5th Bomb Wing

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5th Bomb Wing
A 5th Bomb Wing Boeing B-52 taxis past the Minot AFB tower
Founded	1949
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Role	Bomber
Part of	Air Force Global Strike Command Eighth Air Force
Garrison/HQ	Minot Air Force Base
Nickname(s)	the Warbirds
Motto(s)	"Kiai o ka lewa" Hawaiian: Guardians of the Upper Realms
Equipment	B-52H Stratofortress
Engagements	World War II Asiatic-Pacific theater (1941–1945) Vietnam War (1965–1968) Southwest Asia (1990–1991) Expeditionary Service (1990s) Kosovo War War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Iraq War (2003–2010)
Decorations	See honors
Commanders
Current commander	Colonel Daniel Hoadley
Vice commander	Colonel Michael D. Maginness
Command Chief	Chief Master Sergeant Timothy J. Wieser
Notable commanders	Brigadier General Robert F. Travis, Brigadier General Edwin B. Broadhurst, Brigadier General William R. Hodges, Brigadier General Ralph Pasini
Insignia
5th Bomb Wing emblem (approved 12 August 1954)[1]

The 5th Bomb Wing (5 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to Air Force Global Strike Command's Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota. The wing is also the host unit at Minot. The 5 BW is one of only two active duty Boeing B-52H Stratofortress wings in the United States Air Force, the other being the 2nd Bomb Wing at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. Also, stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base, and operating the B-52H is a third unit, the 307th Bomb Wing, which is part of the Air Force Reserve Command.^[2][3]

Its 5th Operations Group is a successor organization of the 5th Group (Composite), one of the 15 original combat air groups formed by the Army before World War II.

On 7 December 1941, the 5th Bombardment Group suffered the loss of B-17 Flying Fortress and B-18 Bolo bombers when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, but it sent two B-17s to search vainly for the Japanese task force. After the attack, the group patrolled the waters off the Hawaiian Islands until November 1942, taking part in the Battle of Midway (3–6 June 1942). Active for over 60 years, the 5 BW was a component wing of Strategic Air Command's heavy bomber deterrent force throughout the Cold War.