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Idaho ANG TDY at Wendover Airfield by Tom Petersen
Looking through the windshield into 100 yard visibility reminded me of the famous quote about English weather by a World War Two Army Air Corps officer: “It’s so soupy that even the birds are walking.” But this was Utah, not England. The weather did not portend a great start to the Wendover airfield “spotter’s day” with the 190th Fighter Squadron, Idaho Air National Guard. Thankfully, five miles west of Wendover I broke out of the snow squall into a cold, clear Wednesday morning with great visibility and hey, even some sun!
A Bit of History
Wendover airfield was established to provide a bomb group training facility for the Army Air Corps. By the end of World War II, enough aircrews had trained in Wendover to fill the entire 8th Air Force once. The airfield also played a critical role in the final act of the war: in November 1944, elements of the 509th Composite Group began to arrive in Wendover, and in the following months the B-29s of the 393rd Bomb Squadron flew hundreds of practice missions over Utah and California bomb ranges. On August 6th and 9th, 1945 the training was put to use as Colonel Tibbetts and Major Sweeny from the 393rd delivered the final hammer blows of the war.
Wendover airfield continued to serve the after the war, hosting rotations by fighter squadrons. But the fighters stopped coming to Wendover in the late 1950s, save for a few temporary detachments in the late 1980s for Red Flag and Silver Flag exercises. The 190th Fighter Squadron opened a new chapter in Wendover’s history in January 2008, becoming the first fighter squadron in an almost uninterrupted 40 years to TDY at this historic base.
The Skullbangers
Idaho’s Air National Guard was established October 13th, 1946 at Gowen Field near Boise, under the command of Lt. Col. Thomas G. Lanphier – the pilot credited with downing the bomber carrying Japan’s Admiral Yamamoto in the South Pacific during World War II.
The 190th Fighter Squadron’s first airplane was the famous P-51D Mustang. In 1953, the Mustangs were traded for the F-86A Sabre Jet, then over the next 23 years the 190th flew the F-94 Starfire, F-89 Scorpion, F-86L Sabre Jet and F- 102 Delta Dagger.
In 1975, the 190th changed its name and mission. As the 190th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, 124th Tactical Reconnaissance Group, it flew the unarmed RF-4C Phantom II. In 1991, it changed over to the F-4G Wild Weasel fighters and became the 124th Fighter Group. In 1995, the 124th FG became the 124th Wing and traded its Wild Weasels, the last in the U.S. Air Force, for the A-10 Thunderbolt II and the C-130 Hercules transport.
Practice, Practice
I was at Wendover on this frigid morning to watch the 190th Fighter Squadron and 124th Maintenance Squadron prepare and execute live fire missions over the Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR). I just hoped my meager photography skills were up to the task.
The conditions were not bad at all. It was cold, but the jets were staged perfectly so I could do my best to keep the sun behind me, remembering the “tips and tricks” I’d read on Fence Check. My contact for the spotter’s day, MSgt Mankur, gave me free run of the flight line and a quick thinking Crew Chief loaned me a pair of ear plugs. I was excited to see that the nose art on one plane was copied from a 15th Air Force B-24 that had actually trained in Wendover more than 65 years ago!
The Skullbangers launched and recovered four two-plane sorties during my visit. They also made a quick trade of pilots and equipment using one of the 124th’s C-130 Hercules while I was there. I felt really lucky to get this opportunity – they had planned to fly back to Boise but the weather rearranged the day and I was the beneficiary!
I really enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about the operations of the ground crews and the training the pilots were here for. At the same time, I was experimenting with the camera and trying my best to come up with a few keeper shots.
The View from Idaho
After the TDY, Lt Col Paul Kingsley of the 190th FS said, “The Idaho pilots were able to train like they'll fight this summer in Afghanistan. Among several different missions they'll be called upon to perform will be escorting ground convoys, locating Taliban and Al Quaeda terrorists, and searching for Improvised Explosive Devices on roads. Working with the Special Forces on the UTTR provided training for all these scenarios, and helped sharpen pilot skills during day and night missions.”
The detachment Commander, Lt Col Kingsley, expressed his gratitude before leaving Wendover on Friday, January 11th. “We really appreciate the outstanding support from all the folks at Wendover airport. They gave us everything we needed to make our trip successful. We can't wait to come back!"
As well as a great deployment for the Skullbangers, it ended up being a great day for me. I owe a big thank you to the Wendover Airport Manager, James Petersen; MSgt Ron Mankur for providing info and coordinating the opportunity; TSgt James McGregor for insight into the A-10 nose art; all the pilots; and finally Col. Kingsley and Col. Compton for their approval. It was a real privilege to meet everyone.
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