The 101st Fighter Squadron was stationed at Otis ANG, Massachusetts. The
10st received their first F-15A/B's in 1987 replacing the F-106A's. The
101st was designated as an Fighter Interceptor Unit back then.
The 101st ’s conversion to
the F-15 marked the first Air National Guard air defence unit to receive
the Eagle. The 101st Fighter Interceptor
Squadron was redesignated the 101st
Fighter Squadron in April 1992. Examples of the
squadron’s ability to function worldwide include
a 1992 deployment of eight pilots, five F-15 Eagles, and 48 maintenance
and security personnel, who deployed for five days to Canadian Forces
Base, Goose Bay, Labrador, Canada. Another is the humanitarian deployment
of 50 personnel from the 102nd Civil Engineering Squadron under field
conditions, to the island of Eleuthera in the Bahamas in July 1993 to
rebuild school buildings and municipal facilities damaged by Hurricane
Andrew in 1992.
More recently, in the years 1991 through 1995 the
wing deployed to Panama as part of Coronet Nighthawk, a drug interdiction
operation. From 1995-1998 the wing deployed to Iceland for 45 days of air
defense duty. During 1998 Otis Guard members both trained for and
performed real-world contingency assignments in Iceland, Canada, Korea,
and Europe. In 1999 the wing participated in Operation Northern Watch when
it deployed with its F-15 Eagle aircraft to Turkey to patrol and enforce
the no-fly zone north of the 36th parallel in northern Iraq.
The wing again deployed more than 350 personnel to
the Middle East and Europe in 2000 to participate in Operation Southern
Watch.
The BRAC 2005. Beginning in 2007 the 101st FS began
transitioning it’s F-15s tot the 104 FW as decided under the BRAC 2005.
With the grounding of the F-15 Eagles, the 158th Fighter Wing,
temporarily took over the role of patrolling the Northeast's skies.
This interruption of the F-15's flight, coinciding with the
transitioning of the fighter jets to the 104th Fighter Wing, created
some issues. The move was originally scheduled to be completed at the
end of January, but the grounding of the F-15's in late 2007 and early
2008 delayed this move to the end of February.
On January 24, 2008, the 101st Fighter Squadron
flew its last patrol mission. The unit's wing commander, Colonel Anthony
Schiavi, led the flight, accompanied by Major Daniel Nash, who was one
of the first responders for 9/11. Fire trucks were on hand when the team
landed a half-hour later, giving the planes and the pilots the customary
ceremonial hose-down for the last time.
