131st Bomb Wing

The 131st Bomb Wing is a unit of the Missouri Air National Guard based at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri. It is an Air National Guard wing of the United States Air Force and operates in a classic associate arrangement with the active-duty 509th Bomb Wing. Under that structure, the two organizations retain separate command chains and administrative identities while integrating personnel, training, maintenance, and operations around the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber. The wing’s stated role is to organize, train, and equip Citizen-Airmen for expeditionary global-strike and combat-support missions supporting United States Strategic Command and geographic combatant commanders. The wing’s institutional lineage reaches back to the 110th Aero Squadron, established in 1917 during the First World War. After demobilization, the organization was reactivated in 1923 as an observation squadron and became an important element in the development of the Missouri Air National Guard. During the Second World War, the squadron deployed to the Pacific, conducting reconnaissance and attack missions in areas including New Guinea and the Philippines. It operated several aircraft types, including the A-20 Havoc, B-25 Mitchell, P-40 Warhawk, and F-6 Mustang, and received a Presidential Unit Citation before its wartime inactivation. The modern wing was organized in 1950 as the 131st Composite Wing. Its postwar history reflects the changing missions and aircraft of the Air National Guard. It was federalized during the Korean War, served initially under Strategic Air Command and later Tactical Air Command, and operated or trained with the F-51 Mustang, B-26 Invader, F-80 Shooting Star, F-84F Thunderstreak, and F-100 Super Sabre. During the 1961 Berlin Crisis, the wing was activated and deployed elements to France as the provisional 7131st Tactical Fighter Wing. The deployment included air-defense and training responsibilities, a 24-hour alert posture, and exchanges with the Royal Danish Air Force. After returning to Missouri, the unit continued as a tactical fighter organization. It operated F-100C and F-100D aircraft, later acquired the F-4C and F-4E Phantom II, and converted to the F-15A/B Eagle in 1991. During the post-Cold War period, its personnel supported operations including Northern Watch and Southern Watch in Southwest Asia and Turkey. The wing also provided substantial assistance during the 1993 Great Flood in the central United States. A major transformation began after the Air Force announced in 2006 that the unit would become an associate of the active-duty 509th Bomb Wing. The Missouri unit transitioned from the F-15C Eagle to the B-2 Spirit, moved its principal operations from Lambert International Airport in St. Louis to Whiteman Air Force Base, and was redesignated the 131st Bomb Wing. Its final F-15s departed in June 2009. In August 2013, the wing was assessed as fully mission-capable in its B-2 role. Today, its identity is tied to integrated active-duty and Air National Guard bomber operations, nuclear deterrence, global strike, readiness, and expeditionary support.

The 131st Bomb Wing traces its lineage to the 110th Aero Squadron, established on 14 August 1917 and associated with the American Expeditionary Forces during the First World War. The squadron was demobilized in November 1918, then reactivated in 1923 as the 110th Observation Squadron. Its early Missouri National Guard service centered on observation and reconnaissance and contributed to the formation of the state’s air component. During the Second World War, the squadron deployed to the Pacific in late 1943. It conducted combat reconnaissance and attack missions over New Guinea, the Philippines, and nearby operational areas. Its aircraft included the A-20 Havoc, B-25 Mitchell, P-40 Warhawk, and F-6 Mustang. The unit received a Presidential Unit Citation for its wartime service and was inactivated in 1946. The present wing organization emerged on 1 November 1950, when the Continental Air Command reorganized Air National Guard combat units under the wing-base system. Originally designated the 131st Composite Wing, it was redesignated the 131st Fighter Wing in February 1951 and federalized on 1 March 1951 during the Korean War. The wing moved to Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas, and was associated with Strategic Air Command before later transferring to Tactical Air Command and moving to George Air Force Base, California. It remained in federal service until December 1952. On returning to Missouri, the organization shifted to light bombardment with B-26 Invaders and emphasized night bombing. It entered the jet era with F-80 Shooting Stars in 1957 and then transitioned to F-84F Thunderstreaks. The wing operated F-100 Super Sabres for much of the Cold War, upgrading from the F-100C to the F-100D. Although the wing itself was not federalized for the Vietnam War, many of its pilots served in active combat units in Southeast Asia. The Berlin Crisis produced another major activation. Beginning in October 1961, the wing deployed to France as the 7131st Tactical Fighter Wing, a provisional organization built from federalized Air National Guard elements. At Toul-Rosières Air Base, personnel maintained an alert posture, trained with the U.S. Seventh Army, and exchanged air and ground crews with a Royal Danish Air Force unit. The provisional wing was inactivated in France in July 1962 as the crisis eased, and the personnel returned to Missouri state control. The wing later operated the F-4C and F-4E Phantom II before converting to the F-15A/B Eagle in 1991 and the F-15C in the 2000s. Its post-Cold War operational commitments included rotations supporting Operation Northern Watch from Incirlik Air Base and Operation Southern Watch from Prince Sultan Air Base. Wing personnel also responded to the Great Flood of 1993. Two F-15 accidents in 2007 affected the unit during the period in which it was preparing for its next mission. The Air Force announced in 2006 that the wing would become an associate unit of the active-duty 509th Bomb Wing. This decision transferred the Missouri organization from the fighter mission to the B-2 Spirit bomber and led to its relocation from Lambert International Airport to Whiteman Air Force Base. The wing was redesignated the 131st Bomb Wing in October 2008. Its final F-15s departed in June 2009, ending the unit’s fighter era. In August 2013, the wing was declared fully mission-capable in its B-2 role. It now contributes Air National Guard personnel to integrated bomber operations, maintenance, support, readiness, and global-strike missions.

• 2025

  Operation Midnight Hammer

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  Reference material identifies the wing as participating with the 509th Bomb Wing in a major B-2 operation in June 2025.

• 2013

  B-2 transition completed

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The wing was assessed as fully mission-capable at Whiteman Air Force Base.

• 2009

  Final F-15 departure

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The last F-15s left Lambert Field on 13 June 2009, completing the end of the wing’s fighter era.

• 2008

  Redesignated 131st Bomb Wing

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The organization formally adopted its current bomb-wing designation as it transitioned to the B-2 mission.

• 1991

  Conversion to the F-15 Eagle

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The wing replaced its Phantom II fighters with F-15A/B Eagles and later operated F-15Cs.

• 1961

  Berlin Crisis deployment to France

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The wing was activated and deployed as the provisional 7131st Tactical Fighter Wing at Toul-Rosières Air Base.

• 1951

  Federalized for the Korean War

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The wing entered active federal service and served through successive Strategic Air Command and Tactical Air Command assignments.

• 1950

  131st Composite Wing organized

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The modern wing organization received federal recognition on 1 November 1950.

• 1943

  Pacific deployment during World War II

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The squadron conducted reconnaissance and attack missions in the Pacific, including operations over New Guinea and the Philippines.

• 1923

  Observation squadron reactivated

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The organization returned as the 110th Observation Squadron and became an early Missouri National Guard aviation unit.

• 1917

  110th Aero Squadron established

  [1]131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org

  The predecessor organization was established on 14 August 1917 and served in the World War I-era American military structure.

A reserve-component strategic bomber wing positioned around readiness, integrated B-2 Spirit operations, nuclear deterrence, and expeditionary global strike.

• Strategic stealth bomber · 2008

  B-2 Spirit

  The B-2 Spirit is the wing’s current aircraft platform. Through its classic associate arrangement with the 509th Bomb Wing, 131st Bomb Wing aircrew, maintainers, and support personnel work alongside active-duty personnel to sustain and operate the stealth bomber for global-strike, deterrence, and expeditionary missions.

• Air-superiority fighter · 1991

  F-15 Eagle

  The F-15 was the wing’s principal fighter platform from the early 1990s until the transition to the B-2 mission. The wing operated F-15A/B and later F-15C aircraft, supported air-superiority deployments, and flew its final F-15 sortie in 2009.

• Fighter-bomber · 1978

  F-4 Phantom II

  The wing operated F-4C and F-4E Phantom II aircraft during the Cold War. The Phantom period connected the Missouri unit to the broader tactical-fighter force shaped by the Vietnam era before the wing converted to the F-15 Eagle.

• Supersonic fighter-bomber · 1962

  F-100 Super Sabre

  The F-100C and improved F-100D formed the wing’s tactical-fighter equipment for much of the 1960s and 1970s. The unit trained with the aircraft after returning from its Berlin Crisis deployment to France.

• Light bomber · 1953

  B-26 Invader

  After returning from Korean War federal service, the organization was re-formed as a light bombardment unit and received B-26 Invaders. Training emphasized night bombardment, a role associated with the aircraft’s Korean War employment.

• 2025Operation Midnight Hammer

  Middle East

  Reference material states that 131st Bomb Wing Airmen joined active-duty B-2 personnel in a coordinated strike against Iranian nuclear-development facilities during the June 2025 conflict.

  Outcome. The operation was described in the reference material as the largest operational B-2 deployment in U.S. Air Force history and as the first participation by the Air National Guard in a nuclear-deterrence strike package of that scale.

  Source
• 2000Operation Southern Watch

  Saudi Arabia and Southwest Asia

  Approximately 430 wing members were scheduled for overseas rotations, with the 110th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron operating F-15s from Prince Sultan Air Base as part of AEF-9.

  Outcome. The deployment provided air-superiority support from September through November 2000.

  Source
• 1996Operation Northern Watch

  Turkey and northern Iraq

  The wing deployed personnel and aircraft to Incirlik Air Base in support of the coalition no-fly-zone mission over northern Iraq in 1996, 1997, and 1998.

  Outcome. The deployments formed part of the wing’s post-Cold War expeditionary fighter commitments.

  Source
• 1961Berlin Crisis deployment

  France and Western Europe

  Federalized Air National Guard elements deployed to Toul-Rosières Air Base as the provisional 7131st Tactical Fighter Wing, maintaining alert and training responsibilities.

  Outcome. The provisional wing was inactivated in France in July 1962 as the crisis subsided.

  Source
• 1943Pacific Theater operations

  Pacific Theater

  The predecessor 110th Observation Squadron conducted reconnaissance and attack missions over New Guinea, the Philippines, and other Pacific areas during World War II.

  Outcome. The unit earned a Presidential Unit Citation before being inactivated in 1946.

  Source

• 2008

  Classic associate wing establishedStrategy

  Background

  The active-duty 509th Bomb Wing retained ownership of operational assets while the Air National Guard wing maintained its own command and organizational structure.

  Action taken

  The two wings integrated pilots, maintainers, and support personnel for B-2 operations at Whiteman Air Force Base.

  Aftermath

  The arrangement became the operating model for the 131st Bomb Wing’s continuing strategic-bomber mission.

  Source

• 2006

  Transition from F-15 fighters to B-2 bombersStrategy

  Background

  The Air Force announced that elements of the 131st Fighter Wing would become an associate unit of the active-duty 509th Bomb Wing.

  Action taken

  The wing began moving from the F-15C mission at Lambert International Airport to the B-2 Spirit mission at Whiteman Air Force Base.

  Aftermath

  The transition led to the wing’s redesignation as the 131st Bomb Wing, the departure of its final F-15s in 2009, and full mission capability in the B-2 role by 2013.

  Source

• 2005

  BRAC-related aircraft realignment recommendationStrategy

  Background

  The Department of Defense’s 2005 Base Realignment and Closure recommendations proposed redistributing the wing’s F-15 aircraft after fighter-force realignment.

  Action taken

  The recommendation allocated aircraft to the 57th Wing at Nellis Air Force Base and initially proposed aircraft for the 177th Fighter Wing in New Jersey; the New Jersey portion was later rescinded.

  Aftermath

  The wing ultimately divested its F-15 fleet and relocated its mission to Whiteman Air Force Base for B-2 operations.

  Source

1. 1131st Bomb Wingen.wikipedia.org
2. 2131st Bomb Wing official website131bw.ang.af.mil