McConnell Air Force Base (IATA: IAB, ICAO: KIAB, FAA LID: IAB) is a United States Air Force base located four miles (6 km) southeast of the central business district of Wichita, a city in Sedgwick County, Kansas, United States. The base was named in honor of Wichita brothers Fred and Thomas McConnell, both Air Force pilots and World War II veterans. It is the home of Air Mobility Command's 22d Air Refueling Wing (22 ARW), Air Force Reserve Command's 931st Air Refueling Group (931 ARG), and the Kansas Air National Guard's 184th Intelligence Wing (184 IW).
McConnell's primary mission is to provide global reach by conducting air refueling and airlift where and when needed. The Commander of the 22d ARW is Colonel Ricky N. Rupp, the Vice-Commander is Colonel Douglas K. Lamberth and the Command Chief is Chief Master Sergeant Michael H. Edwards.
Famous quotes containing the words air, force and/or base:
“Mothers of America
let your kids go to the movies!
get them out of the house so they won’t know what you’re up to
it’s true that fresh air is good for the body
but what about the soul
that grows in darkness, embossed by silvery images”
—Frank O’Hara (1926–1966)
“In Arms not worse, in foresight much advanc’t,
We may with more successful hope resolve
To wage by force or guile eternal Warr
Irreconcileable, to our grand Foe,”
—John Milton (1608–1674)
“The highest perfection of politeness is only a beautiful edifice, built, from the base to the dome, of ungraceful and gilded forms of charitable and unselfish lying.”
—Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (1835–1910)