[1] The group was first constituted as the 463rd Troop Carrier Wing, Medium and activated at Memphis Airport, Tennessee, on 16 January 1953, when it assumed the mission, equipment and personnel of the 516th Troop Carrier Wing, a reserve unit called to active duty for the Korean War, which was simultaneously inactivated.

Assigned to Tactical Air Command (TAC) and equipped with Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars.

The 463rd airlifted and airdropped troops and cargo to support operations and exercises worldwide, supporting deployments during the following crises: Lebanon (July 1958), Taiwan (August 1958), Berlin (September 1961), Cuba (October–November 1962), the Gulf of Tonkin (August–December 1964), Southeast Asia (February and April–November 1965), and the Dominican Republic (April–September 1965).

In the spring of 1969 the 463rd detachment transferred from Tan Son Nhut to Cam Ranh Air Base, where it remained until the wing ceased aircraft operations in Southeast Asia on 25 October 1971.

Reactivated at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, in June 1972, the 463rd began participating in operations and exercises worldwide for TAC.

The wing's tactical components deployed frequently to Europe, the Pacific, and the Canal Zone to provide air transportation as needed.

Wings Groups Squadrons This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency