World War II Organization and training The first predecessor of the
squadron was formed in August 1942 as the
483rd Bombardment Squadron at
Hunter Field, Georgia, as one of the original four squadrons of the
339th Bombardment Group. It was equipped with
Douglas A-24 Banshee dive bombers, and also flew a few
Curtiss A-25 Shrikes. 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
504th 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 squadron 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. Although most Air National Guard units were called to active duty for the
Korean War, the 137th retained the air defense mission. In 1951, its Thunderbolts were replaced by F-51H Mustangs, capable of extended flights over all of New York State. The following year, the squadron became the
137th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron without a change in mission. 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 137th received
Lockheed F-94B Starfires, however the F-94 required a two-man aircrew a pilot and an observer to operate its radar equipment. The additional recruitment of guardsmen led to the units having a manning and capabilities problem. It was not until 1955 that a regular flow of graduates from the radar observer school began. In October 1954, the squadron began augmenting the Regular Air Force, maintaining a Starfire on alert from dawn to dusk daily. In 1956, the
107th Fighter-Interceptor Wing was reorganized and redesignated the 107th Air Defense Wing. In this reorganization, the
105th Fighter Group was established as the 137th's new headquarters. The group included the 137th as the group's operational squadron and included units to support the 137th The
North American F-86H Sabre replaced the F-94B Starfires in 1957.
Airlift operations The 105th Tactical Fighter Group was inactivated on 1 February 1961 with the 137th being redesignated the
137th Aeromedical Transport Squadron and transferred to the
106th Aeromedical Transport Group as
Military Air Transport Service (MATS) became its wartime gaining command. The 137th converted to flying the
Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar. The squadron airlifted critically injured and sick personnel until late 1963. With air transportation recognized as a critical need, the squadron was redesignated the
137th Air Transport Squadron , Heavy on 1 December 1963 and equipped with
Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter heavy transports, although the aeromedical flight remained as a secondary mission. With the mission change, the squadron returned to the control of the 105th Air Transport Group. With the C-97s, the 137th augmented MATS airlift capability worldwide in support of the Air Force's needs, flying missions weekly. In the spring of 1964, it airlifted men and materiel to and from the maneuver areas for
Operation Desert Strike, which was the second largest
military exercise since World War II, involving over 100,000 service members. The squadron also airlifted members of the National Guard to and from their annual training sites, which previously had to be done by ground transport or commercial air. It also flew scheduled MATS transport missions to Europe, Africa, the Caribbean, and South America. On 1 January 1966, MATS became
Military Airlift Command (MAC) and the 137th was redesignated as the
137th Military Airlift Squadron. In 1966, the squadron began operations to and from bases in South Vietnam. During calendar year 1967, in addition to the Southeast Asia flights which continued throughout the year until September, The
137th Tactical Air Support Squadron received interim
Cessna U-3 Blue Canoe aircraft direct from Cessna, which were soon replaced with the
Cessna O-2A Super Skymaster . 105th pilots, on the kind of observation missions they would fly in combat, flew program of photographing and reporting to local officials. The local health agency would then send its own aircraft to take similar photographs for evidence and possible action. The 105th was awarded the Governor's Trophy for 1974, signifying the outstanding flying unit of the New York Air National Guard for that year. The 105th Tactical Air Support Wing was activated on 14 June 1975, and the 105th Group became the operational organization for the new
wing. In August 1978 the group was inactivated and the 137th was assigned directly to the wing. In 1978, the squadron participated in Exercise Empire Glacier at
Fort Drum, a cold weather exercise. Previous winter exercises had been held in Alaska, but northern New York was selected for this exercise not only for the snow cover, but for the similarity of its terrain and climate to northern Europe. In 1979, the unit received the
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award.
Return to airlift mission In May 1983, the unit relocated to Stewart International Airport. It was redesignated the 105th Military Airlift Group on 1 May 1984 and later in July 1985 became the first Air National Guard unit in the Nation to fly the
Lockheed C-5A Galaxy aircraft. Soon after receiving its first C-5A aircraft, in October 1985 the unit airlifted cots and bedding to Puerto Rico following
Hurricane Gloria. The squadron's C-5s were first tapped for humanitarian relief, when it flew emergency supplies to Puerto Rico in October 1985, following
Hurricane Isabel. In October 1989 the unit airlifted relief supplies to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands following
Hurricane Hugo. In September 1992 the unit responded to
Hurricane Andrew, delivering food, tents, mobile kitchens, vehicles, and emergency services personnel to
Homestead, Florida. Immediately following
Hurricane Marilyn in September 1995, the unit airlifted 527,200 pounds of desperately needed supplies and equipment to the citizens of the American Virgin Islands. In addition to hurricane relief the squadron flew other humanitarian missions. In January 1989, it carried earthquake relief supplies to aid Armenia. In March 1989 the 105th responded with less than 24 hours notice to an MAC request to airlift a submersible vehicle from
Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland and
Homestead Air Force Base, Florida to
Kadena Air Base, Japan to assist in search and recovery operations for an Air Force
Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King helicopter which crashed in the East China Sea. Throughout the summer and fall of 1989 the 137th continued to support reconstruction efforts in Jamaica by airlifting National Guard civil engineering teams and equipment to that island nation. In December 1991, the 105th airlifted clothing, blankets and medical supplies to
Bucharest, Romania. In February 1992 the unit participated in
Operation Provide Hope, the airlift of humanitarian aid to the Commonwealth of Independent States (former Soviet Union), delivering relief materials to
Saint Petersburg, Russia and
Yerevan, Armenia. In 1989, the squadron performed its wartime mission in support of
Operation Just Cause, the invasion of Panama to replace
Manuel Noriega. The cargo airlifted by the 105th in support of that operation was approximately 25% of the initial total airlift effort of all of MAC's C-5 fleet from both active duty and reserve component elements. relief operations On 7 August 1990 Governor
Mario Cuomo announced that the Department of Defense had requested, and he had approved, the participation of the personnel and C-5A aircraft of the 137th in support of
Operation Desert Shield in the Persian Gulf region. The squadron's C-5s were retired and replaced by the C-17s. The initial C-17 assigned to the squadron arrived on 18 July 2011. The squadron participated in
Operation Allies Refuge, the evacuation from
Kabul, Afghanistan in 2021. It airlifted soldiers from the
160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment into Kabul and airlifted a
Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopter and aircrew to support the operation. While evading hostile enemy fire, the squadron evacuated 2,524 men, women and children, including over 800 Afghan nationals. During one flight, a 105th loadmaster discovered an unconscious refugee not breathing and quickly administered CPR, saving the child’s life. On their final Afghanistan mission, aircrew members of the 137th airlifted 13 fallen service members from Kabul. ==Lineage==