433d Airlift Wing - History

History

for World War II history and lineage, see 433d Operations Group

The 433d Airlift Wing was activated as a reserve organization in Ohio on 6 July 1947. It was ordered to active service and moved to North Carolina in October 1950; receiving C-119 Flying Boxcar aircraft the following month. The wing began tactical training in March 1951. It airlifted personnel and supplies to Army units in the field. Airdropped personnel and equipment during army exercises. The 433d moved to Germany and participated with U.S., British, and French units in field training until inactivated.

After 1955, the wing flew airlift missions and participated in numerous training exercises, sometimes with special forces, while based at Brooks AFB in San Antonio, Texas. With the closure of Brooks AFB's runways and its transition to a non-flying USAF installation in 1960, the unit transferred across town to Kelly AFB. By the mid-1960s, the wing was flying global airlift missions, as well as conducting the USAF's C-130A model Hercules pilot, navigator, flight engineer and loadmaster school. Between 1971 and 1985, the wing trained for tactical airlift missions, participating in joint training exercises. It provided airlift of Department of Defense personnel, supplies, and equipment worldwide.

The 433d assisted the U.S. Forest Service by use of the Modular Airborne FireFighting System (MAFFS). It airlifted other units overseas for deployments and conducted humanitarian airlift operations. Between 1977 and 1985, the wing rotated personnel and aircraft periodically to Howard AFB in the Panama Canal Zone. In 1985, it became the first Air Force Reserve wing to fly the C-5A Galaxy, the largest USAF operational aircraft, and changed from tactical to strategic airlift missions. It also began training for aerial refueling. It tested a C-5A modified to transport space vehicles and in 1989 airlifted the Hubble Space Telescope from California to Kennedy Space Center, Florida.

The Alamo Wing played a major role in providing aeromedical evacuation support as well as cargo relief during the invasion of Panama, or Operation Just Cause, in 1989. The wing was also a primary participant in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm when the wing's C-5As helped fly the massive airlift of supplies, heavy Army combat equipment, and troops to the Persian Gulf in 1990-91. Additionally, 1,400 wing reservists of various career fields were called up to active duty and more than 500 deployed overseas in support of the conflict. Following the war, the wing participated in Operation Provide Comfort, when the airlift of food and supplies provided much-needed relief to the beleaguered Kurds of Turkey.