Airmen, aircraft to deploy for ‘New Dawn’ Published June 19, 2012 By Staff Sgt. April L. Bachler 139th Airlift Wing ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- Citizen-Airmen from the 139th Airlift Wing announced here June 16 that they are undergoing preparations for a deployment this summer to support overseas contingency operations. The deployment of Missouri Air National Guard Airmen and aircraft include a mix of career specialties and is part of the Air Force's scheduled Air Expeditionary Force rotation that supports operations in Southwest Asia. Members of the detachment are scheduled to join with other Air Guard members from across the nation to form the 737th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron. Officials said missions may include humanitarian and military airlift and air drops for Operation New Dawn. While deployment numbers vary, a good number of Wing Airmen in any given time here are federally deployed overseas. The 180th Airlift Squadron's aircraft and Airmen most recently performed in-theater airlift during an Operation Enduring Freedom deployment in Afghanistan last year. The squadron set OEF records for cargo tonnage air dropped.