T
he Montana Air National Guard’s 120th Fighter Wing in Great Falls is taking important steps to complete its conversion from F-16s to F-15s per BRAC 2005. The unit is scheduled to conduct a phase 2 operational readiness exercise June 1-6, Maj. Tim Crowe, a wing spokesman, tells the Daily Report. Depending on the results of this drill, the wing’s commander may decide soon thereafter that his airmen are ready to assume initial operational capability with the F-15s—the so-called IOC milestone, said Crowe. That would be a remarkable achievement since it would be about a full year ahead of the unit’s original conversion schedule. Crowe said the wing has just come off its very first participation in a Combat Archer air-to-air exercise while flying F-15s. Ten of its F-15s and more than 90 airmen deployed to Tyndall AFB, Fla., for the April event.
Billy Mitchell: Lessons a Hundred Years Hence
Dec. 16, 2025
Exactly 100 years ago, on Dec. 17, 1925, Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell was convicted by court-martial for violating an order that required approval before he could engage with the media. Mitchell’s provocative thoughts and unorthodox methods sought attention for a cause that he saw as uniquely American.
