Guard News - The National Guard

Air Force Lt. Gen. Steven Nordhaus Confirmed as NGB Chief
September 25, 2024 — WASHINGTON – The Senate Tuesday confirmed Air Force Lt. Gen. Steven Nordhaus as the 30th chief of the National Guard Bureau. Nordhaus, who will also be a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will be... MORE

U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Steven S. Nordhaus, commander, Continental U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command Region – 1st Air Force (U.S. Air Forces Northern and U.S. Air Forces Space) testifies before the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services at a confirmation hearing for his appointment as chief of the National Guard Bureau at the Hart Senate Office Building, District of Columbia, Sep. 12, 2024.

Air National Guard Acting Director Returns to Fly Eagle
September 24, 2024 — KINGSLEY FIELD, Ore. - The 173rd Fighter Wing, home of the F-15C Eagle training school, produces new pilots as part of its mission, but it is also home to experienced pilots who require... MORE

U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Duke Pirak, acting director, Air National Guard, climbs into the cockpit of the F-15D Eagle for his first flight in the Eagle in five years at Kingsley Field in Klamath Falls, Oregon, Sept.16, 2024. The 173rd Fighter Wing at Kingsley Field provides initial and requalification training.

Alaska Air National Guard Rescues 2 Plane Crash Victims
September 23, 2024 — JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -Alaska Air National Guard 176th Wing members conducted two missions in one helicopter sortie Sept. 15, rescuing two general aviation pilots at two crash sites... MORE

Alaska Air National 210th Rescue Squadron Guardsmen train in HH-60G Pave Hawk operations Sept. 6, 2024, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The HH-60 is the Department of Defense's only dedicated rotary-wing combat search and rescue platform.

Tennessee Guard Intelligence Squadron Conducts Field Exercise
September 19, 2024 — TULLAHOMA, Tenn. - Tennessee Air National Guard Airmen of the 247th Intelligence Squadron orchestrated and executed Unkind Treachery, a field environment readiness exercise, Sept. 4-8.The exercise... MORE

U.S. Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Theodore Salyers, a member of the 247th Intelligence Squadron, walks in the woods while evading SERE instructors at the Volunteer Training Site Tullahoma, Tennessee , Sept. 4-8, 2024. Airmen from the 247th IS received hands-on Readiness Airmen Training.

Alabama Guard Hosts All Guard Marksmanship Team Tryouts
September 18, 2024 — ANNISTON, Ala. – Eighteen National Guardsmen from across the country competed in the All Guard Marksmanship Team tryouts hosted by the Alabama National Guard’s Lethality Group at Fort McClellan... MORE

The Alabama National Guard's Lethality Group poses for a picture Sept. 8, 2024, at Clarke Range after hosting the All Guard Marksmanship Team tryouts. The Guardsmen who make the team will be trained at the National Guard Marksmanship Training Center in Little Rock, Arkansas. (Photo has been cropped and color-corrected to enhance detail.)

Pennsylvania Guard Support Squadron Sharpens Combat Readiness
September 18, 2024 — CAMP DAWSON, W.Va. - The 171st Force Support Squadron and Airmen from the 171st commander’s support staff recently completed intensive expeditionary force support training at Camp Dawson, enhancing... MORE

Guardsmen assigned to the 171st Air Refueling Wing Force Support Squadron, Pennsylvania Air National Guard, stand for a group photo during expeditionary force support training Aug. 8, 2024, at Camp Dawson, West Virginia. The training is part of the squadron’s commitment to maintaining readiness.

Alaska National Guard Rescues 4 Hunters in Same-day Missions
September 18, 2024 — JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska - The Alaska National Guard rescued four hunters Sept. 16 in two separate missions at the request of the Alaska State Troopers and Alaska Rescue Coordination... MORE

An Alaska Army National Guard UH-60L Black Hawk helicopter based in Bethel, Alaska, lands in a flooded area to rescue two stranded hunters along the rapidly rising Gagaryah River about 200 miles from Bethel Sept. 16, 2024. The AKARNG received a request from the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center after the hunters used a satellite communications device to call the Alaska State Troopers for assistance.

Minnesota Guard Provides Health Care on Indian Reservation
September 17, 2024 — FORT BELKNAP INDIAN RESERVATION, Mont. - Minnesota Air National Guard’s 148th Fighter Wing members participated in an Innovative Readiness Training mission at the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation,... MORE

U.S. Air Force Capt. Kaitlyn Brenner, a physician assistant assigned to the 148th Fighter Wing, Minnesota Air National Guard, cares for a patient during an Innovative Readiness Training mission at Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, Montana, Aug. 9, 2024.

35th Infantry Marks 80th Anniversary of Liberation of Orleans
September 17, 2024 — ORLEANS, France - In the summer of 1944, the 137th Infantry Regiment of the 35th Infantry Division began its journey from the Mortain sector, making its way toward Le Mans and south to Orleans.The... MORE

Maj. Gen. John Rueger, 35th Infantry Division commander, Command Sgt. Maj. Rob Istas, and Aide-de Camp Maj. Dustin Dice with a resident in Orleans, France, Aug. 16, 2024, the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Orleans. The woman is holding a photo of herself as an 8-year-old girl, posing with the 35th Infantry Division Soldiers who liberated her city on Aug. 16, 1944.

Ohio Airmen Provide Free Readiness Training Health Care
September 13, 2024 — XENIA, Ohio - Medically trained Airmen from the Ohio National Guard’s 180th Fighter Wing helped provide free health care to more than 1,000 community members Aug. 11-12 as part of the Department of... MORE

U.S. Airman 1st Class Isabella D’Alessandro, an aerospace medical service Airman assigned to the Ohio National Guard’s 180th Fighter Wing, helps a family through the registration process before they enter the Greene County Career Center for Guard Care in Xenia, Ohio, Aug. 11, 2024. Guard members helped provide free health care as part of the Department of Defense Innovative Readiness Training program.

New York Air Guard Ends Greenland Science Support Season
September 12, 2024 — STRATTON AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, N.Y. - The New York Air National Guard’s 109th Airlift Wing wrapped up its 2024 support for National Science Foundation research in Greenland at the end of... MORE

An LC-130 Hercules aircraft from the 109th Airlift Wing sits at Summit Station, Greenland, May 9, 2024. Summit Station is ideal for studying long-range intercontinental transport and its effects on the ice sheet surface.

Maryland Airmen Test Cyber Skills in Virginia Exercise
September 12, 2024 — VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - Maryland Air National Guard Airmen participated in Cyber Fortress 3.0, a training exercise that tested the local, state and federal response to potential cyberattacks against... MORE

Maryland Air National Guard Airmen pose for a group photo during the Cyber Fortress 3.0 exercise at Virginia Army National Guard’s State Military Reservation July 20, 2024. The training exercise tested the local, state and federal response to potential cyber attacks against critical infrastructure.

Alaska Guard Joins Polar Dagger Special Ops Exercise
September 11, 2024 — PETERSON SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo. – The Alaska Army National Guard participated in Operation Polar Dagger Aug. 15-25, helping Special Operations Command North rapidly deploy and operate in the... MORE

An Alaska Army National Guard CH-47 Chinook lands for the first time on Little Diomede, Alaska, with Big Diomede, Russia, visible in the background. The unit supported Operation Polar Dagger, a joint special operations mission across the Alaskan Arctic.

Alabama Air Guard Showcases Communications Capabilities
September 11, 2024 — MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The 226th Combat Communications Group, Alabama Air National Guard, conducted a large-scale contested environment exercise Sept. 5-8. Copperhead Beacon 2024 is an expeditionary... MORE

U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Chavez Rollins, an RF transmission specialist and U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Christopher Wightman, a cyber transportation specialist, both with the 232nd Combat Communications Squadron, connect an Airbus to a military satellite during a field exercise at a training facility in Central Alabama, Sept. 7, 2024.

Oregon Guard Supports Wildland Firefighting Across State
September 11, 2024 — SALEM, Ore. - For nearly 60 days, the Oregon National Guard has supported wildland firefighting crews in multiple capacities across the state. Whether assisting with medical evacuation, water buckets... MORE

Brig. Gen. Alan R. Gronewold, the adjutant general of Oregon, presents a challenge coin to Spc. Rodney Chamberlain, an Oregon Army National Guard hand crew member, for exceptional performance fighting the Telephone Fire, Aug. 6, 2024, at the Harney County Fairgrounds fire camp.

Tennessee Guard Rescues Hiker in Great Smoky Mountains Park
September 10, 2024 — LOUISVILLE, Tenn. – A Tennessee Army National Guard flight crew based at Joint Base McGhee-Tyson rescued an injured hiker in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park early Sept. 10.Shortly after 3 a.m... MORE

A Black Hawk from the 1-230th Assault Helicopter Battalion of the Tennessee National Guard hovers while medics prepare to descend during the SAREX 23 exercise in Pickett State Park near Jamestown, Tenn., Jan. 7, 2023. The group worked on tracking, locating and evacuating missing people as part of a training exercise with other military and civilian agencies.

Alaska Air Guard Rescues Plane Crash Victims, Hikers, Hunter
September 9, 2024 — JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska - Alaska Air National Guard 176th Wing members rescued eight distressed residents in five missions over the Labor Day Weekend.Two of the missions required 212th... MORE

Alaska Air National Guard Maj. Dan Warren, right, 212th Rescue Squadron combat rescue officer, and Master Sgt. Harry Bromley, 212th RQS pararescueman, evacuate an injured airplane pilot Aug. 30, 2024, about 50 miles southwest of Tok to a 210th Rescue Squadron HH-60G Pave Hawk. Warren and Bromley jumped from a 211th Rescue Squadron HC-130J Combat King II to reach the injured pilot.

Pennsylvania Air National Guard Supports Antarctic Research
September 6, 2024 — CORAOPOLIS, Pa. - Four firefighters from the 171st Air Refueling Wing recently returned from Operation Deep Freeze, a longstanding mission supporting the National Science Foundation's McMurdo Research... MORE

Pennsylvania Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Robbie Gregor from the 171st Air Refueling Wing gently encourages an emperor penguin to leave an active runway while supporting Operation Deep Freeze at the National Science Foundation's McMurdo Research Center, Antarctica, in January 2024. Operation Deep Freeze involves logistical support for scientific research.

Louisiana Guard’s Cavalry Squadron Hosts Annual Spur Ride
September 5, 2024 — PINEVILLE, La. - Twenty-nine Soldiers from the Louisiana National Guard’s 2nd Squadron, 108th Cavalry Regiment, 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, competed in the unit’s annual spur ride at Camp... MORE

Soldiers with the Louisiana Army National Guard’s 2nd Squadron, 108th Cavalry Regiment, 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, conduct standard warrior tasks, such as weapons assembly and disassembly and hand and arm signals, during the unit’s annual spur ride at Camp Minden, Louisiana, Aug. 24, 2024.

Wisconsin Guard Civil Support Team Hones Readiness
September 4, 2024 — MADISON, Wis. - The Wisconsin National Guard’s 54th Civil Support Team faced a realistic training scenario Aug. 28, responding to the discovery of a makeshift laboratory in a home renovation company... MORE

Survey team members with the Wisconsin National Guard’s 54th Civil Support Team decontaminate during an annual exercise Aug. 28, 2024, at a warehouse in Madison, Wis. The 54th CST is a specialized unit of full-time Army and Air National Guard members trained to respond to chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear emergencies.

Guard Members Bring Unique Capabilities to Cybersecurity

NORAD and USNORTHCOM Leaders Visit Western Air Defense Sector

California Army Guard Delivers Supplies to Wilderness Site

NGB Leaders Visit ’Top-notch’ Guardsmen in New Hampshire

Massachusetts Guard Civil Support Team Put to the Test