following the first gulf war, the air national guard's senior leadership in the national guard bureau began to adapt their organization for the post-cold war era in a series of far-reaching discussions with top echelon air force personnel, state officials, unit leaders, and members of congress. essentially, the air force agreed it would attempt to retain all ang and air force reserve flying units, while reducing its own as a cost-effective way to maintain a post-cold war force structure. however, as limited amounts of newer equipment became available from a smaller air force, and budgets tightened, the ang would reduce the numbers of aircraft assigned to each unit. if necessary, it would combine units at the same locations. some organizations would close down, but only as a last resort.