The 102nd Rescue Squadron (102 RQS) is a unit of the New York Air National Guard 106th Rescue Wing stationed at Francis S. Gabreski ANG Base, Westhampton Beach, NY. The 102nd is equipped with the HC-130J Combat King II transport aircraft. The squadron is a descendant organization of the World War I 102nd Aero Squadron, established on 23 August 1917. Its origins begin however, on 30 April 1908 as the 1st Aero Company, a pre-World War I independent unit of the New York National Guard. After the war, the unit was reformed on 7 November 1921 as the 102nd Observation Squadron, and is one of the 29 original National Guard Observation Squadrons of the US Army National Guard formed before World War II. The 102nd Rescue Squadron is the oldest unit of the Air National Guard, with over a century of service to the state of New York and the United States. This patch does not come with velcro attached.
