461st Air Control Wing
| 461st Air Control Wing | |
|---|---|
E-8C Joint STARS 96-0042
|
|
| Active | 1953–1958, 1962–1968, 2011–present |
| Country |
 United States
|
| Branch |
 United States Air Force
|
| Role | Air Control |
| Part of | Air Combat Command |
| Garrison/HQ | Robins Air Force Base, Georgia |
| Motto(s) | Al Ataque "On the Attack" |
| Engagements | Vietnam Service (1967) |
| Insignia | |
| 461st Air Control Wing emblem (approved 3 November 2011) |  |
The 461st Air Control Wing (461 ACW) is a joint Air Force/Army unit flying the E-8 J-STARS aircraft. The 461 ACW is assigned to the Air Combat Command (ACC), Ninth Air Force, and is stationed at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It was activated on 1 Oct 2011.
Originally activated as a tactical bomber wing by Tactical Air Command (TAC) in the 1950s, the wing was organized as a strategic wing and organized by Strategic Air Command (SAC) at Amarillo Air Force Base, Texas in 1963. The wing flew Boeing B-52 Stratofortress heavy strategic bombers and Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker heavy air refueling aircraft. It deployed aircraft and crews to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam for combat operations in Southeast Asia. The wing was inactivated in March 1968 with the closure of Amarillo.
The 461st ACW is the only active duty Air Force wing operating the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (Joint STARS), an advanced ground surveillance and battle management system. Joint STARS detects, locates, classifies, tracks and targets ground movements on the battlefield, communicating real-time information through secure data links with U.S. Forces command posts.
The unit was established as the 461st Bombardment Wing, Light under Tactical Air Command's Ninth Air Force on 11 December 1953. Unit was formed at Hill Air Force Base, Utah and initially equipped with World War II-era B-26B Invader tactical light bombers brought out of storage depots in the southwest. The mission of the 461st Bomb Wing was to provide training in air support of ground forces and air interdiction from lessons learned during the Korean War. Modifications made to the aircraft were made by depot personnel at Hill as a result of combat in Korea meant that the Invader operated at considerably higher weights and with greater loads than had been achieved in World War II.
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