116th Air Refueling Squadron

116th Air Refueling Squadron
116th Air Refueling Squadron KC-135 Stratotanker refueling fighters 2007
Active	1917 – present
Country	United States
Allegiance	Washington
Branch	Air National Guard
Type	Squadron
Role	Air Refueling
Part of	Washington Air National Guard
Garrison/HQ	Fairchild Air Force Base, Spokane, Washington.
Nickname(s)	Ace of Spades
Motto(s)	"Caveat Hostis" Let the Enemy Beware
Tail Code	Fairchild
Insignia
116th Air Refueling Squadron emblem The Ace of Spades with a dagger piercing the center of the card.

The 116th Air Refueling Squadron (116 ARS) is a unit of the Washington Air National Guard 141st Air Refueling Wing located at Fairchild Air Force Base, Spokane, Washington. The 116th is equipped with the KC-135R Stratotanker and RC-26B Metroliner.

The squadron is a descendant organization of the World War I 116th Aero Squadron, established on 28 August 1917. It was reformed on 6 August 1924, as the 116th Observation Squadron, and is one of the 29 original National Guard Observation Squadrons of the United States Army National Guard formed before World War II.

The squadron insignia, the ace of spades with a dagger driven through the center of the card scripted "Caveat hostis," Latin for "Let the enemy beware," was approved on 18 July 1931 by the War Department and is still in use today. One of the original sheet metal hand painted insignia from the fuselage of a Consolidated O-17 Courier can still be seen today in the squadron commander’s office. Current Air Force heraldry regulations require squadron emblems include circular background; however, the 116th's patch as worn today by its members is the ace and dagger with no circle.

The 116th Air Refueling Squadron traces its origins to 29 August 1917 with the organization of the 116th Aero Squadron at Kelly Field, Texas. The squadron consisted of 80 men reporting from Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis, Missouri and 40 men from Vancouver Barracks, Washington. An additional 14 men reported from Jefferson Barracks and other men were transferred into the squadron at Kelly Field, bringing the total to 150. Initially, the squadron was trained in basic indoctrination into the Army, with drill, fatigue duty, classroom training, and other things that are done in military training camps. During its time at Kelly Field, men were transferred in and out of the squadron, depending on their qualifications and the needs of other units in training. Once basic indoctrination training was completed, the 116th was ordered for overseas duty, being ordered to report to the Aviation Concentration Center, Garden City, Long Island on 26 October. It was there that final arrangements were made for the trip overseas, complete equipment was drawn and a final few transfers were made. On 7 December, the squadron was ordered to move by train to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where it boarded the RMS Tunician, and began its trans-Atlantic crossing. It arrived in Liverpool, England on 26 December and was moved immediately by train to Southampton. It remained at Southampton until the 29th when the squadron crossed the English Channel, arriving on 29 December at Le Havre, France.