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 | Aug. 24, 2023

Air Guard Leaders Emphasize Priorities at NGAUS Conference

By Master Sgt. David Eichaker, Air National Guard

RENO, Nev. - More than 1,800 Air and Army National Guard members heard from senior leaders about Guard priorities and contributions to the National Defense Strategy during the National Guard Association of the United States’ 145th General Conference and Exhibition Aug. 18-21.

Top Guard officials discussed the Air National Guard and what airpower brings to the joint fight.

“All of us together deliver combat airpower for America, and it is about combat air power,” said Lt. Gen. Michael Loh, director, Air National Guard. “It is about deterring, defeating, dominating (and) doing what we need to do for our joint force to get out there and compete and deter.”

The National Defense Strategy directs the military to sustain, strengthen and reinforce robust deterrence in the face of aggression while mitigating and protecting against threats from adversaries and violent extremist organizations. With more than 108,000 Air National Guard members, the ANG’s top general outlined how the organization contributes to that concept.

“Win the first fight of the joint warfighting concept — the fight to compete and deter,” said Loh. “It’s about projecting air power, defending our homeland, and it’s about projecting our power overseas — not in a rotational model, but as a collective air power.”

During a breakout session, the top Air Force official, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall III, discussed how the Guard contributes to the NDS.

“Your value is not going to be diminished by any of the things I’ve been talking about — it’s going to go up,” Kendall said. “We need a deep set of capabilities that can be brought to bear very quickly.”

Kendall said change is necessary.

“We have to accelerate change. … We’re going to have to let go of the old things that we’ve had that are increasingly obsolete,” he said. “We try in the Air Force very hard to protect the units that we have … so when we look at what to do, we modernize, we change the mix of the force — we are trying to retain the same kind of capabilities that we have already where we can.”

“All of you … are enormously valuable to us and we want you there doing your job to be part of our overall one team,” he said.

Other priorities laid out included recapitalizing the force, transitioning to new missions, managing over 25 of the 90 wings in transition, getting out of legacy platforms, and continuing to deliver air superiority.

“How do we make sure that when we said to the great state of Ohio that your C-130s are no longer valid and here’s a cyber mission — but not just any cyber mission— here’s the highest end of that cyber mission,” said Loh. “How are we going to operationalize the cyber mission in the great state of Ohio to deliver air superiority — that’s what we’re doing.

“Those are the modernization efforts that we’re going through across the entirety of our National Guard that will get us both the capability and the capacity to fight and win our nation’s wars — and deliver airpower anytime, anywhere,” he said.

In closing, the ANG director recapped the ANG’s three priorities.

“Recapitalize, innovate, engage. Continue to do those three things, and we’ll build the strongest Air Force we can,” said Loh.
 

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Air Force HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter assigned to the 129th Rescue Squadron, California Air National Guard deploys countermeasure flares as a U.S. Air Force F-15D Eagle from the 144th Fighter Wing, California Air National Guard, maneuvers overhead during a joint over-water test flight, Aug. 20, 2025.
Guard, Reserve and Navy Test Helicopter Countermeasures Over Water
By Senior Airman Serena Smith, | Aug. 26, 2025
MOFFETT AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Calif. — The 129th Rescue Wing, based at Moffett Air National Guard Base in Mountain View, California; the 144th Fighter Wing, based at Fresno Air National Guard Base, California; and the Air...

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Pisaneschi, a rescue special missions aviator assigned to the 106th Rescue Wing, New York Air National Guard, waits to take off in a U.S. Air Force HH60W Jolly Green II search and rescue helicopter, during exercise Resolute Force Pacific (REFORPAC) 2025 at Misawa Air Base, Japan, July 16, 2025. The 106th Rescue Wing serves as a real-world rescue asset in support of REFORPAC, a first-in-a-generation Department-Level Exercise involving more than 400 joint and coalition aircraft and more than 12,000 members at more than 50 locations across 3,000 miles.
Air National Guard Provides Rescue Assets During Historic Pacific Exercise
By Tech. Sgt. Sean Madden, | Aug. 12, 2025
MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan – U.S. Air National Guard rescue units from Alaska, California and New York deployed about 150 Airmen with five aircraft recently to provide real-world rescue capability in support of exercise Resolute...

Personnel from the U.S. Navy of Naval Air Station Sigonella and 161st Arizona Air Refueling Wing Medical Group, stand together for a group photo on Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily, July. 15, 2025. Airmen worked side-by-side with U.S. Navy medical personnel across a range of clinical and administrative settings. The rotation enabled participants to complete core Air Force Specialty Code (AFSC) training tasks while gaining practical exposure to inpatient care environments.
Arizona Air Guard’s 161st Medical Group Completes Training in Italy
By Staff Sgt. Shane Sanders, | Aug. 4, 2025
SIGONELLA, Italy - More than 40 members of the 161st Medical Group, Arizona Air National Guard, completed a two-week Medical Facility Annual Training, or MFAT, rotation at Naval Air Station Sigonella in July, advancing...