Humble, brave, valiant, selfless, and highly decorated are just a few words to describe members of the 238th Air Support Operations Squadron, Key Field Air National Guard Base in Meridian. Comprised of Special Warfare Airmen known as TACPs or Tactical Air Control Party, Air Liaison Officers, operations support, and Joint Terminal Attack Controllers, the ASOS was recently redesignated as the 238th Contingency Response Squadron on April 1, 2025.

 

“Having the most motivated, adaptive and lethal special warfare airmen take on the new mission of Contingency Response, only makes sense,” said Lt. Col. Scott Duckworth, commander of the 238th ASOS. “It is a relatively new mission for the Air Force with personnel who are already combat proven and capable of being the benchmark of what a Contingency Response Squadron should be.”

 

On the heels of escalating Al Qaeda terrorist activity, the 238th ASOS stood up on Oct. 1, 1999, following the restructuring of the 238th Combat Communications Squadron (CCS), which activated in 1953.

 

Since activation, ASOS members deployed in support of United States Africa Command, United States Central Command and United States Special Operations Command, including operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom and Inherent Resolve. They conducted combat operations in the initial invasion of Iraq in 2003; the liberation of Fallujah, Sadr City, and Karbala in 2004; counter insurgency in Afghanistan; and the Defeat ISIS campaign in Syria.

 

Over the years as world geopolitics evolved, the mission of the 238th evolved to meet the needs of the National Security Strategy.

 

As the only Air Force Special Warfare squadron within the Mississippi Air National Guard, the federal, wartime mission of the ASOS is to provide liaison and expertise to United States Army combat units. However, ASOS members worked with all U.S. military services to include the Marines, Navy and Air Force, calling in close air support or airstrikes, artillery fire, and naval gunfire – amplifying the mission as a force multiplier. They also conducted medical evacuations and set up overseas drop zones for equipment resupply.

 

Their stateside or peacetime capacity consisted of supporting domestic operations as air advisors, providing reconnaissance support such as searching for missing persons; participating in natural disaster and hurricane relief efforts for Katrina and Irma; and supporting counterdrug operations.

 

The year 2003 hailed the first of many deployments for the 238th, when six TACPs deployed within seven days of notification in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. One of the original members of the unit, Retired Col. Billy Murphy who served from 2000 – 2008 as a Battalion ALO, deployed to Iraq. Then Major-Murphy and five other Airmen to include then-Major Scott Snively, deployed with Fort Campbell’s 19th ASOS.

 

“We were responsible for providing close air support, and I spun up the Apache pilots on emergency CAS who were my eyes on target. We had combined armed effects on different targets throughout Iraq,” Murphy said. “Apaches were on target, Army long range missiles, and 2,000-pound bombs dropping all at the same time, and everyone made it home.”

 

On Dec. 3, 2003, when the 238th returned from their deployment, both Murphy and Snively, were awarded the Bronze Star for their actions during OIF.

 

Murphy said his time spent with the 238th was instrumental in developing him to be a valued staff member at every command level, setting the stage for the remainder of his career where he later progressed to serving as commander of the 186th Air Operations Group at Key Field ANGB.

 

In 2004 during the Iraq conflict, four, six-member teams deployed for three-month combat tours, supporting the 39th Brigade Combat Team. During this deployment, the campaign to liberate Fallujah, Iraq, occurred.

 

Former ASOS member, then-Senior Airman James Munn, deployed alongside the unit’s U.S. Air Force JTACs and members of a U.S. Navy special operations team. The team was tasked to insert into Fallujah, during Operation Phantom Fury to provide direct action and CAS operations. While there, Munn survived being hit in the chest by the spoon of a grenade with the event leading to a two-hour long firefight. In totality, the operation lasted 17 days. Munn was awarded the Bronze Star, with Valor, following his return from the deployment. This is just one of the many acts of bravery exhibited by ASOS members throughout the unit’s activation.

 

From 2004 – 2020, 238th ASOS TACPs traversed the world 14 times, fighting the war on terrorism. They’ve been accredited for the defeat of ISIS, were instrumental in Baghdad, had more than 2,000 enemy kills, and dropped more than one million pounds of bombs, all in defense of U.S., coalition and host nation forces.

 

California resident Lt. Col. Frank Monterrosa, who serves as a fireman in his civilian career, began his military career with the 238th in 2007 as an enlisted ROMAD and later commissioned to become a TACP officer. In all, Monterrosa deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan twice each, and to Syria from 2018-2019.

 

“The reason I stayed with the 238th is the people,” said Monterrosa. “Living in California, I could have gone to Washington State or Houston. At one point, at least 20 members all lived out of state. That really drives home the point of brotherhood. I’ve always loved the atmosphere and culture.”

 

Most every year, at least 20% of the unit was deployed at any given time, speaking to the legacy of not only bravery, but also of camaraderie fostered by shared deployments, experiences and adversities.

 

For the past 26 years since the inception of the 238th ASOS, one Purple Heart, more than 20 Bronze Stars, one with Valor, numerous Army Combat Badges, at least three Combat Action Medals, and hundreds of other decorations have been awarded to members for support during training exercises, acts of bravery, and for injuries received while in combat with enemy forces. In fact, the 238th garners the record of the most Bronze Stars and Combat Action Ribbons of all Mississippi Air National Guard units.

 

With the ASOS redesignated, the 238th Air Support Operations Squadron’s legacy persists in perpetuity due to the 26 years of heroic actions and accomplishments embodying the Air Force warrior ethos through deterrence and the defense of our freedoms and national security.