1st Special Operations Wing

1st Special Operations Wing
1st Special Operations Wing emblem
Active	1932–43, 1944–1948, 1962 – present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Role	Special operations
Part of	U.S. Special Operations Command Air Force Special Operations Command
Garrison/HQ	Hurlburt Field
Motto(s)	"Any Time, Any Place"
Engagements	War in Southwest Asia Afghanistan Campaign Iraq Campaign
Decorations	DUC AFOUA w/ V Device
Commanders
Current commander	Col Thomas Palenske
Notable commanders	Gen Charles R. Holland Gen Norton A. Schwartz Lt Gen Marshall B. Webb

The 1st Special Operations Wing (1 SOW) at Hurlburt Field, Florida is one of three United States Air Force active duty Special Operations wings and falls under the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC).

The 1st Special Operations Wing is a successor organization of the 16th Pursuit Group, one of the 15 original combat air groups formed by the Army before World War II.

The 1st SOW mission focus is unconventional warfare: counter-terrorism, combat search and rescue, personnel recovery, psychological operations, aviation assistance to developing nations, "deep battlefield" resupply, interdiction and close air support. The wing has units located at Hurlburt Field, Florida, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, and Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

The wing's core missions include aerospace surface interface, agile combat support, combat aviation advisory operations, information operations, personnel recovery/recovery operations, precision aerospace fires, psychological operations dissemination, specialized aerospace mobility and specialized aerial refueling.

The 1st SOW also serves as a pivotal component of AFSOC's ability to provide and conduct special operations missions ranging from precision application of firepower to infiltration, exfiltration, resupply and refueling of special operations force operational elements. In addition, the 1st SOW brings distinctive intelligence capabilities to the fight, including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance contributions, predictive analysis, and targeting expertise to joint special operations forces and combat search and rescue operations.