air Combat Command, flying the
Rockwell B-1B Lancer. The 184th Wing was the first Air National Guard unit to fly bombers. It received its B-1Bs from the former
28th Bomb Squadron at McConnell. In order to save money, the USAF agreed to reduce its active fleet of B-1Bs from 92 to 60 aircraft. The first B-1B was flown to storage at AMARC on 20 August 2002. In total, 24 B-1Bs were consigned to storage at
AMARC, with ten of these being retained in "active storage" which means that they could be quickly returned to service should circumstances dictate. The remaining 14 in storage at AMARC were scavenged for spare parts to keep the remainder flying. The remaining 8 aircraft to be withdrawn from service were placed on static display at various museums. In exchange for retiring its B-1s, the 127th was redesigned the
127th Air Refueling Squadron on 16 September 2002, flying the
Boeing KC-135R tanker.
BRAC 2005 In its 2005 BRAC Recommendations, DoD recommended realigning McConnell by relocating the squadron's nine KC-135R aircraft to the
190th Air Refueling Wing at
Forbes Air National Guard Base, which would retire its KC-135E aircraft. The 184th Wing's operations and maintenance manpower would transfer with the aircraft to Forbes. Realigning ANG KC-135R aircraft from McConnell to Forbes would replace the 190th's aging, higher maintenance KC-135E aircraft with newer models while retaining the experienced personnel from one of the highest-ranking reserve component tanker bases. In June 2007, the 190th gained all KC-135R aircraft from the 184th. This action consolidated all of the Kansas ANG's KC-135R assets into a single wing located at Forbes. In April 2008, the 127th Squadron was designated the
184th Intelligence Squadron With the loss of the flying mission the "Flying Jayhawks" are now the "Fighting Jayhawks". The squadron was inactivated in 2014. ==Lineage==