World War II Organization and training The
squadron was formed in August 1942 as the
484th Bombardment Squadron at
Hunter Field, Georgia, one of the original four squadrons of the
339th Bombardment Group. It was equipped with
Douglas A-24 Banshee dive bombers. In July 1943, it moved to
Walterboro Army Air Field, South Carolina, where it re-equipped with
Bell P-39 Airacobras. The following month, along with all other single engine bomber units of the
Army Air Forces (AAF), it was redesignated as a
fighter-bomber unit, becoming the
505th Fighter-Bomber Squadron. It moved to
Rice Army Air Field, California in September 1943, where in addition to training with its P-39s, it participated in
maneuvers. It departed Rice for the
European Theater of Operations on 9 March 1944, sailing from the New York Port of Embarkation on the on 22 March.
Combat in the European Theater The squadron landed in England on 4 April On
D-Day It provided fighter cover over the
English Channel and the coast of
Normandy for the landing forces. It
strafed and
dive bombed vehicles, locomotives,
marshaling yards,
flak batteries, and troops while
Allied forces fought to break out of the beachhead in France. It attacked transportation targets during
Operation Cobra, the July breakout at
Saint Lo, and the subsequent Allied drive across France. It flew area patrols during
Operation Market-Garden, the airborne landings attempting to secure a bridgehead across the
Rhine in the Netherlands in September. The 339th Group shot down fifteen enemy fighters and drove off the remaining attacking aircraft, while other elements attacked an airfield near
Karlsruhe, encountering heavy fire, but damaging or destroying numerous aircraft parked on the field. The squadron escorted bombers to, and flew patrols over the battle area during the
Battle of the Bulge, the German counterattack in the
Ardennes in December 1944 through early January 1945. In March 1945 it supported
Operation Varsity, the assault across the Rhine in Germany, patrolling the area to prevent German air attacks. In August and September 1945, the squadron transferred its planes to depots and many of its personnel were reassigned. In January 1950 the 138th became the first New York National Guard unit to receive jet aircraft, replacing its Thunderbolts with
Republic F-84B Thunderjets over the next three months, Most of these planes came from the regular
20th Fighter Group at
Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. With the surprise invasion of South Korea on 25 June 1950, most of the nation's Air National Guard was federalized and placed on active duty. The 138th was retained by the State of New York to continue its federal mission to prepare for mobilization and its state missions as well. In 1951,
Air Defense Command was authorized to bring Air National Guard squadrons with an
air defense mission, like the 138th, on active duty within four hours of notice through newly installed "scramble lines". Between December 1950 and January 1951, the 138th transferred several F-84Bs to the
Arizona Air National Guard's
197th Fighter Squadron at
Luke Air Force Base, and at the end of 1951 the remainder were transferred to the federalized
127th Pilot Training Group, also at Luke. The Thunderjets were used for jet pilot transition training for pilots being deployed to Korea. In return, the 138th received F-51H Mustangs with were capable of extended
air defense flights over all of New York state. In 1952, the 138th became one of the first Air National Guard squadrons to commence standing daylight runway alert. At least two aircraft from the squadron with pilots in their cockpits stood alert at the end of runway from one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset every day of the year. The air defense mission remained after the
Korean War armistice and the unit resumed normal peacetime training and drills. In 1954, the Mustang was ending its service life and
Air Defense Command (ADC) was re-equipping its fighter-interceptor squadrons with jet aircraft. The 138th received
Lockheed F-94B Starfires, In 1956, the 107th Fighter-Interceptor Wing was reorganized and redesignated the
107th Air Defense Wing. The 107th Fighter-Interceptor Group was redesignated the 107th Fighter Group (Air Defense) and moved from Niagara Falls Municipal Airport to Hancock Field on 1 May, with the 138th FIS being assigned. The
North American F-86H Sabre replaced the F-94B Starfires in 1957. In 1960, the squadron received both the Governor's Air Trophy and the Commander's Trophy as the most outstanding unit in the New York Air National Guard. In addition, the
Air Force Association named it the best F-86 unit in the country.
1961 Berlin federalization During the summer of 1961, as the
1961 Berlin Crisis unfolded, the 138th was notified of its pending federalization and recall to active duty and told to achieve maximum operational readiness in as short a period as possible. On 1 October the it was federalized and assigned to the
Massachusetts Air National Guard's
102d Tactical Fighter Wing, which called to active duty for twelve months. Between 28 and 30 October, the 102d departed Otis for
Phalsbourg Air Base, France as part of Operation Stair Step. The wing deployed 78 F-86H Sabres. Since the F-86H lacked an
air refueling capability, the squadron deployed via the
World War II North Atlantic ferry route. The squadron's mission in France was to provide
close air support to
Seventh United States Army and
NATO ground forces and air interdiction with conventional weapons. It also had an air defense mission that required keeping its aircraft on armed 24 hour alert. Shortly after its arrival in France, the squadron began deploying to
Wheelus Air Base Libya for gunnery training. During its time in Europe, the squadron participated in USAFE and NATO exercises. In Operation Squadron Exchange squadron members joined
Jagdgeschwader 72, a
Luftwaffe wing flying F-86s at
Leck Air Base, West Germany, near the Danish border, while Luftwaffe ground and support crews of the 72nd operated with the 102nd Wing at Phalsbourg. On 7 May 1962, the squadron began planning redeployment to the United States during the summer, with the last Sabres departing on 20 July. Some Guardsmen, primarily pilots, volunteered to remain on active duty as the
cadre of the
480th Tactical Fighter Squadron, which would operated from Phalsbourg with
Republic F-84F Thunderstreaks, began to arrive. The unit's planes returned to the United States in July 1962 and the squadron was returned to state control on 1 September.
Return to state control Upon its return to state control, the 107th Group moved back to Niagara Falls, and the National Guard element there was authorized to expand to a group level. The
174th Tactical Fighter Group was federally recognized on 1 September 1962. The 138th became the group's flying squadron. Other units assigned into the group were the 174th Material Squadron, 174th Combat Support Squadron, and the 174th USAF Dispensary. The squadron remained equipped with the F-86H and continued normal peacetime training and exercises. In the summer of 1965, the squadron took part in Exercise Oneida Bear II at
Fort Drum, which involved some 6,500 soldiers of the regular Army, the Army Reserve and the National Guard. Squadron aircraft provided close air support to both aggressor and friendly forces during the exercise, and were engaged in realistic tactical air strikes. In the exercise, conducted by the
First United States Army, the Second Brigade of the Army's
5th Infantry Regiment was opposed by an aggressor force of selected Army National Guard and reserve Units. The 174th Group's pilots flew 77 sorties for a total of 114 hours without a single abort. The squadron trained at
Ramey Air Force Base, Puerto Rico, in early 1967 in an all service amphibious and airborne exercise. A detachment of unit pilots and support personnel participated. Twelve F-86H aircraft participated with three
Lockheed C-130 Hercules for equipment and personnel support. All types of tactical air missions were flown. A special firepower demonstration was accomplished. Later in 1967 Operation Sentry Post I was held in August. This was a joint Air National Guard – TAC Exercise. Twelve F-86Hs were flown and squadron pilots worked with radar flying air-to-air and air-to-ground gunnery with and without
forward air control (FAC) type missions. A total of 204 sorties and 245, hours were flown in this operation.
Vietnam activation In 1968, the squadron was federalized and placed on active duty. It was alerted for active duty on 11 April 1968, partially mobilized on 13 May and deployed to
Cannon Air Force Base, Clovis, New Mexico. In June 1995, the unit deployed for 30 days rotation to
Incirlik Air Base, Turkey as part of
Operation Provide Comfort, assisting in the enforcement the No Fly Zone over Northern Iraq. In mid-1996, the Air Force, in response to budget cuts, and changing world situations, began experimenting with Air Expeditionary organizations. The Air Expeditionary Force (AEF) concept was developed that would mix Active-Duty, Reserve and Air National Guard elements into a combined force. Instead of entire permanent units deploying as "Provisional" as in the 1991 Gulf War, Expeditionary units are composed of "aviation packages" from several wings, including active-duty Air Force, the Air Force Reserve Command and the Air National Guard, would be married together to carry out the assigned deployment rotation. The 138th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron was first formed and deployed in August 1996 for
Operation Northern Watch, a
US European Command Combined Task Force that was responsible for enforcing the
United Nations mandated no-fly zone above the 36th parallel in Iraq. This mission was a successor to Operation Provide Comfort which also entailed support for the Iraqi Kurds. During 1996–97, the squadron deployed to
Andøya Air Station, Norway as part of the "Adventure Express 97" NATO exercise. In 1998, the 174th FW deployed to
Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, for Exercise Combat Archer and to the
Dugway Proving Ground, Utah, to participate in Exercise Global Patriot 98. Only six years later, in 1999, the 138th changed block types once more, sending its Block 30s to the
Illinois Air National Guard's
170th Fighter Squadron and receiving older block 25 F-16s from the
Texas Air National Guard's
182d Fighter Squadron. This meant changing again from the General Electric engine to the Pratt & Whitney. An AEF deployment to
Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia resulted in the formation of the 138th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron in early 2000.
Operation Southern Watch was an operation which was responsible for enforcing the United Nations mandated no-fly zone below the 32d parallel in Iraq. This mission was initiated mainly to cover for attacks of Iraqi forces on the Iraqi Shi’ite Muslims. The squadron returned to the Block 30 Aircraft in 2004, receiving aircraft from the
50th Fighter Wing at
Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany shifting from engine type once more. As part of the global
war on terrorism, the 138th EFS deployed twice to
Balad Air Base, Iraq in 2006 and 2008.
MQ-9 Reaper and Attack Mission By 2008 the squadron prepared to transition to the
General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper. In 2010, the last F-16s departed Hancock Field, as the squadron became the first in the National Guard to fly the Reaper. In October 2104, the
108th Attack Squadron was activated at Hancock to assume the training of MQ-9 technicians, freeing the 138th to focus on operational missions. By 2020, the 138th Attack Squadron reached 60,000 hours of MQ-9 flight time. ==Lineage==