Initially slated to lose their A-10s for a cyber mission, the Maryland ANG may now be shifting course.
The A-10C Thunderbolt II, the Francis Scott Key Bridge, and the Washington Commanders football team. What do the three have in common?
In a landmark deal reached between lawmakers from the state of Maryland and the District of Columbia, the D.C. Air National Guard is set to hand over their F-16C Fighting Falcons to the Maryland Air National Guard’s 175th Wing, which currently operates the A-10C Thunderbolt II. The A-10 mission at the unit was planned to cease operations and transition to a cyber mission with airplane divestments beginning in late 2024.
It’s unclear if the cyber mission is still opening at Warfield Air National Guard Base (ANGB) in Middle River, Maryland, though a statement from Brigadier General Drew Dougherty, the Assistant Adjutant General, Air, for the Maryland Air National Guard points to the 175th having both missions.
“Over the past few years, we have been resolute on our commitment to securing a future flying mission. This transition is the first step in delivering a path where we can maintain our highly experienced pilots and maintainers, positions that are critically manned across the total force, while still keeping Maryland at the forefront of cyber operation,” BG Dougherty said in a statement.
The deal
The deal stems from the District of Columbia’s desire to move the Washington Commanders football team, which is actually located in Landover, Maryland, to the site of the current Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, D.C. proper. The stadium, opened in 1961, is currently in the process of demolition with the site planned for redevelopment in the near future.
In return for the state of Maryland giving up control (and tax revenue) of the National Football League team, they wanted two things: more funding to repair the destroyed Francis Scott Key Bridge and to save the 175th Wing’s flying mission. The bridge, destroyed in March, is projected to cost $1.7 billion USD (1.6 billion EUR) and the deal will bring in $170 million USD (163 million EUR) of extra federal funding.
The 175th, on the other hand, was looking to keep their Airmen in the skies. The Wing has operated the A-10 since 1979 when it was the first Air National Guard unit to operate the then-new A-10A. The Wing was also the first at full-strength with the C-130J Super Hercules, flown by the now-defunct 135th Airlift Squadron. With the 135th’s shutdown in 2013 (by then flying the Alenia, later Leonardo, C-27J Spartan) and the A-10’s pending retirement, the Maryland ANG was poised to become the only state without an ANG flying mission.
Under the new deal, the F-16s will stay in-place at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, and transfer ownership to the Maryland Air National Guard. The 175th Wing did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether the current F-16C air and ground crews at Andrews will remain or if the Maryland A-10 crews will replace or integrate with them. It seems that the 113th Wing of the DCANG will continue operations with their C-40C (Boeing BBJ), flying with the 201st Airlift Squadron.
There are some concerns with the move, though. In what’s been described as the “most strategic airspace in the United States”, the 121st Fighter Squadron’s “Capital Guardians” have the distinction of being the closest fighter squadron to the nation’s capital. The Wing has played an important role in security operations under Operation Noble Eagle, the operation started to protect national assets in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
There’s also the tricky movement of personnel between bases. One could assume that the MDANG personnel will integrate with the currently Viper-qualified personnel at the DCANG, rather than outright replace them. While both units are experts at their current missions, they’ll no doubt rely on the Capital Guardians’ expertise to get them spun up on fighter operations.
Also, with the two units being Air National Guard, their Airmen will most likely not be required to move to another base if they don’t want to. The two bases sit about 60 miles (97 km) apart with the cities of Baltimore and Washington, D.C. between them. Driveable, for certain, but with rush hour traffic between the two cities, we may see the Maryland Airmen opt out of transferring to Joint Base Andrews.
The 175th Wing, MDANG
The history of the Maryland Air National Guard’s only flying unit is a distinguished one. The only currently assigned flying squadron, the 104th Fighter Squadron, had the honor of being the first ANG unit with the A-10A, which came directly from the assembly line at the Fairchild Republic factory in Hagerstown, Maryland. They were also the first to fly the A-10C in combat in Iraq in 2007.
The squadron can trace its lineage to the 104th Squadron (Observation), formed in 1921 and flying the Curtiss JN-4 “Jenny”. It would go on to fly the BT-1,O-38, O-39, O-47, and others before transitioning to a fighter squadron with the P-39 Airacobra in 1943. It would switch to an attack role in 1970 with the arrival of the A-37 Dragonfly.
The Wing also formerly included the 135th Airlift Squadron, which flew the C-27J Spartan at the time of decommissioning in 2013. The 135th can trace its lineage to 1955, when it flew the C-46B Commando. The unit would go on to fly many airlifters, including the HU-16 Albatross, C-7A Caribou, a few models of C-130 Hercules, and, at one point, the O-2 Skymaster. The squadron was replaced by the 135th Intelligence Squadron.
The 113th Wing, DCANG
The Capital Guardians also have a distinguished history. The 121st Fighter Squadron can trace its lineage to the 121st Observation Squadron, founded in 1940. The Squadron initially flew the O-38, O-47, and O-52, before flying a large variety including the A-24 Banshee, A-20 Havoc, F-94 Starfire, F-100 Super Sabre, F-105 Thunderchief, and F-4 Phantom II, before finally flying the F-16A Fighting Falcon in 1989. The 121st recently participated in the April 2024 defense of Israel during the first large-scale missile attack by Iran.
The 201st Airlift Squadron traces its history to flying the C-47 Skytrain in 1946. It would go on to fly the B-26 Invader, T-33 Shooting Star, F-86 Sabre, T-43, C-38 Courier, and many others. The squadron now operates the Boeing C-40C, an off-the-shelf Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) 737.
