New 172nd Wing Commander

Colonel Barry A. Blanchard of New Orleans has been named Wing Commander of the Mississippi Air National Guard’s 172nd Airlift Wing at Thompson Field in Jackson. He will direct operations, maintenance and support of the Wing's nine assigned C-17 Globemaster IIIs for global strategic and tactical airlift in support of national command authority and for the Governor of Mississippi. The 172nd is comprised of 14 units and three geographically-separated units and is capable of supporting airlift and aeromedical evacuation operations, tactical airlift control, combat civil engineering, air control, and combat readiness and training. A command/evaluator pilot with more than 4,300 hours in the C-17A, Blanchard has participated in operations Southern Watch, Enduring/Iraqi Freedom and New Dawn. While serving as a traditional guardsman, Blanchard is a pilot with FedEx. (Times Picayune 6/16/15) Central Mississippi Note: Blanchard was commissioned through the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1992. He attended undergraduate pilot training at Columbus Air Force Base, Miss., and received his wings in 1993.