Guard News - The National Guard

185th ARW exercise held despite COVID-19, Hurricane Sally
September 16, 2020 — SIOUX CITY, Iowa – The Iowa Air National Guard’s 185th Air Refueling Wing is conducting a mobility exercise this week after making a last-minute decision to move the event away from the Gulf Coast... MORE

Iowa Air National Guard members from the 185th Air Refueling Wing board a U.S. Air Force C-130 Hercules from the Illinois Air National Guard’s 182nd Airlift Wing in Sioux City, Iowa, Sept. 14, 2020, for a mobility training exercise.

Eastern Air Defense adjusts to COVID-19 to continue mission
September 11, 2020 — ROME, N.Y. – The COVID-19 pandemic has forced military units large and small to find creative ways to maintain a healthy force while still defending the nation.One of these organizations is the 224th... MORE

New York National Guard Airmen training on the operations floor at the Eastern Air Defense Sector in Rome, N.Y., in late August. To provide mission assurance during the COVID-19 pandemic, EADS redesigned the operations floor to enable social distancing during real-world operations and training missions.

Soldier honors his sister's memory on 9/11
September 10, 2020 — UNDISCLOSED LOCATION – After 32 years of service, New York National Guard Lt. Col. Michael Rodriguez says he still puts on his military uniform to honor his sister, who was killed in the 9/11 attacks... MORE

New York National Guard Lt. Col. Michael Rodriguez during his deployment to Iraq in 2003-2004. His older sister, Lisa, was killed in the World Trade Center attacks on 9/11. She worked on the 89th floor of the South Tower.

Four Rainbow Division Soldiers recall 9/11 response
September 9, 2020 — UNDISCLOSED LOCATION – Nineteen years after the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil, four New York Army National Guard Soldiers recalled their experiences responding in New York on 9/11.The... MORE

Soldiers, firefighters and policemen stand in front of ground zero in New York praying on Sept. 11, 2001, after terrorists crashed four commercial airliners into the World Trade Center towers, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field. A total of 2,996 people died, including the 19 terrorists.

NGB chief touts Soldiers and Airmen at virtual Guard event
September 4, 2020 — ARLINGTON, Va. – In a year filled with unprecedented challenges, the National Guard’s mission is as relevant as ever, the chief of the National Guard Bureau told virtual attendees at the 142nd General... MORE

Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard Bureau, tells virtual attendees at the 142nd General Conference of the National Guard Association of the United States, Aug. 29, 2020, how four Airmen from the District of Columbia Air National Guard’s 113th Wing saved a jogger's life while on duty during civil disturbances in June. The Airmen, in still image on right, are Chief Master Sgt. Mark Nicholas, Tech. Sgt. Emmanuel Morales, Staff Sgt. Jacen Vaughan and Maj. Telisha Johnson.

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.

42nd Infantry Division marks 103 years of service
August 13, 2020 — UNDISCLOSED LOCATION – The 42nd Infantry Division was formed in August 1917, supposedly earning its nickname, "the Rainbow Division," after Col. Douglas MacArthur, then chief of staff, said the... MORE

New York Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the 42nd Infantry Division conduct a casing of the Colors Ceremony on Fort Drum, Texas, Feb. 29, 2020. The ceremony signals the 42nd's readiness to deploy in support of the United States Army Central Command.

NY National Guard assists in Isaias storm response
August 12, 2020 — CARMEL, N.Y. – New York National Guard Soldiers and Airmen delivered water, ice and dry ice to Putnam County residents and removed debris in Queens Aug. 6-8 in the aftermath of Tropical Storm... MORE

New York National Guard Soldiers and Airmen clear downed trees near the intersection of the Queens Midtown Expressway and 71st Street in Maspeth Aug. 8, 2020. New York National Guard Soldiers and Airmen responded in the Queens area and Putnam County after Hurricane Isaias moved through the region Aug. 5, 2020.

NY National Guard distributes over 52 million meals in New York City
August 6, 2020 — NEW YORK – New York National Guard troops have distributed more than 52 million meals to New York City residents since picking up that mission on March 21.That’s about half of the 100 million meals... MORE

Sgt. Thalia Santos from Yonkers, N.Y., left, and Spc. Kirt Joseph from Brentwood, N.Y., members of the New York Army National Guard, load boxed, packaged food, into a vehicle at a food distribution site in the Bronx, New York Aug. 5, 2020.

NY National Guard trains to be 'eye in sky' for 27th Brigade
August 6, 2020 — FORT DRUM, New York – When the commander of the New York Army National Guard's 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team needs intelligence on the enemy, he turns to the Unmanned Aerial System platoon of... MORE

New York Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to Delta Company, 152nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, launch a RQ-7B Shadow Unmanned Aerial Vehicle at Fort Drum, New York, July 28, 2020. Equipped with advanced sensors, the Shadow is used to relay communications, conduct surveillance and target acquisition.

NYNG aviation Soldiers hone land navigation skills
August 4, 2020 — GUILDERLAND, NY. – New York Army National Guard Soldiers of the 3rd Battalion, 142nd Aviation, prefer to fly when they go someplace, but on July 30, they conducted land navigation training.“Being... MORE

New York Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to 3rd Battalion, 142nd Aviation Regiment, find their way during land navigation training as part of their annual training at the Guilderland Range in Guilderland, New York, July 29, 2020.

NY Army Guard adapts Best Warrior Competition to COVID-19
July 30, 2020 — CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, N.Y. – When they weren't running, they wore masks and temperatures were being taken constantly, and anything they touched was cleaned and disinfected.But nine New York Army... MORE

New York Army National Guard Cpl. Troy Perez, an infantryman assigned to Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry Regiment, and the winner of the enlisted category in the state Best Warrior competition, performs the sprint, drag and carry portion of the Army Combat Fitness Test at Camp Smith Training Site, N.Y., July 25, 2020.

NY National Guard combat engineers practice explosive skills
July 23, 2020 — FORT DRUM, New York – Fresh from duty assisting New York in tackling COVID-19, New York Army National Guard combat engineers hit the ranges to practice clearing the battlefield of any other obstacles... MORE

New York Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to Bravo Company, 152 Brigade Engineer Battalion conduct demolition training at Fort Drum, NY, Jul. 15.

NY aircrews take WVNG troops to new heights for jump training
July 20, 2020 — CAMP DAWSON, West Virginia – Two New York Army National Guard CH-47F Chinook helicopters crewed by nine Soldiers took 15 West Virginia Army National Guard Special Forces members to new heights to... MORE

Paratroopers from Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group, conduct military free-fall exercise out of a New York National Guard Chinook helicopter. Pilots from Detachment 1, Bravo Company, 3rd Battalion, 126th Regiment, supported this operation from Camp Dawson, West Virginia, July 11, 2020.

NY Guard hosts Israeli counterparts to discuss COVID response
July 17, 2020 — NEW YORK – An officer from Israel’s Home Front Command, the branch of Israel’s military that handles natural disasters and emergencies, got a firsthand look at how the New York National Guard... MORE

Lt. Col. Hai Rekah of the Israel Defense Forces Home Front Command, with members of the New York National Guard, observes intake procedures for motorists at the drive-thru test site at Glen Island Park in New Rochelle, N.Y., July 15, 2020. Rekah was in New York to meet with New York National Guard leaders to see parts of New York’s response to COVID-19, as Israel’s Homefront Command responds to the pandemic.

NY Guard's 27th Infantry Brigade begins summer training
July 16, 2020 — SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Soldiers of the New York Army National Guard’s 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team began their annual training season this week at their home armories, Fort Devens in Massachusetts,... MORE

New York Army National Guard Spc. Guadalupe Lopez, B Company, 1st Battalion 69th Infantry, M249 SAW gunner, practices taking out enemy targets during training at the 106th Rescue Wing, F.S. Gabreski Air National Guard Base in Westhampton Beach, N.Y., Jan. 11, 2020. Soldiers of the 69th Infantry conducted ground combat-focused field exercises at the 106th RQW as part of their monthly training.

NY National Guard explores Whiteface Mountain for training
July 15, 2020 — LAKE PLACID, N.Y. – New York Army National Guard Soldiers spent July 6 with forest rangers and conservation officials flying over Whiteface Mountain scouting for places to train to simulate conditions... MORE

Aviators assigned to the New York Army National Guard's Army Aviation Support Facility #3, from Latham, N.Y., along with forest rangers and environmental conservation officers, scout locations for landing zones around Whiteface Mountain near Lake Placid, N.Y., July 6, 2020. The pilots are looking at using the rocky outcrops of the mountain to train with UH-60 Black Hawks helicopters.

NY Army National Guard Soldier crams a career into one year
July 13, 2020 — CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, N.Y. – Within less than a year, Spc. Olivia Mannetti became a Soldier, helped New York State in the fight against COVID-19, and will now be deploying to the Middle East... MORE

New York Army National Guard Spc. Olivia Mannetti, a member of the 466th Medical Company, Area Support, takes a break while training for deployment to the Middle East at Camp Smith Training Site near Peekskill, N.Y., June 12, 2020. In the last year Mannetti, a 22-year old medic, has joined the Army National Guard and completed training, mobilized as part of the New York National Guard's COVID-19, and is now getting ready to deploy with her unit.

NY National Guard Soldier's WWI story told in digital comic
July 2, 2020 — LATHAM, N.Y. – Sgt. Henry Johnson, the Albany resident whose World War I service in the New York National Guard’s 369th Infantry Regiment was recognized with the Medal of Honor almost a century later,... MORE

Sgt. Henry Johnson, a New York National Guard Soldier who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions during World War I, attacks a German Soldier in these panels from a digital graphic novel about Johnson released by the Association of the United States Army. Johnson, a railroad porter in Albany, N.Y., was a member of the New York National Guard's 369th Infantry.

Multiple services come together under dual-status command
June 22, 2020 — NEW YORK – When Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo decided New York City needed federal troops to help cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, Maj. Gen. Ray Shields, the adjutant general of New York, thought the New York... MORE

U.S. Army Soldiers, assigned to Joint Task Force New York, are thanked by medical staff during a farewell ceremony at Elmhurst Medical Center in Brooklyn June 3, 2020.

Guard, Reserve and Navy Test Helicopter Countermeasures Over Water

Georgia Guard Trains to Bolster Domestic Response Capabilities

Nordhaus, Raines: National Guard Delivers Outsized Impact at Home, Abroad

Specialized Oregon Guard Unit Conducts Training at Camp Rilea

Caine: When you Mobilize the Guard, you Mobilize the Nation