Guard News - The National Guard

MN Army Guard unit 1st to complete NTC rotation amid COVID
August 24, 2020 — FORT IRWIN, Calif. - The Minnesota Army National Guard’s 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division, was the first unit to complete rotational training at the Army’s National Training... MORE

Soldiers with the Minnesota National Guard’s 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team prepare for the field during a rotation at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California, July 15, 2020. The exercise, directed by U.S. Army Forces Command, serves as the final major training event ahead of the brigade’s 2021 deployment to the Middle East.

Former TAGs fill top 3 National Guard positions
August 21, 2020 — ARLINGTON, Va. – For the first time since 1954, three former adjutants general are serving in the National Guard’s top three positions.Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson was sworn in as chief of the National... MORE

In a photo dated Dec. 7, 2014, then Army Maj. Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson, formerly the adjutant general of the Oregon National Guard, addresses Airmen with the 142nd Fighter Wing during a demobilization ceremony at Portland Air National Guard Base, Oregon. Hokanson was promoted to general and sworn in as the 29th chief of the National Guard Bureau Aug. 3, 2020. He is joined by two other former adjutants general – Army Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen, director of the Army National Guard, and Air Force Lt. Gen. Michael Loh, director of the Air National Guard – who are all serving in the National Guard’s top three positions.

Idaho National Guard hoists injured man to safety
August 21, 2020 — BOISE, Idaho – The Idaho Army National Guard Aviation Group helped rescue an injured man on a mountainside Aug. 20, hoisting him to safety. An Idaho Guard UH-72 Lakota helicopter and aircrew departed... MORE

The Idaho Army National Guard Aviation Group helped rescue an injured man on a mountainside about 20 miles east of Idaho City Aug. 20, 2020, hoisting him to safety in a UH-72 Lakota helicopter. The 55-year-old man spent the night on the side of a mountain after rolling his all-terrain vehicle down a steep embankment.

Driver training improves readiness for infantry battalion
August 21, 2020 — ARTEMUS, Ky. – Soldiers from India Company, 429th Brigade Sustainment Battalion, the logistical support company for 1st Battalion, 149th Infantry, hosted driver training at Harold L. Disney Training... MORE

Spc. Jesse Fugate, a mechanic assigned to India Company, 429th Brigade Sustainment Battalion, teaches Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 149th Infantry, about preventive maintenance checks and services on a light utility truck at Harold L. Disney Training Center, Artemus, Ky., July 30, 2020.

Washington Guard continues cybersecurity election support
August 20, 2020 — CAMP MURRAY, Wash. – Casting a ballot is more secure after a long-standing partnership between Washington’s secretary of state and the Washington National Guard.“This is the same type of support we... MORE

A Washington National Guard member types on a computer. Cybersecurity professionals from the Washington National Guard are assisting the secretary of state’s office to ensure that when a vote is cast in the state, it is counted correctly and accurately.

2/104th Cavalry conducts demolition, claymore mine training
August 19, 2020 — FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – A good number of Soldiers probably join the Army for the opportunity to blow stuff up.Soldiers from 2nd Squadron, 104th Cavalry Regiment, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team,... MORE

A Pennsylvania National Guard Soldier from 2nd Squadron, 104th Cavalry Regiment, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, uses an initiator to ignite detonation cord during demolition familiarization training Aug. 14, 2020, at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pa.

NY, California, Texas wings compete in load off training
August 19, 2020 — HANCOCK FIELD AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, N.Y. – Weapons crews from Texas and California traveled to the 174th Attack Wing to compete in a weeklong training competition alongside New York Air National... MORE

Weapons crews from Texas and California traveled to the 174th Attack Wing at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in New York for a training competition with New York Air National Guard Airmen Aug. 10-13, 2020.

Tribes, Nevada Guard combine efforts for COVID-19 testing
August 19, 2020 — RENO, Nev. – Nevada Army Guard Spc. Jermaine Longmire usually says “hello” when people drive through a Nevada National Guard-run COVID-19 test site.But this summer he’s also said “How u” and “Behne” –... MORE

Senior Airman Kayla Warner, 152nd Airlift Wing, Nevada Air National Guard, collects COVID-19 test samples at a community-based collection site (CBCS) at the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony in Reno, Nevada, July 24, 2020. The Nevada National Guard CBCS team staffed 27 mobile collection sites across Nevada in June and July, including 10 on tribal land.

124th ASOS ascends new heights during rescue training
August 19, 2020 — PAYETTE LAKE, Idaho – Special warfare tactical air control party Airmen from the 124th Air Support Operations Squadron, 124th Fighter Wing, participated in high angle rescue training Aug. 13 near... MORE

Special warfare tactical air control party Airmen from the 124th Air Support Operations Squadron along with two A-10 Thunderbolt II’s from the 190th Fighter Squadron conduct cliffside search and rescue training with members of the Idaho Mountain Search and Rescue team and the Navy’s Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron Four from North Island Naval Air Station, California, in McCall, Idaho, Aug. 13, 2020.

NY Army Guard Soldiers win NE Best Warrior 3rd straight year
August 19, 2020 — JERICHO, Vt. - For the third time in three years, two New York Army National Guard Soldiers are the best Guard Soldiers in the Northeast. The two Soldiers won in both the junior enlisted and... MORE

New York Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Matthew Ortiz, right, who finished first in the noncommissioned officer division at the Army Guard Northeast Best Warrior Competition at Camp Ethan Allen in Jericho, Vermont, receives his award from Vermont Army National Guard Command Sgt. Maj. Nathan Chipman, Aug. 16, 2020. Ortiz is the third New York Army National Guard NCO in a row to win this award.

Iowa National Guard members clear debris in wake of derecho
August 19, 2020 — CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Iowa National Guard Airmen and Soldiers are assisting with cleanup operations in eastern Iowa this week following a severe windstorm that caused widespread damage. Airmen from the... MORE

Staff Sgt. Jerad Keegan, 185th Air Refueling Wing Civil Engineering Squadron, Iowa Air National Guard, uses a chain saw to clear downed trees in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Aug. 18, 2020. Extremely high winds uprooted trees and caused widespread structural damage and power outages throughout Southeast Iowa.

NY Army Guard aviators modernize with new high-tech aircraft
August 19, 2020 — RONKONKOMA, N.Y. – New York Army National Guard helicopter pilots, crews and Soldiers assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 142nd Aviation Regiment, welcomed the arrival of the first two of 20 new UH-60M... MORE

A new UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter assigned to the New York Army National Guard's 3rd Battalion, 142nd Aviation Regiment, comes in to land at their flight facility in Ronkonkoma, N.Y., Aug. 18, 2020. The UH-60M is the most current version of the Black Hawk and offers more efficient rotor blades, glass cockpit, improved engines, flight controls and aircraft navigation.

Michigan National Guard conducts COVID-19 testing, training
August 18, 2020 — ALLEGAN, Mich. – The Michigan National Guard was in Allegan County Aug. 8 providing free COVID-19 tests to the public and training civilian testing contractors on safe testing protocol.These... MORE

The Michigan National Guard helped the Allegann County Health Department at a free COVID-19 testing event Aug. 8, 2020, by performing the nasal swabs that are part of the tests.

Wisconsin Guard endures desert training, COVID adjustments
August 18, 2020 — MADISON, Wis. – A training cycle at Fort Irwin, California’s National Training Center in the Mojave Desert, is never easy. Factor in the COVID-19 pandemic and the difficulty increases... MORE

Members of the Wisconsin Army National Guard’s 1158th Transportation Company at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin, Calif., in early August 2020. The Soldiers supported the Minnesota Army National Guard’s 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, part of the 34th Division.

NY Guard's 109th firefighters ready for fast-water rescues
August 18, 2020 — SCOTIA, N.Y. – New York Air National Guard firefighters assigned to the 109th Airlift Wing are ready at a moment’s notice to respond to an aircraft incident or help out a local fire department.But the... MORE

Airmen from the 109th Airlift Wing Fire Department are part of the Flood Incident Response Strike Team, Task Force 2, New York.

Iowa National Guard helps with derecho cleanup
August 18, 2020 — CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Nearly 200 Soldiers and Airmen have been mobilized to eastern Iowa to help emergency management crews clear and remove debris from the devastating Aug. 10 derecho. Since beginning... MORE

Iowa National Guard Soldiers with the 831st Engineer Company
worked Aug. 15-16, 2020, to clear downed trees to reach a substation that supplies power to parts of Cedar Rapids. An Aug. 10 derecho caused widespread damage in the area.

New Hampshire National Guard helps state fight COVID-19
August 17, 2020 — CONCORD, N.H. – At the Department of Health and Human Services in Concord, employees and members of the New Hampshire National Guard have been packing and tracking tens of thousands of COVID-19... MORE

New Hampshire National Guard Spc. David Ricard of the 160th Engineer Detachment, shown Aug. 5, 2020, and other Guard members help the Department of Health and Human Services in Concord pack thousands of COVID-19 testing kits for the state of New Hampshire each day.

Virginia National Guard Soldier marks cyber 1st
August 17, 2020 — FAIRFAX, Va. – Maj. Waldon W. Jue became the first Army National Guard Soldier to direct commission as a cyber operations officer July 30.Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the adjutant general of... MORE

Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the adjutant general of Virginia, administers the oath of office to newly promoted Maj. Waldon W. Jue July 30, 2020, in Fairfax, Virginia. Jue is the first Army National Guard Soldier to direct commission as a cyber operations officer.

Fort Indiantown Gap hosts officer candidate field exercise
August 17, 2020 — FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – Officer candidates conducted their final Field Leadership Exercise (FLX) as they worked toward commissioning as officers in the Army National Guard Aug. 4-6.The candidates... MORE

Candidates from Officer Candidate School stand outside the church at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pa., training grounds during their Field Leadership Exercise (FLX) Aug. 6. Candidates were securing the church as part of their final exercise during the FLX.

Airmen from the 124th FW simulate evacuation in rural Idaho
August 17, 2020 — HORSESHOE BEND, Idaho – Airmen from the 124th Fighter Wing partnered with the U.S. Navy Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron Four from North Island Naval Air Station, California, to complete non-combatant... MORE

Idaho Air National Guard special warfare tactical air control party Airmen from the 124th Air Support Operations Squadron conduct non-combatant evacuation operation training in Horseshoe Bend, Idaho, Aug. 12, 2020, with members of the Navy’s Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron Four from North Island Naval Air Station, California. The joint training utilized HSC-4’s MH-60S Seahawk helicopters.

Alaska Air National Guard Rescues Five Distressed Boaters

W.Va. Guard Deploys Troops in Aftermath of Deadly Flooding

Colorado Army Guard’s Drone Warfare Cell Reshapes Warfighting

Alaska National Guard Leads Exercise ORCA 2025

National Guard Supports Army’s 250th Birthday Celebration