Home to units from every component of the U.S. Armed Forces, Selfridge Air National Guard Base is one of the oldest and most complex military air fields in the nation. With National Guard and/or Reserve personnel from every branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, Selfridge provides a broad range of services and capabilities to the state and to the nation. Known as the Home of Generals, the base was the duty station at one time to more than 150 officers who eventually became general officers in the U.S. Air Force. The 127th Wing of the Michigan Air National Guard is the host unit at the base.
Location
Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located on the shores of Lake St. Clair in Harrison Township, Mich., about 20 miles northeast of downtown Detroit.
History
The origins of the 127th Wing and Selfridge Air National Guard Base date back to the days of Wilbur & Orville Wright. The base’s namesake, Army Lt. Thomas Selfridge, was killed while flying on a demonstration flight with Orville Wright in 1908 – the first military casualty of flight. In 1917, a local auto pioneer, Henry B. Joy, leased his rural airfield near Detroit to the military to train pilots and related personnel. The military has operated the field ever since. During World War II, maintenance personnel of the famed Tuskegee Airmen, an all-African American unit, trained at the base and helped lead the way toward the ending of racial segregation in the military. During the Cold War era, Nike missiles were stationed at the base to guard the industrial might of the Detroit region. Following the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the 127th Wing began flying combat air patrol missions over the Great Lakes region within hours of the attack. It maintained that 24-hour mission until 2008, when the Wing transitioned to its current flying missions with the KC-135 and A-10.
Over the years, dozens of different types of aircraft have been assigned to the base. Examples of many of these aircraft, as well as related memorabilia are on display at the Selfridge Military Air Museum, which is located on the base and is open to the public. The base is also home to the first Starbase center, a program created at Selfridge and later replicated around the Dept. of Defense, which encourages school age children to study math, science and technology by introducing them to elements of the U.S. space program.
Mission
Our mission is to provide trained, equipped and motivated tanker, fighter and support resources for the community, state and nation. The 127th Wing supports three separate Major Commands (Air Combat Command, Air Mobility Command, Air Force Special Operations Command), flying two distinctly different missions in the KC-135 Stratotanker, an aerial refueler with global reach, and the A-10 Thunderbolt II, a close air support aircraft.
Population Served
In total, nearly than 3,000 full-time civilian and military personnel work at the base, in addition to approximately 3,000 members of the Air and Army National Guard and the Reserve components of the U.S. Armed Forces.
Base Transportation
Space-A Travel Representative
171st Aerial Port Flight
29570 Wilbur Wright Blvd
Hangar 9
Selfridge ANGB, MI 48045
Flight Recording:
DSN: 273-2606
Comm: (586) 239-2606
FAX: DSN: 273-6101
Comm: (586) 239-6101