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In a major designation rejig, not seen since shortly after the end of Cold War with Russia, the 18th Aggressor Squadron (AGRS) based in Eielson Air Force Base (AFB) in Alaska will now be known as the 18th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (FIS).
The 354th Fighter Wing also redesignated the 354th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron as the 18th Fighter Generation Squadron on April 2, as per a press release by the Air Force.
The change comes at a time when Russia is waging war in Ukraine. The move also underscores the importance which the US Air Force is giving to the security situation in Arctic and Pacific.
The redesignation ceremony
The 18th FIS dates back to 1939. It was stationed in in Florida and California, and during WWII it also participated in combat in the Northern Pacific, and the defense of Alaska. After carrying out several assignments, the squadron is now back in Alaska.
It should be noted that such a redesignation has not been carried out by the US Air Force since the end of Cold War with Russia, and is once again being carried out when the latter is fighting a war with Ukraine.
Lt. General David Nahom, Commander, Alaskan North America Aerospace Defense Command Region, Alaskan Command and Eleventh Air Force, was a guest speaker at the redesignation ceremony. “The designation of the 18th FIS realigns our resources with the national priorities that drive the Department of Defense and Air Force mission sets,” Nahom said at the ceremony.
Lt. Colonel Albert Roper, 18th FIS commander, stated, “We’ve been a pursuit squadron, we’ve been a fighter squadron, and an aggressor squadron. Now we’re back to a FIS in the state of Alaska. It’s great to go back to that lineage, that history.”
In support of the 18th FIS, the 354th AMXS was inactivated, and the 18th FGS was activated in its place.
The redesignation will allow the 18th FIS and 18th FGS to organize, train, and equip for their primary combat mission of providing aerospace control for homeland defense missions in the Alaska Theater of Operations, as per the release.
Where does Russia come into the picture?
As per The War Zone report, the squadron had been aiding F-22 raptors based out of Elmendorf AFB in Anchorage since long in air defense operations. Aggressor F-16s with distinct camouflage had been intercepting aircrafts, especially from Russia, approaching Alaskan shores increasingly since 2022.
The report also mentions that Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) homeland air sovereignty mission requires several armed and ready fighter aircraft on standby at any point of time, to fend off threats from Russia. The F-22s are limited in number, and therefore the Vipers can aid them and take their burden off.
It is unclear whether any F-16 vipers from the 18th FIS will retain the aggressor scheme in the future, and also if they will still do any aggressor work going forward.
As of today, the 18th FIS is the only unit in the US Air Force’s order of battle with a ‘throwback’ designation, and it is a special feat which has been carried out after the end of Cold War.
It remains to be seen if more such unit redesignations will take place in the future or will it be a one-off instance. Only one thing is certain, and it is that the redesignation was carried out to safeguard Alaska from external threats at this critical point of time – especially considering the situation between Russia and Ukraine.
