An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | Jan. 8, 2018

Senior planner urges Guard leaders to prepare for next war

By Lisa Simunaci Army Materiel Command

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - The Army's senior logistician told National Guard leaders to ensure their units are ready for the next war, because wherever and whenever it is, it will take the total force to fight and win. 

“Place yourself on the battlefield and work left,” Army Materiel Command’s Gen. Gus Perna said via teleconference to more than 400 leaders gathered Friday in Little Rock, Arkansas, for the Army National Guard’s Green Tab Commanders Conference. 

Perna encouraged leaders to rethink the term "readiness."

“If you get a call tonight, can you drive equipment from your motor pool to a train where it then goes to a port?” Perna asked. “Your equipment arrives at another port, where you offload it and drive into combat.”

Perna told leaders it was their responsibility to ensure their units’ Soldiers, equipment, maintenance, supply and administrative activities were in order. 

Rather than focusing on reports and metrics, Perna urged leaders to think of their own organization in terms of its contribution to the total picture. 

“I’m asking you to process readiness in a three dimensional way, beyond reporting and statistics. We must understand ourselves, know what our mission is, and understand our training, maintenance, supply and administration,” Perna said. 

At the Army Materiel Command, Perna noted he is focusing more on maintenance trends than fleet readiness metrics, warning that fleet readiness reports could be misleading. 

“If we have 10 steps to make coffee and accomplish nine, that’s 90 percent,” Perna said. “But are we drinking coffee? The obvious answer is no.”

Perna urged National Guard leaders to do what he is challenging his own leaders to do.

“We have to see ourselves, look at things differently and challenge the status quo.”

As the Army Materiel Command builds breadth and depth into the global supply chain, Perna asked for the National Guard leaders’ help as the organization is moving 1.2 million pieces of equipment to better equip units. 

Perna acknowledged that the shortage of equipment on hand is something the field is experiencing. He noted that by shifting 800,000 pieces of equipment, all units across the total Army would be better than 90 percent equipped within the next two years. 

When called to do so, Perna urged leaders to send their best equipment, keeping in mind the impact to the Army at large. The lateral transfers, he said, would mitigate equipment on hand shortages across the force. 

When it comes to divesting, Perna also encouraged leaders not to hang on to equipment they don’t need.

“We’re going to aggressively work this,” Perna said. “Don’t hold on to your excess – it’s not for ‘just in case.’ Think of what’s best for the whole Army.”

Other senior army leaders also addressed conference attendees, including Chief of the National Guard Bureau Air Force Gen. Joseph Lengyel, Forces Command Commanding General Gen. Robert Abrams, and Army National Guard Director Lt. Gen. Timothy Kadavy.

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Air National Guard civilian firefighters, assigned to the Vermont Air National Guard Fire Department, pose in front of the fire truck that was the first on scene, South Burlington, VT, June 4, 2025. These firefighters provided the first fire truck on scene to a local fire.
Vermont Air Guard First on Scene of South Burlington Fire
By Airman Raymond LaChance, | June 4, 2025
SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. – Doireann Chesbrough, a civilian firefighter for the Vermont Air National Guard Fire Department, was sitting next to the radio in the dayroom of the station as the sun began to set over the Green...

Paratroopers from the Colorado National Guard and the Jordanian Armed Forces stand together before the first joint Colorado-Jordan airborne Friendship Jump, Watkins, Colorado, April 23, 2025. Members parachuted from a CH-47 Chinook as part of an event to strengthen interoperability and deepen the partnership between the two forces.
Airborne Operation Strengthens Colorado Guard, Jordan Partnership
By Senior Airman Melissa Escobar-Pereira, | June 4, 2025
CENTENNIAL, Colo. – In a display of cooperation and capability, Soldiers from the Colorado Army National Guard and the Jordanian Armed Forces recently conducted a joint airborne operation in Watkins, Colorado.The April 23...

Army Guard Soldiers assigned to Regional Command-East of the NATO-led Kosovo Force mission, also known as KFOR, host a multinational non-commissioned officer academy, referred to as the Jungleer Academy, at Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo, May 8, 2025. 11 Sergeants Major from seven countries shared their experience with the soldiers, and many nations showcased their weapons, gear, vehicles and took a flight or hoisted in the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter.
Army Guard Soldiers in Kosovo Host Inaugural Event for Non-Commissioned Officers
By Sgt. Cheryl Madolev, | June 4, 2025
CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo – National Guard Soldiers assigned to Regional Command-East of the NATO-led Kosovo Force mission recently hosted an inaugural multinational event for non-commissioned officers (NCOs), focusing on...