The 137th Special Operations Communications Flight was redesignated as a squadron May 7, 2023, during a ceremony held at Will Rogers Air National Guard Base, Oklahoma City.

During the ceremony, the 137th SOCF guidon was furled during the guidon exchange and the squadron guidon was revealed. The members of the Special Operations Communications Squadron then honored former and current flight members who set the squadron on the path to success for the future fight.

“This will help us better shape our future force to be prepared and more accurately reflects the increased responsibilities we’ve taken on as an organization,” said 2nd Lt. Chadwick Chudoba, director of operations for the 137th SOCS. “It lays the groundwork for us to prepare for future mission challenges with cyber and communications requirements.”

The squadron supports a vital capability for 1,200 members of the 137th Special Operations Wing, ensuring members are connected securely and able to maintain operations that prepare them to conduct missions around the world.

“The single largest factor driving our redesignation was the addition of a special missions flight that contains the mission defense team,” he explained. “The MDT is hunting for threats and vulnerabilities — actively searching for compromises — to better ensure our cyber security and protect the wing’s primary missions and equipment.”

Cyber attacks both at home and abroad pose a threat to national security, and further developing 137th SOCS multi-capable Airmen will allow the squadron to securely build, operate and maintain digital and critical infrastructures while protecting and defending data against adversaries.