172nd Airlift Wing Tour
Sample Product Category
172nd AIRLIFT WING TOUR
WHO:
Open to registered MADS 2026 attendees. Hosted by the Airmen of the 172nd Airlift Wing, Mississippi Air National Guard, at Thompson Field in Jackson, a unit that has flown military aircraft from this field since 1953 and the C-17 Globemaster III since 2003.
Space is limited so register today!
WHAT:
An escorted, behind-the-fence tour of an active Air National Guard airlift installation, built around the C-17 Globemaster III—one of the world's premier strategic airlifts. (Planned stops, subject to base approval and the mission schedule: an aircraft/flight line static, a maintenance or operations area, and a short mission briefing from wing personnel.)
WHEN:
Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026, 2:00 PM CT. (Approx. duration TBD; attendees will leave the MADS 2026 hotel together by bus for gate check-in and badging.)
WHERE:
172nd Airlift Wing, Thompson Field, on the Jackson–Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport complex, Jackson, MS.
WHY IT’S WORTH IT:
Rare access. Active military installations are closed to the public—this is escorted, MADS-only access to a flying wing.
The aircraft. Stand alongside a C-17 Globemaster III and take in the scale of strategic airlift up close.
The mission. The wing flies global airlift, aero-medical evacuation, and disaster-response missions—this is a working unit, not a museum.
The people. Talk with the Airmen who fly, maintain, and sustain the fleet.
The context. See Mississippi's role in national defense and total-force air power—and, for industry, the real end-user environment where your capability must perform.