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The Guard in 2024: Deployments, hurricanes, wildfires and new leadership
December 27, 2024
U.S. Army Sgt. Isaac Bradshaw, a combat medic with C Company, 230th Brigade Support Battalion, North Carolina Army National Guard, wraps his arms around an older couple and uses his body to block them from debris and strong winds produced by the rotor wash of a landing CH-47 Chinook helicopter in Burnsville, North Carolina, Oct. 10, 2024. The Chinook crew responded in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, bringing generators, fuel, and other supplies to the remote area that was isolated when floodwaters washed away the main road in and out of the area.

New Era Begins with Arrival of Poland’s F-35s at Ebbing ANGB
December 26, 2024
The 33rd Fighter Wing and Ebbing Air National Guard Base welcomed the arrival of the first two Polish Air Force F-35A Lightning II at the base in Fort Smith, Arkansas, Dec. 23, 2024.  Polish pilots will train on the aircraft at Ebbing ANGB beginning in January.

Red Dragons Hone Sling Load Skills During Drill Weekend
December 23, 2024
Virginia Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Lynchburg-based Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team conduct sling load training Dec. 7, 2024, at Blackstone Army Airfield in Blackstone, Virginia.

New York Air National Guard Helps Track Santa Claus
December 23, 2024
A New York Air National Guardsman assigned to the  Eastern Air Defense Sector in Rome, New York, prepares for NORAD Santa tracking operations. The annual NORAD Tracks Santa operation traces St. Nick's path around the world on Dec. 24.

Kentucky Guardsman Helps Recover Missing Aircrew in Vietnam
December 23, 2024
Master Sgt. Dustin Turner, right, an explosive ordnance disposal technician assigned to the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Civil Engineer Squadron, examines soil for osseous material in a rice paddy in Quang Binh Province, Vietnam, in June 2023. Turner was part of a U.S.-led team that recovered the remains of two U.S. Marine pilots who were lost in combat over Vietnam in December 1972.

New Hampshire National Guard Rescues Hypothermic Hiker
December 23, 2024
Sgt. 1st Class Ethan Major, a flight medic with the New Army National Guard, secures an air rescue vest on stricken hiker Patrick Bittman during a rescue on Little Haystack mountain in Franconia Range Dec. 19, 2024. Major and Bittman were hoisted into a Black Hawk helicopter hovering 70 feet overhead. Looking on are members of the Pemi Valley Search and Rescue Team.

Guardsman Follows Father in State Partnership Program
December 23, 2024
Left: Maj. William Johnston presents a gift during a subject matter exchange with the Royal Army of Thailand in March 2010 when he was the director of the Washington National Guard State Partnership Program. His son, right, Sgt. William Johnston, a crew chief with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 168th General Support Aviation, with an Aviation soldier from 9th Battalion, Royal Thai Army during an exchange Dec. 2, 2024, in Lop Buri, Thailand.

Kosovo Force German Contingent Hosts Event, Strengthening Interoperability With Allies
December 20, 2024
U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers participate in the swimming portion of the German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge event held in Kosovo, Dec. 15, 2024.

Alaska National Guard Wraps up Operation Santa Claus
December 20, 2024
Approximately 50 Alaska National Guard service members, volunteers from the Salvation Army, AKNG Child and Youth Program and others visited the southeastern Alaskan city of Yakutat, Dec. 18, 2024.

Military Medical Merit Inductee is 1st From Maine Guard
December 19, 2024
Left to Right: Col. Frederick Looper, commander of the Medical Readiness Unit, Maine Army National Guard; 1st Sgt. Jayme Saucier, first sergeant of the MRU; Lt. Col. Joel Dunn, deputy state surgeon, MEARNG; Col. George Horsley, state surgeon general, Massachusetts Army National Guard; as Dunn becomes the first person in the Maine Army National Guard to be inducted into the Order of Military Medical Merit Dec. 8, 2024 in Bangor, Maine. The order was founded by the commanding general of the U.S. Army Health Services Command in 1982 to recognize excellence and promote fellowship and esprit de corps among Army Medical Department personnel.

New York National Guard Members Train with Swedish Partners
December 19, 2024
New York National Guard members pose for a group photo during a Winter Training Planners Course at the Swedish Armed Forces Subarctic Warfare Center in Boden, Sweden, Nov. 26, 2024. The week-long training included classroom briefings and hands-on training in cold weather as part of the New York National Guard’s State Partnership Program partnership with Sweden.

North Carolina Guard Leaders Honor 30th Infantry Division
December 19, 2024
A wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on Dec. 17, 2024, honored the Citizen-Soldiers of the 30th Infantry Division on the 80th Anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge.

Washington Guard, Royal Thai Army Complete Expert Exchange
December 19, 2024
Sgt. Tony Ramirez, crew chief, 1st Battalion, 168th General Support Aviation, talks about the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter with soldiers from the 9th Battalion, Royal Thai Army during an aviation subject matter exchange in Lop Buri, Thailand, Dec. 2, 2024. The Washington National Guard and Thailand are State Partnership Program partners.

New York Airmen Complete Brazilian Jungle Warfare Course
December 18, 2024
U.S. Air National Guard Tech. Sgt. Gerardo Balsa and Staff Sgt. Grant Cozart, defenders with the 105th Airlift Wing’s Base Defense Group, pose with fellow graduates at the Brazilian Jungle Warfare School in Manaus, Brazil, Nov. 22, 2024. Balsa and Cozart are two of only 50 American military members to complete the course since it was established in 1964 to develop an operational unit that could use the Amazon jungle environment to its advantage.

Guard Bureau Celebrates 388th Birthday with Fun Run and Ruck
December 18, 2024
National Guard Soldiers and community members gathered at Fort Lesley J. McNair in Washington Dec. 13, 2024, to celebrate the National Guard’s 388th birthday at the annual National Guard Bureau Fun Run and Ruck.

Louisiana Guard Youth Challenge Program Marks 30 Years
December 18, 2024
Louisiana National Guard Youth Challenge Program Cadet Myles Dean of West Monroe was recognized during the Class 2024-1 graduation ceremony at the Pentecostals of Alexandria Church in Alexandria, Louisiana, Dec. 14, 2024. Dean earned the class’s highest academic marks, including an ACT score of 32 out of 36, an ASVAB score of 93 out of 99, and a HiSET score of 98 out of 100.

Idaho Guardsman Balances Command in Idaho, Security at NASA
December 18, 2024
Capt. Megan Mabey, commander of D Company, 116th Brigade Engineer Battalion, poses for a a picture at NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, in late 2024. In addition to her duties as a member of the Idaho National Guard, Mabey works as a security specialist for NASA.

Army Increases Tuition Assistance, Adjusts Credentialing Program
December 17, 2024
The Army announced policy updates Dec. 11, 2024, for the tuition assistance and credentialing assistance educational programs for Active-Duty, Reserve, and National Guard Soldiers. The changes include increased semester hour and dollar amount caps for TA and a reduction in the dollar amount cap for CA.

Idaho Air Guard Range Squadron Trains to Climb Towers
December 17, 2024
Radar, airfield and weather systems specialists with the 266th Range Squadron, a geographically separated unit of the 124th Fighter Wing, Idaho Air National Guard, complete tower climbing training on Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, Dec. 10, 2024. Tower climbing is vital to maintain communication systems at the Saylor Creek Bombing Range, Mountain Home AFB and other military operating areas in Southern Idaho.

Nordhaus Reinforces National Guard’s Dual Status Commander Role
December 16, 2024
Air Force Gen. Steve Nordhaus, chief, National Guard Bureau, addresses nearly nearly 30 officers at the O-6 level and above, from 50 states, three territories, and the District of Columbia, and active-duty components from across the country during the Dual Status Command Training Course, at the North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command headquarters on Peterson Space Force Base, Colo., Dec. 13, 2024.