435th Air Ground Operations Wing
| 435th Air Ground Operations Wing | |
|---|---|
An air traffic controller assigned to the wing's 435th Contingency Response Squadron observes a C-130 Hercules landing on a highway strip during an exercise in Bulgaria in 2021 | |
| Active | 1949–1952; 1952–1965; 1968–1995; 2004–present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Type | Wing |
| Role | Combat support; command and control and communications for deployed forces |
| Part of | |
| Garrison/HQ | Ramstein Air Base, Germany |
| Nickname | Flamingo Wing (1949–1965) |
| Mottos | Citus et Certus (Latin for 'Swift and Sure') |
| Decorations | |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Colonel Leland K. Cowie II |
| Command Chief | CMSgt Jared S. Roman |
| Insignia | |
| 435th Air Ground Operations Wing emblem | |
| 435th Tactical Airlift Wing emblem | |
| 435th Troop Carrier Wing emblem | |
The 435th Air Ground Operations Wing (AGOW) is an active wing of the United States Air Force (USAF), assigned to United States Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA) and stationed at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. The wing provides deployable command and control, tactical air control, expeditionary communications, and contingency airfield operations through three subordinate groups: the 4th Air Support Operations Group, the 435th Communications Operations Group, and the 435th Contingency Response Group.
The wing traces its lineage to the 435th Troop Carrier Wing, activated as a reserve unit at Miami in 1949. Called to active duty during the Korean War, the wing trained transport aircrews before returning to reserve status. It flew Curtiss Commandos and Flying Boxcars until inactivation in 1965. Reactivated in 1968 as the 435th Military Airlift Support Wing at Rhein-Main Air Base, West Germany, the wing supported European theater airlift for nearly three decades, including deployments during the Gulf War and the breakup of Yugoslavia. Redesignated the 435th Tactical Airlift Wing in 1975 and the 435th Airlift Wing in 1992, it was inactivated in 1995 during post–Cold War force reductions.
Reactivated at Ramstein in 2004 as the 435th Air Base Wing, the unit assumed the air ground operations mission in July 2009. The wing has since deployed contingency response forces across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, including support for Operation Inherent Resolve in 2015, the repositioning of United States forces from Somalia in 2021, and NATO's response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.