Guard News - The National Guard

121st Pilots, Aircrew Participate in Water Survival Training
May 8, 2023 — REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio - Pilots and aircrew with the 121st Air Refueling Wing participated in Survival Evasion Resistance and Escape water survival training May 7.Every three years, pilots and aircrew go... MORE

U.S. Air Force Maj. Travis Harrison with the 166th Air Refueling Squadron, 121st Air Refueling Wing, participated in Survival Evasion Resistance and Escape water survival training in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, May 7, 2023.

Iowa, Minnesota Guardsmen Win Regional Best Warrior Title
May 8, 2023 — NEWTON FALLS, OHIO – Soldiers from across the Midwest and from Hungary and the Republic of Serbia tested their mental and physical fortitude in the five-day regional Best Warrior Competition at Camp... MORE

Competitors begin the 12-mile ruck march at the Region IV Army National Guard Best Warrior Competition at Camp James A. Garfield Joint Military Training Center, Newton Falls, Ohio, May 7, 2023. Guard members from Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio and Illinois competed in land navigation, marksmanship, weapons skills, medical and radio skills and an appearance board, among other events.

Air Guard-Army Team Funded for Maintenance Innovation
May 8, 2023 — MIDDLE RIVER, Md. – Airmen from three Air National Guard Wings and a U.S. Army civilian from the U.S. Special Operations Command received $1.8 million from the U.S. Air Force to develop software to... MORE

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. John Rubin, 127th Wing, Michigan Air National Guard; U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Lamar Porter, 175th Mission Support Group, Maryland Air National Guard; David Rolen, a U.S. Army civilian from the U.S. Special Operations Command; U.S. Air Force Tech Sgt. Gerad Pyszka, 127th Wing, Michigan Air National Guard, and U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Jonathan Borth, 129th Wing, California Air National Guard, at the National Guard Memorial at NGAUS Headquarters, Washington, D.C., March 31, 2023. Teams proposed solutions for emerging national defense problems during an Academia- Industry-Military Hybrid Innovations’ event.

Tennessee National Guard Rescues Injured Hunter
May 5, 2023 — KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – A Tennessee Army National Guard medical flight crew performed an emergency air evacuation mission for a hunter in Tennessee’s Cherokee National Forest on May 4.At approximately 1... MORE

A Tennessee Army National Guard Black Hhawk helicopter locates a distressed hunter in the Cherokee National Forest on May 4.

Five ANG Wings Train at Operation Hoodoo Sea
May 4, 2023 — HOMESTEAD AIR RESERVE BASE, Fla. - Five Air National Guard wings are conducting agile combat training during Operation Hoodoo Sea along the southeast U.S. coast. The exercise, led by the Virginia ANG,... MORE

KC-135 boom operators assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing, Ohio Air National Guard, receive instruction on ground refueling and maintenance of a KC-135 Stratotanker during Operation Hoodoo Sea April 28, 2023, at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia.

Virgin Islands Guard Helps Sustain Exercise Vibrant Response
May 3, 2023 — CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. – Indiana is a long way from home base for Soldiers stationed with the 786th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, Virgin Islands National Guard, and 512th Movement Control Teams,... MORE

Soldiers from 786th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, Virgin Islands National Guard, unpack supplies before the start of the Vibrant Response exercise at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, April 24-May 12, 2023.

Ohio Guard Airmen Participate in Counter-Narcotics Training
May 3, 2023 — SWANTON, Ohio - Ohio Air National Guard Airmen assigned to the 180th Fighter Wing Security Forces Squadron took part in counter-narcotics training with the Defiance Police Department in March.Airmen... MORE

Ohio Air National Guard Airmen assigned to the 180th Fighter Wing Security Forces Squadron took part in counter-narcotics training with the Defiance Police Department at the 180th Fighter Wing in Swanton, Ohio, March 4, 2023. Airmen learned about various illegal drugs, how they can be concealed, and methods of detection and identification.

Psychological Health Directors Discuss Readiness Impacts
May 2, 2023 — ARLINGTON, Va. - More than 75 Air National Guard directors of psychological health focused on best practices, trends and changes to psychological health needs for Guard Airmen at a workshop April... MORE

U.S. Air Force Col. Linda A. Rohatsch, director, Air National Guard Medical Services, speaks with Air National Guard directors of psychological health assigned to Air National Guard wings during a DPH training workshop, Arlington, Virginia, April 24, 2023. Participants discussed best practices, trends and changes to ensure the psychological health needs of Guard Airmen and their families are met.

Cal Guard, CAL FIRE Team up for Wildland Firefighting Training
May 2, 2023 — SACRAMENTO, Calif. - California National Guard members participated in annual wildland firefighting training alongside the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection near Ione April 23.The... MORE

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Jacob Sorensen, crew chief, Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 211th General Support Aviation Battalion, Utah National Guard, on an HH-60M Black Hawk helicopter during annual wildland firefighting training in Sacramento, Calif., April 22, 2023. California, Utah, Nevada and Wisconsin National Guard members participated in the training with CAL FIRE.

Air National Guard Leaders Host 2023 Wing Leader Conference
May 2, 2023 — NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. - U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Michael A. Loh, director, Air National Guard, and Chief Master Sgt Maurice L Williams, command chief, Air National Guard, hosted ANG senior leaders and... MORE

From left: U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Michael A. Loh, director, Air National Guard; Staff Sgt. Dhruva Poluru, 107th Attack Wing, New York National Guard; Tech. Sgt. Jessica R. Brazionis, 110th Wing, Michigan National Guard; Senior Master Sgt. Tony K. Hall, 145th Airlift Wing, North Carolina National Guard; Master Sgt. Joshua R. Johnson, 140th Wing, Colorado National Guard; and Command Chief Master Sgt. Maurice L. Williams, command chief, ANG, during an Outstanding Airmen of the Year ceremony at the 2023 Wing Leader Conference in Newport Beach, California, April 26, 2023. The winners were recognized for superior leadership, job performance and overall excellence.

National Guard Excels in U.S. Army Small Arms Championship
May 2, 2023 — FORT BENNING, Ga. - Army and Air National Guardsmen from across the country dominated the 2023 U.S. Army “All Army” Small Arms Championships.The week-long competition in March brought together 260... MORE

Competitors take their shots on Day Five of the 2023 U.S. Army “All Army” Small Arms Championships at Fort Benning, Ga., April 12-18, 2023.. Army and Air National Guardsmen from across the country dominated the competition.

Western Air Defense Sector Conducts Exercise at Oregon Beach
May 1, 2023 — SUNSET BEACH, Ore. - For the past month, Airmen from the Western Air Defense Sector’s 225th Air Defense Squadron have been innovating mobile tactical command and control planning and exercises to inch... MORE

Three members of the Western Air Defense Sector's 225th Air Defense Squadron tested the ability to execute cloud based command and control in a geographically separated location at Camp Rilea, Oregon, April 25, 2023. The WADS air battle managers, 1st Lt. Aaron DeCremer and 2nd Lt. Tyler Shoemaker, conducted a practice scramble of two F-15 fighter aircraft from the Oregon Air National Guard's 142nd Fighter Wing as part of exercise Felix Ace.

Hoist Training Helps Idaho Guardsmen Maintain Readiness
May 1, 2023 — BOISE, Idaho - The training Idaho Army National Guard Citizen-Soldiers complete to be ready to fight and win our nation’s wars also makes them valuable when called upon to support domestic operations... MORE

The Idaho Army National Guard's State Aviation Group and the Boise Fire Department’s Swiftwater/Dive Team conducted joint hoist rescue training April 26 and 28, 2023, at Gowen Field in Boise. The training enables the rescue team to become familiar with an aircraft's hoist while wearing river rescue gear.

Wisconsin Air National Guard Receives F-35s
April 28, 2023 — MADISON, Wis. - The Wisconsin Air National Guard’s 115th Fighter Wing received its first F-35 Lightning II aircraft April 25, making it only the second Air National Guard unit with the advanced... MORE

One of the first F-35A Lightning II aircraft assigned to the Wisconsin Air National Guard's 115th Fighter Wing arrives at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, Wisconsin, Apr. 25, 2023. The 115th FW is the second ANG wing in the nation to receive the fifth-generation fighter.

Massachusetts Guard Partners with Fellow Innovators
April 28, 2023 — WASHINGTON - Imagine being so injured, all you can think about is wanting to die. Under the best conditions, it takes about five minutes for a trained medical professional to establish an intravenous... MORE

Members of Team Asclepius Shield, comprising Soldiers and Airmen from active and Guard units, including U.S. Army Spc. Paul Martin, Massachusetts National Guard, third from left, met with U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. James Parry, assistant surgeon general with Michigan Air National Guard, and Gregg Peterson, chief executive officer with Bexson Biomedical, at the National Guard Memorial Museum in Washington March 31, 2023.

Joint, International Southern Strike 2023 Exercise Wraps Up
April 28, 2023 — GULFPORT, Miss. – U.S. military members across every branch of service trained with international forces on Mississippi’s coast for two weeks during Exercise Southern Strike 2023, hosted by the... MORE

A U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker assigned to the 186th Air Refueling Wing, Mississippi Air National Guard, refuels a F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 4th Fighter Wing April 19, 2023, during Southern Strike 2023. The exercise focused on Agile Combat Employment, which shifts generation of airpower from large, centralized bases to networks of smaller, dispersed locations to complicate adversary planning.

Unknown, but Unforgotten: Revolutionary War Soldiers Honored
April 27, 2023 — CAMDEN, S.C. - The crowd hushed, rose from folding lawn chairs amid the longleaf pine trees, and turned toward the roadway at the sound of the drums.A procession, moving to a steady, rat-tat-tatting... MORE

U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Joseph Reale, second from left, the deputy commanding general for sustainment, 29th Infantry Division, receives the flag that covered a Revolutionary War Soldier’s casket during a burial honors ceremony April 22, 2023, at the Camden Battlefield in South Carolina. Reale, the Maryland Army National Guard’s representative at the ceremony, served with the 175th Infantry Regiment, a unit present at the Battle of Camden in 1780 and of which many of the Americans honored at the ceremony were also members.

Army Guard Sniper Team Wins International Sniper Competition
April 27, 2023 — FORT BENNING, Ga. - It’s official. Soldiers from the U.S. Army National Guard are the best snipers in the world. Four National Guard sniper teams emerged as best contenders in the 2023 International... MORE

Team Leader Sgt. 1st Class Erik Vargas of the New Mexico National Guard, and teammates Staff Sgt. Benjamin Cotten and Staff Sgt. Allen Smith of the Arkansas National Guard during the International Sniper Competition at Fort Benning, Ga., April 8-13, 2023. The team placed first.

ACE is Focus of Southern Strike 2023 Exercise
April 26, 2023 — GULFPORT, Miss. – One of the U.S. Air Force’s newest concepts, Agile Combat Employment, is the focus of the Southern Strike 2023 exercise at the Gulfport Combat Readiness Training Center.Approximately... MORE

A U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft is connected to a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft for aircraft-to-aircraft refueling operations, one of the many agile combat employment strategies being tested at Exercise Southern Strike at Gulfport Combat Readiness Training Center, Gulfport, Mississippi, April 20, 2023. The large-scale, joint and international combat exercise features agile combat employment, counterinsurgency, close air support, non-combatant evacuations, and maritime special operations.

Rhode Island Guard Battles Brushfires from the Air
April 25, 2023 — EAST GREENWICH, R.I. – Aircrews operating two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from 1-126th Aviation Regiment, Rhode Island Army National Guard, provided aerial firefighting support at large-scale brush... MORE

Aircrews operating two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from the 1-126th Aviation Regiment, Rhode Army Island National Guard, provide aerial firefighting support to the large-scale brush fire in Exeter, Rhode Island, April 14, 2023.

Iowa Air Guard’s 132nd Security Forces Squadron Conducts Annual Training in Hawaii

Wisconsin Air Guard’s 115th Fighter Wing Partners With UW Health for Medical Airmen Training

Connecticut Army Guard Partners With Coast Guard to Dislodge Beached Buoy

Minnesota Guard Among First to Field Army’s Newest M250 Automatic Rifle

Soldier’s Medal Awarded to Georgia Guardsman Who Pulled Driver From Burning SUV