The Puerto Rico Air National Guard is the air force

Air force

An air force, also known in some countries as an air army, is in the broadest sense, the national military organization that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army, navy or...

 militia

Militia

The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...

 of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

, an unincorporated territory of the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is, along with the Puerto Rico Army National Guard

Puerto Rico National Guard

The Puerto Rico National Guard is the component of the United States National Guard in the U.S. Territory of Puerto Rico. It comprises both Army and Air National Guard components with a total authorized strength of 10,000 soldiers and airmen. The Constitution of the United States specifically...

, an element of the Puerto Rico National Guard

Puerto Rico National Guard

The Puerto Rico National Guard is the component of the United States National Guard in the U.S. Territory of Puerto Rico. It comprises both Army and Air National Guard components with a total authorized strength of 10,000 soldiers and airmen. The Constitution of the United States specifically...

.
History=
The Puerto Rico Air National Guard is a part of the Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the United States Air Force

United States Air Force

The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

. On November 23, 1947, the Puerto Rico Air National Guard came into existence as a result of the efforts led by Colonel Mihiel Gilormini

Mihiel Gilormini

Brigadier General Mihiel "Mike" Gilormini , was a United States Air Force officer who served in the Royal Air Force and in the United States Army Air Force during World War II. He was the recipient of the Silver Star, the Air Medal with four clusters and the Distinguished Flying Cross 5 times...

, Colonel Alberto A. Nido

Alberto A. Nido

Brigadier General Alberto A. Nido is a former United States Air Force officer who during World War II served in the Royal Canadian Air Force, the British Royal Air Force and in the United States Army Air Forces. He was also the co-founder of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard.-Early years:Nido was...

 and Lieutenant Colonel José Antonio Muñiz

José Antonio Muñiz

Lieutenant Colonel José Antonio Muñiz was a former United States Air Force officer who during World War II served in the United States Army Air Forces. Together with then-Colonels Alberto A. Nido and Mihiel Gilormini he founded the Puerto Rico Air National Guard...

. Gilormini was promoted to brigadier general and served as commander until his retirement in 1975. Colonel Nido was promoted to Brigadier General and served at National Guard Headquarters as Chief of Staff for Air. Brigadier General Jose M. Portela

Jose M. Portela

Brigadier General José M. Portela , is a retired officer of the United States Air Force who served in the position of Assistant Adjutant General for Air while also serving as commander of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard. In 1972, Portela became the youngest C-141 Starlifter aircraft commander...

, the youngest C-141 Starlifter

C-141 Starlifter

The Lockheed C-141 Starlifter was a military strategic airlifter in service with the Air Mobility Command of the United States Air Force...

 aircraft commander and captain was the only reservist ever to serve as director of mobility forces for Bosnia, served as commander of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard from January 11, 2005 to November 2006.

The tactical aviation element of PRANG operates as the 156th Airlift Wing, 198th Airlift Squadron, flying C-130E aircraft. They operate out of Muñiz Air National Guard Base, which shares the runways with Luiz Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU, originally San Juan International Airport). In the past, they have operated P-47 Thunderbolts, C-47 Skytrains, F-86D, F-86E, and F-86H Sabre Jets, F-104 Starfighters, A-7D Corsair II, F-16 Fighting Falcons, and, currently, C-130 Hercules type aircraft.
Muñiz Air National Guard Base=
"Base Muñiz" in Carolina, Puerto Rico

Carolina, Puerto Rico

Carolina is a city located in the northern part of Puerto Rico, bordering the Atlantic Ocean; it lies north of Gurabo and Juncos; east of Trujillo Alto and San Juan; and west of Canóvanas and Loíza. Carolina is spread over 12 wards plus Carolina Pueblo...

 was formally named in 1963 to honor of one of the initial members of the unit who was killed in the line of duty. Lieutenant Colonel José Antonio Muñiz (full name: José Antonio Muñiz Vazquez) was lost on July 4, 1960 when his F-86D lost power on climbout for a formation fly-by. Major General Orlando Llenza

Orlando Llenza

Major General Orlando Llenza is the second Puerto Rican to reach the rank of Major General in the United States Air Force. Llenza served as commander of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard .-Early years:...

, then a fellow aviator in the unit, later described the loss in the following translation:

We were short one pilot and Joe offered to stand in. I was formation lead. Right after departing the runway, his afterburner nozzles failed open, indicating a loss of power. The ejection seats in use at the time could not safely extract a pilot at low altitude and Joe went in little after takeoff. No one in the flight mentioned the event; we executed the flyover and were notified of the loss upon our return to base. Shortly after that, we received the F-86H which did not use afterburning and could fly non-stop from homestead AFB (in Florida) to San Juan unlike the previous D and E models, which had to stop for fuel at Guantanamo, Cuba.

Muñiz Air National Guard Base is the home of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard's 156th Airlift Wing

156th Airlift Wing

The United States Air Force's 156th Airlift Wing is an airlift unit located at Muniz ANGB, Puerto Rico.-Mission:The mission of the 156th Airlift Wing is to provide global airlift and agile force to execute and accomplish tasked mission...

 and the 198th Airlift Squadron

198th Airlift Squadron

The 198th Airlift Squadron flies the C-130 Hercules. It is a unit of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard. Its parent unit is the 156th Airlift Wing.-Mission:...

. Muñiz ANGB a has hangar, Command Offices, a U.S. Air Force & Air National Guard

Air National Guard

The Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia of the United States. Established under Title 10 and...

 recruiting office, Classrooms, Maintenance shops, A Community Club, a Family Readiness Center, a post barbershop and NGX has a Post exchange on base.
Units=

• 156th Airlift Wing
  156th Airlift Wing
  The United States Air Force's 156th Airlift Wing is an airlift unit located at Muniz ANGB, Puerto Rico.-Mission:The mission of the 156th Airlift Wing is to provide global airlift and agile force to execute and accomplish tasked mission...
  
   - Airlift Cargo Operations (C-130 Hercules
  C-130 Hercules
  The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed, now Lockheed Martin. Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport...
  
  ) , Muñiz Air National Guard Base, Carolina, PR
• 141st Air Control Squadron
  141st Air Control Squadron
  The 141st Air Control Squadron is a unit of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard. It is a mobile radar command, control and communications element of the United States Air Force Theater Air Control System located at Rafael Hernandez Airport in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.The unit can be tasked by the...
  
  . - Mobile Radar Unit, Ramey - Aguadilla (former Ramey AFB), PR
• 140th Air Defense Sq. - Fixed Radar Unit, Punta Salinas - Toa Baja, PR

See also

• Military history of Puerto Rico
  Military history of Puerto Rico
  The recorded military history of Puerto Rico encompasses the period from the 16th century, when Spanish conquistadores battled native Tainos in the rebellion of 1511, to the present employment of Puerto Ricans in the United States Armed Forces in the military campaigns in Afghanistan and...
  
  
• List of Puerto Rican military personnel
• Puerto Rico National Guard
  Puerto Rico National Guard
  The Puerto Rico National Guard is the component of the United States National Guard in the U.S. Territory of Puerto Rico. It comprises both Army and Air National Guard components with a total authorized strength of 10,000 soldiers and airmen. The Constitution of the United States specifically...
  
  
• Puerto Rican Campaign
  Puerto Rican Campaign
  The Puerto Rican Campaign was an American military sea and land operation on the island of Puerto Rico during the Spanish–American War. The offensive began on May 12, 1898, when the United States Navy attacked the archipelago’s capital, San Juan. Though the damage inflicted on the city was minimal,...
  
  
• Puerto Ricans in World War I
  Puerto Ricans in World War I
  Puerto Ricans and people of Puerto Rican descent have participated as members of the United States Armed Forces in every conflict in which the United States has been involved since World War I. One of the consequences of the Spanish-American War was that Puerto Rico was annexed by the United States...
  
  
• Puerto Ricans in World War II
  Puerto Ricans in World War II
  Puerto Ricans and people of Puerto Rican descent have participated as members of the United States Armed Forces in every conflict in which the United States has been involved since World War I. In World War II, Puerto Rican members of the U.S. armed forces guarded U.S...
  
  
• Puerto Ricans in the Vietnam War
  Puerto Ricans in the Vietnam War
  Thousands of Puerto Ricans served in the Armed Forces of the United States during the Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War. Said war was a Cold War military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1959 to April 30, 1975. Puerto Ricans served in different positions...
  
  
• Hispanics in the United States Air Force
  Hispanics in the United States Air Force
  Hispanics in the United States Air Force can trace their tradition of service back to the United States Army Air Forces , the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, which was the predecessor of the United States Air Force which was formed as...
  
  

External links

Official sites

• Puerto Rico National Guard
• Puerto Rico Air National Guard

Unofficial sites
From GlobalSecurity.org:

• Muñiz Air National Guard Base
• 156th Airlift Wing
• 198th Airlift Squadron