159th Fighter Wing

159th Fighter Wing
F-15C Eagles assigned to the Louisiana Air National Guard's 159th Fighter Wing fly over southern Louisiana wetlands
Active	1958 – present
Country	United States
Allegiance	Louisiana
Branch	Air National Guard
Type	Wing
Role	Air Defense
Part of	Louisiana Air National Guard
Garrison/HQ	Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans, Louisiana
Tail Code	Purple/Yellow/Green tail stripe "Louisiana" "Bayou Militia." "JZ"
Insignia
159th Fighter Wing emblem

The 159th Fighter Wing (159 FW) is a unit of the Louisiana Air National Guard, stationed at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans, Louisiana. If activated to federal service, the Wing is gained by the United States Air Force Air Combat Command.

The 122d Fighter Squadron, assigned to the Wings 159th Operations Group, is a descendant organization of the 122d Observation Squadron, established on 30 July 1940. It is one of the 29 original National Guard Observation Squadrons of the United States Army National Guard formed before World War II.

The Air National Guard's premier F-15 Unit, the 159th Fighter Wing, nicknamed "The Bayou Militia," is a trained force of more than 1500 men and women has proudly served the United States in almost every conflict in America's history. The 159th Fighter Wing is an Air National Guard fighter unit located at NAS JRB New Orleans, Louisiana. The 159th Fighter Wing, along with its operational flying unit, the 122nd Fighter Squadron, is tasked with providing air superiority over Louisiana and the Gulf Coast while supporting USNORTHCOM and NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command).

The title "Coonass Militia" was changed to "Cajun Militia" in 1992 because of concerns about its "political incorrectness". In the late 1990s the Cajun Militia title was changed to the current "Bayou Militia."

The Louisiana Air Guard is unique compared to other reserve force components in that it is tasked with dual missions. The LA ANG's state and federal missions are to provide trained, well-equipped personnel who can augment the active forces during both national emergencies and/or war, and to provide assistance during national disasters and civil disturbances.

The LA ANG use Warning Area airspace over the Gulf of Mexico for most of their training. Supersonic flight, necessary for realistic training, is conducted away from the shoreline in a manner that does not disturb the public. Generally speaking, they have good airspace within which to train. Some forms of chaff, however, do interfere electronically with the Houston FAA ARTCC. However, the 159FW has a good working relationship with Houston ARTCC. A modification of Warning Area W-59 to a north/south orientation would impact the 159FW ability to train effectively and efficiently. Training would be hampered by long distances to and from the southern end of the Warning Area. Safety would be compromised since air/sea rescue could not respond in a timely manner at the greater distances.