169th Fighter Wing F-16s depart to support Southwest Asia deploy
U.S. Air Force Col. Akshai Gandhi, 169th Fighter Wing commander says farewell to U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Shaun Bowes, 157th Fighter Squadron commander, before his F-16 Fighting Falcon jet departs McEntire Joint National Guard Base, South Carolina, to support an Air Expeditionary Force deployment to Prince Sultan Air Base Saudi Arabia, April 12, 2021. The 169th Fighter Wing will support U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) by preserving operational depth, staging joint forces and projecting overwhelming combat power in the region. This is the wing’s largest deployment since the summer of 2018 when they supported an Air Expeditionary Force rotation to Kuwait. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Lt. Col. Jim St.Clair, 169th Fighter Wing Public Affairs)