Delaware National Guard - DNG News 2002

Col. Ron Mehan, who recently relinquished command of the 166th Airlift Wing, is retiring after 33 years of military service. As is tradition, he had his final military flight on Wednesday, November 13.

Appearing out of a gray, cloudy sky at 2 p.m. he landed a C-130H aircraft on the runway of the New Castle County Airbase for the last time. Friends, family and fellow guardsmen gathered to greet him as he exited the aircraft. Also on hand were a couple Delaware Air Guard firefighters for the traditional "hosing down." While the entire 2,500 gallons in the tanker truck weren’t used, Mehan still was ceremoniously soaked on a chilly, fall afternoon. After handshakes and hugs, glasses were passed out and everyone celebrated with a champagne toast.

The celebration continued inside the Operations Building with an even larger gathering. "I really enjoyed it. It’s been a blast," said Mehan. "It has been a great experience working with great people. I don’t know what else to say."

Mehan joined the Air Force as a basic trainee in 1969 after receiving a Bachelor’ Degree in Physics from Penn State University in 1968 (he later earned a Master’s in Physics from the University of Delaware). He served in the Air Force and Pennsylvania Air National Guard until joining the Delaware Guard in 1979. He served as a training officer, Chief of Safety, Chief of Standardization and Evaluation, and Operations Officer before commanding a tactical airlift squadron in Desert Storm. Upon his return home from Southwest Asia, he commanded the 142^nd Airlift Squadron, 166^th Operations Group and was selected as the 166^th Airlift Wing Vice Commander in June 2000. In April 2001, Col. Mehan became Wing commander for the 166^th until relinquishing in November 2002.

Mehan completed his career as a command pilot with close to 10,000 flying hours, to include his combat hours in Southwest Asia where he earned the Bronze Star.

Photo by Senior Master Sgt. Gerald Dougherty, 166th Airlift Wing Visual Information.