931st Air Refueling Wing
An Air Force Reserve associate wing at McConnell Air Force Base that provides KC-135R and KC-46 air-refueling capability alongside the active-duty 22d Air Refueling Wing.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
The 931st Air Refueling Wing is an Air Reserve Component unit of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to Fourth Air Force within Air Force Reserve Command and is based at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas. The wing operates as an associate formation with the active-duty 22d Air Refueling Wing, an Air Mobility Command organization. In this arrangement, reservists and active-duty personnel share aircraft, facilities, maintenance responsibilities, and flying operations. If mobilized, the wing is gained by Air Mobility Command. The organization traces its lineage to the 931st Troop Carrier Group, organized in the Air Force Reserve at Atterbury Air Force Base, Indiana, on 11 February 1963. Its original mission was tactical airlift using Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars, supporting the movement and airdrop of airborne forces, equipment, and supplies. The unit subsequently passed through several tactical aviation roles. After the retirement of the C-119 in 1969, it operated observation and close-air-support aircraft, including the Cessna U-3 and O-2. In 1971 it converted to Cessna A-37B Dragonfly counter-insurgency aircraft and helped train personnel from other reserve units and Latin American air forces. The group was inactivated in 1975. The unit returned to the reserve force in the air-refueling mission in 1978 at Grissom Air Force Base, Indiana, operating Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers under Strategic Air Command. It reached operational status in October 1978, reportedly 72 days after activation, and received several unit and performance awards during its KC-135 service. This incarnation was inactivated in 1987. The organization was reactivated at McConnell Air Force Base in 1995 under Air Mobility Command as the Air Force’s first associate tanker unit. Its early McConnell operations included refueling the B-2 Spirit aircraft known as Spirit of Kansas. The 18th Air Refueling Squadron became the principal flying component and was expanded into a larger “super squadron” in 1997. Reserve personnel subsequently supported operations including Allied Force, Northern Watch, Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom, Noble Eagle, and other contingency and training missions. The group was redesignated the 931st Air Refueling Wing on 1 May 2016. The current wing includes operations, maintenance, mission-support, security, civil-engineering, force-support, and aerospace-medicine organizations. Public reference material describes an establishment of approximately 485 personnel and an associated inventory of 24 KC-135R Stratotankers and Boeing KC-46 Pegasus aircraft, shared with the 22d Air Refueling Wing. Its principal role is to organize, train, and equip reserve airmen for worldwide aerial-refueling and related mobility operations.
History
The 931st lineage began during a reorganization of the Air Force Reserve’s troop-carrier structure. Earlier reserve squadrons were dispersed among numerous military and civilian airfields, while support functions remained concentrated at wing headquarters. The arrangement complicated the partial mobilization of individual squadrons, a weakness highlighted during the 1961 Berlin Crisis. Continental Air Command therefore created subordinate groups with their own support elements. The 931st Troop Carrier Group was organized at Atterbury Air Force Base, Indiana, on 11 February 1963, supporting the 72d Troop Carrier Squadron. Its headquarters was accompanied by combat-support, materiel, and medical elements. Equipped with Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars, the group trained reservists for tactical airlift, airborne-force delivery, airdrop, and cargo extraction. It was associated with the 434th Troop Carrier Wing and would have been gained by Tactical Air Command if mobilized. The end of the C-119 era brought a sequence of mission changes. In 1969 the group became a tactical air-support organization and moved from Bakalar Air Force Base to Grissom Air Force Base as Bakalar closed. It operated Cessna U-3 and O-2 aircraft for observation and close air support. In 1971 the unit entered the special-operations structure and transitioned to A-37B Dragonfly counter-insurgency aircraft. The aircraft had been returned from South Vietnam, and the unit trained other Air Force Reserve organizations and Latin American air forces. After the 72d squadron was inactivated and replaced by the 46th Tactical Fighter Squadron, the group itself was inactivated on 1 July 1975. The organization was redesignated the 931st Air Refueling Group, Heavy, in 1977 and activated in the Reserve in 1978 at Grissom. Assigned to the 452d Air Refueling Wing, it operated KC-135 Stratotankers for Strategic Air Command. The group achieved combat-ready status in October 1978, substantially ahead of schedule, and earned recognition including the Carl Spaatz Memorial Trophy, the Rousher Memorial Trophy, the Golden Tanker Trophy, and Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards. It was inactivated in 1987. The group was redesignated the 931st Air Refueling Group and reactivated at McConnell Air Force Base on 1 January 1995. The activation established the first Air Force associate tanker unit, pairing reserve personnel with the active-duty 22d Air Refueling Wing. Flying began in May 1995, including support for B-2 operations. The 18th Air Refueling Squadron was activated as the flying component and expanded in 1997. Personnel later supported operations in Europe, the Middle East, and the broader global response to terrorism, including Allied Force, Northern Watch, Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and Noble Eagle. The group became the 931st Air Refueling Wing on 1 May 2016. It remains assigned to Fourth Air Force and operates from McConnell as an associate wing. Its responsibilities now extend beyond flying to aircraft maintenance, operations support, civil engineering, force support, security forces, and aerospace medicine. The wing shares the host organization’s tanker resources and supports both KC-135R and KC-46 operations.
- 2016
Redesignated as the 931st Air Refueling Wing
[1]The group adopted its current wing designation.
- 1997
18th Air Refueling Squadron expanded
[1]The squadron became a larger “super squadron,” increasing its available flying-crew capacity.
- 1995
Reactivated at McConnell Air Force Base
[1]The unit returned as an associate tanker organization and began flying with the active-duty 22d Air Refueling Wing.
- 1978
Return as a KC-135 reserve tanker unit
[1]The group was activated at Grissom Air Force Base and entered Strategic Air Command’s air-refueling structure.
- 1975
Group inactivated
[1]The tactical fighter-era group was inactivated at the end of its Indiana assignment.
- 1971
A-37B counter-insurgency conversion
[1]The group converted to A-37B Dragonfly aircraft and trained reserve and foreign air-force personnel.
- 1969
Transition to tactical air support
[1]The C-119 mission ended and the organization adopted tactical air-support duties with Cessna observation and close-air-support aircraft.
- 1963
931st Troop Carrier Group organized
[1]The group was organized in the Air Force Reserve at Atterbury Air Force Base, Indiana, to support the 72d Troop Carrier Squadron.
Products and positioning
A reserve associate wing that integrates citizen airmen with an active-duty tanker wing to provide persistent aerial-refueling capacity and deployable support forces.
Military aviation capability · 1978
KC-135R Stratotanker aerial refueling
The wing’s long-standing tanker capability supports the transfer of fuel to military aircraft in flight, extending the range and endurance of air operations. The KC-135R formed the basis of the organization’s 1978 return to service and remained central to its reserve associate mission at McConnell Air Force Base.
Military aviation capability
Boeing KC-46 Pegasus associate operations
The wing participates in the McConnell tanker enterprise that includes Boeing KC-46 Pegasus aircraft. As an associate organization, it shares flying, maintenance, and support responsibilities with the active-duty 22d Air Refueling Wing rather than operating as an isolated fleet.
Military support capability · 1963
Expeditionary mission support
In addition to tanker operations, the wing supplies maintenance, security, medical, engineering, force-support, and operations-support personnel. These capabilities allow reservists to deploy as integrated elements of larger expeditionary organizations.
Marketing campaigns
- 2003Operation Iraqi Freedom
Iraq · United States
More than 100 members were mobilized, with most serving as KC-135 aircrew. A security-forces team deployed to Kirkuk Air Base and joined the 506th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron.
Outcome. The unit performed both aerial-refueling support and its first described post-activation ground combat-security mission.
- 2001Operations Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom
United States · Global
Members participated in the broader U.S. homeland-defense and overseas counterterrorism response following the September 2001 attacks.
Outcome. The wing contributed reserve personnel and tanker-related support to continuing U.S. operations.
- 1999Operation Allied Force and Operation Northern Watch
Europe · Middle East
More than 70 members supported deployments to Morón Air Base in Spain, Naval Air Facility Souda Bay in Crete, and Incirlik Air Base in Turkey. The deployments supported NATO air operations over the Balkans and coalition enforcement activity related to Iraq.
Outcome. Personnel provided tanker and associated operational support within multinational and U.S. expeditionary structures.
Brand decisions
2016
Conversion from group to wing designationStrategyBackground
The organization had expanded beyond a single group structure to include operations, maintenance, mission support, security, engineering, medical, and force-support elements.
Action taken
The 931st Air Refueling Group was redesignated the 931st Air Refueling Wing.
Aftermath
The wing retained its Air Force Reserve associate role at McConnell and continued operating within Fourth Air Force.
1995
Establishment of the first Air Force associate tanker unitStrategyBackground
The Air Force sought to integrate reserve personnel with an active-duty tanker wing at McConnell Air Force Base.
Action taken
The 931st was reactivated as an associate organization alongside the 22d Air Refueling Wing.
Aftermath
The arrangement became the foundation of the wing’s continuing operating model, with shared aircraft, maintenance, and flying responsibilities.
Sources1 sources
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