About the 146th Airlift Wing The 146th is a reserve component unit under Air Mobility Command. The Wing's primary mission is to provide global military airlift capability to a full spectrum of state and federal agencies. Flying the Lockheed C-130J "Super Hercules" the newest theater airlifter in the Air Force inventory, the 146th has participated in numerous 'real world' missions such as Operation Just Cause in Panama, Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, Operation Joint Endeavor/Joint Guard in Bosnia, Operation Noble Eagle, Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom. We provided military airlift to the Department of Defense in Somalia, Bosnia, throughout Europe, Central and South America, in war and in peace. The 146th has provided humanitarian relief in the aftermath of hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and other disasters, not only in California, but across the country and throughout the world, most recently Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The 146th is one of three Air Guard and one AFRC C-130 units in the country equipped with the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS), an integrated airborne delivery system for battling large wildfires. Since 1974, these units have flown over 5,000 aerial fire fighting missions in California and across the United States and some foreign countries, saving valuable property, natural resources, and lives. Even with our very active flying program, the 146th has one of the finest safety records in military aviation - over 300,000 hours of accident-free flying, spanning over 42 years.