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Air Force announces Reserve F-22 squadron at Holloman

  • Published
WASHINGTON --  Air Force Reserve Command will establish a second F-22 Raptor fighter squadron.

The Air Force Reserve will relocate its 301st Fighter Squadron from Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., to Holloman AFB, N.M., according to an announcement at Holloman AFB June 6. The Air Force Reserve F-22 squadron will form a classic association with the active-duty 7th and the 9th Fighter Squadrons under the 49th Fighter Wing.

"I am proud that the Air Force Reserve has been invited to participate in so many new mission areas and that we are here today, and included from the beginning, during the stand up of the F-22 here at Holloman," said Lt. Gen. John A. Bradley, AFRC commander.

As an associate unit, the Air Force Reserve squadron will fly and maintain the aircraft with their active-duty counterparts. The 49th FW will own the aircraft.

Air Force Reserve planners expect to establish the 44th Fighter Group at Holloman and assign 260 Airmen by 2010.

"I believe that associate units, such as we have here at Holloman, are the best way forward to maximize the Air Force's combat effectiveness and harness the inherent synergies we share between the active and reserve forces," said General Bradley.

The Air Force Reserve established its first F-22 associate squadron at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, in October 2007.

"We have partnered with Pacific Air Forces during the stand up at Elmendorf, and I would like a similarly successful stand up here with Air Combat Command," said General Bradley. "The Air Force Reserve provides the world's best mutual support to the Air Force and our Joint Partners."

The 301st FS was originally part of the "Red Tailed" 332nd Fighter Group of the famed Tuskegee Airmen. The squadron has an impressive combat heritage dating back to activation and combat service in World War II.

While the historical 7th and 9th Fighter Squadrons flew their combat sorties over the Pacific waters and islands, the 301st Fighter Squadron spent World War II in the European and Mediterranean theaters of operation. (Air Force Reserve Command News Service)