By BILL SHEA

bshea@messengernews.net

The blue flag that for decades was the symbol of the 133rd Test Squadron was slowly and solemnly rolled up Sunday afternoon as the unit formally ended its service to the country.

About 100 people crammed into a large classroom in the unit’s Fort Dodge building to bid farewell to an Iowa Air National Guard outfit that began by using early radar equipment in 1948 and ended by testing all kinds of experimental electronics being considered for use by the Air Force.

“We leave behind a legacy of excellence that no organizational change can erase,” said Lt. Col. Jason Kolacia the squadron’s commander.

Addressing the squadron members and retirees, Kolacia said “You have made an impact that will outlive the unit itself.”

He said the unit was always at the forefront of innovation.

“We were never just another squadron,” he said. “We were pioneers.”

Kolacia thanked the families of squadron members for their support.

“To our families, your sacrifices have been the foundation of our success,” he said.

The unit was shut down as a result of a reorganization ordered by U.S. Air Force leaders in 2023.

“The focus on great power competition is now driving change in force structure on a daily basis,” said Brig. Gen. Mark Muckey, Iowa’s deputy adjutant general for air. “I expect this is going to be the new normal.”

“There’s nothing easy about our task here today,” Muckey said early in Sunday’s ceremony.

But he added “There is so much to be proud of and so much to treasure.”

Muckey said the squadron will “live in our hearts and in this great community and forever in the history of the Iowa National Guard.”

He thanked the Fort Dodge and Webster County community for support he described as “unwavering over the years.”

“I have enormous pride in the accomplishments of the 133rd airmen,” he said.

The key symbolic gesture to end the unit’s service came near the end of the ceremony when Muckey and Kolacia wrapped the unit’s flag around its staff and slipped a covering over it.

Kolacia then presented Mayor Matt Bemrich with a large framed image of the unit’s insignia. Bemrich said it will be prominently displayed in the Municipal Building.

The squadron had an authorized strength of 118 members. Since the squadron’s closure was announced in May 2024, the roster dwindled to the current 41 members.

The majority of them will be transferring to the 132nd Air Wing in Des Moines, with some others going to the 185th Air Refueling Wing in Sioux City.

The squadron’s equipment will be sent wherever needed in the military. Most of its vehicles appear to have been sent elsewhere already, with only a large tow truck left in the squadron’s compound Sunday.

The future of the squadron’s building and property remains undetermined. Bemrich said he will talk to federal officials about it when a local delegation visits Washington. D.C., later this month.