USAF missions included transporting troops, casualties and cargo flights. The Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps flew thousands of missions in support of U.S. ground troops in Iraq this fall, including attacks by unmanned Predator aircraft armed with Hellfire missiles, military records show. American and allied refueling, transport and surveillance planes also are in the air. Airstrikes have been largely in areas where the insurgency is strongest, like Balad, Ramadi and in the vicinity of Baghdad, according to the U.S. Central Command. Components 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing, undisclosed location, Southwest Asia, May 2016 – present 378th Air Expeditionary Wing, Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, 24 October 2005 – present E-3 Sentry 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, 2002–present B-1B Lancer, C-130 Hercules, C-17 Globemaster III, E-6B Mercury, E-8C Joint STARS, KC-135 Stratotanker, P-3 Orion, RC-135 Rivet Joint 380th Air Expeditionary Wing, Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates, 25 January 2002 – present KC-10 Extender, RQ-4 Global Hawk, U-2 Dragon Lady 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait, 2002–present C-130 Hercules Tenant Units assigned to the command are: 609th Air and Space Operations Center, Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, 1 January 1994 – present 1st Expeditionary Civil Engineer Group, Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, October 2001 – present 557 Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron 577 Expeditionary PRIME BEEF Squadron Note: The 432d Air Expeditionary Wing is an Air Combat Command unit headquartered at Creech AFB, Nevada. It operates RQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper UAV aircraft in the AFCENT AOR. Lineage and assignments Established as the 5th Air Support Command on 21 August 1941 Activated on 1 September 1941 Redesignated 9th Air Force on 8 April 1942 Redesignated as Ninth Air Force on 18 September 1942 Inactivated on 2 December 1945 Activated on 28 March 1946 Redesignated: Ninth Air Force (Tactical) on 1 August 1950 Redesignated: Ninth Air Force on 26 June 1951 Co-designation United States Central Command Air Forces established, 1 January 1983 CENTAF designation used for Ninth Air Force assets assigned to United States Central Command Redesignated: Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central), on 1 March 2008. Redesignated: United States Air Forces Central Command, on 5 August 2009. Redesignated: Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central), on 20 August 2020. Assignments Air Force Combat Command (later, Army Air Forces), 1 September 1941 United States Army Forces in the Middle East, 12 November 1942 European