Guard News - The National Guard

Communication key to success during Vigilant Guard
March 27, 2009 — CAMP SANTIAGO, P.R. - A natural disaster is an unpleasant thought, but having a contingency plan should it occur is etched into the mindset of the National Guard.This was the idea behind Exercise... MORE

Brig. Gen. Antonio J. Vicens-Gonzalez, the adjutant general for the Puerto Rico National Guard, stands with civilian and military authorities during a press conference of Exercise Vigilant Guard in Camp Santiago, Puerto Rico, Wednesday, March 25, 2009. Vigilant Guard is a National Guard exercise that sharpens coordination between the National Guard and civilian agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

S.D. Guard remains ready to support communities after winter storm
March 26, 2009 — RAPID CITY, S.D. - The South Dakota Army National Guard was called up to provide support in response to the recent winter storm that blanketed the region with snow and wind on March 23-24, causing no... MORE

Air Guard engineers improve facilities for Gitmo troopers
March 26, 2009 — GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Keeping the morale high among Joint Task Force Troopers is an important mission that is always on the minds of JTF leadership.In an effort to keep the work force comfortable,... MORE

Texas Airmen provide show of force
March 26, 2009 — SATHER AIR BASE, Iraq - The use of show of force is intended to warn or intimidate an opponent and to demonstrate capability or will to act if provoked. For two female Airmen here the showing of force... MORE

Staff Sgt. Vida Reveles, 447th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron heavy weapons operator, observes the flight line at Sather Air Base, Iraq while manning a .50 caliber machine gun, March 26. Sgt. Reveles provides show of force for the base making sure that no unauthorized personnel are allowed on the base. Sgt. Reveles is one of a few security forces members qualified on the .50 cal here. Sgt. Reveles is a native of Las Cruces, N.M. and is deployed from the 204th Security Forces Squadron at Biggs Army Airfield, Fort Bliss and El Paso, Texas Air National Guard.

Convoy ops with Hustler 21
March 26, 2009 — JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq - "You see the lights up ahead? That's Scania," said Sgt. 1st Class Elwin Farnsworth, from Hotel Company, 1-161st Infantry (Combined Arms Battalion), 81st Brigade Combat Team,... MORE

Sgt. 1st Class Elwin Farnsworth from Hotel Company, 1-161st Infantry (Combined Arms Battalion), 81st Brigade Combat Team, Washington Army National Guard, discusses the route to Scania with Lead KBR controller Dennis Bos minutes before departure.

Deployment-hardened Soldiers, Airmen use familiar barriers to dam rising floodwaters
March 26, 2009 — FARGO, N.D. - While deployed in Iraq, Spc. Ryan L. Karsky got quite used to the towering HESCO barriers that ringed his base.These large modular steel baskets, lined with a fine meshy material, held... MORE

Spc. Joshua Klundt, of the 817th Engineer Company (Sappers), pulls one end of a collapsible barrier device called a HESCO March 24 in Fargo, N.D. The sections of HESCO are being linked together and filled with sand to create a flood barrier from the rising waters of the Red River.

Air Guard keeps air mobility in the fight
March 25, 2009 — SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFNS) - Airmen of the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve have sustained the hub for directing global airlift, air refueling and aeromedical evacuation operations... MORE

Alaska Guard protects aircraft from volcano's ash
March 24, 2009 — JUNEAU, Alaska - Governor Sarah Palin has encouraged Alaskans potentially effected by the ash fall of Mount Redoubt's most recent eruption to follow safety procedures.During the past two months, the... MORE

DHS looking at options on SW border; Secretary "still considering" use of National Guard
March 24, 2009 — WASHINGTON, D.C. - Along with several other initiatives, the Department of Homeland Security is "still considering" the use of National Guard troops along the U.S.-Mexico Border, the DHS secretary... MORE

New York intelligence troops train for wartime tasks
March 23, 2009 — LATHAM, NY - Soldiers of the New York Army National Guard's 42nd Infantry Division Intelligence community, known in military terms as the G2, deployed March 18 to the Joint Intelligence Combat... MORE

Massachusetts air operations group stands up
March 23, 2009 — OTIS AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Mass. - As Senior Airman Alexis Colonna, working on the ops floor of the 102nd Air Operations Group (AOG), sits down at a large new desk, she looks toward the four... MORE

South Dakota Soldiers conduct hand-to-hand combat training
March 23, 2009 — FORT MEADE, S.D. - Sometimes the only weapon a Soldier has on the battlefield is his own two fists, and the only advantage he may have in a life-or-death struggle with the enemy is the hand-to-hand... MORE

Army Capt. Shannon Machmiller (left), a civil affairs officer with the 196th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade in Sioux Falls, S.D., grapples with her opponent, during training for the Modern Army Combatives Program held at the 196th Regiment, Regional Training Institute on March 12, at Fort Meade, S.D.

Alaska Army Guardsmen assist with Arctic Care 2009
March 23, 2009 — BETHEL, Alaska - A thick, wet blanket of snow covers the rotors of three Alaska Army National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, as winter storm clouds move in, threatening to compromise the day's... MORE

Soldiers from the Alaska Army National Guard's 1st 207 Aviation Regiment guide a Black Hawk onto the flight line in Bethel, Alaska, March 12, 2009. The 1st 207 Aviation Regiment is responsible for transporting all medical teams and supplies during Operation Arctic Care, a Navy-led readiness exercise providing no-cost health care to 14 villages in Western Alaska's Yukon-Kuskokwim region.

South Dakota Soldiers united in flooding efforts
March 21, 2009 — FARGO, N.D. - Flooding levels on the Red River remain high, but residents can put their minds to rest knowing that National Guard members are constantly checking the dikes for leaks and weak... MORE

Pfc. Jess Krantz (left) and Spc. Eric Peters, both of Watertown, S.D., and members of the 139th Brigade Support Battalion of the South Dakota Army National Guard, patrol the dike to check the water level and look for weak spots on Saturday, March 28, 2009.

National Guard's media contest winners announced
March 20, 2009 — ARLINGTON, Va. - The 2008 National Guard Media Contest winners were recently announced by Jack Harrison, director of NGB Public Affairs and Strategic Communications."The contest recognizes the best... MORE

At NCO induction ceremony, Guardmembers reflect on the rank
March 20, 2009 — FORT MYER, Va. - The contributions of the noncommissioned officer were spotlighted in an elaborate NCO induction ceremony here at Conmy Hall today that included 13 National Guard members.The event was... MORE

Thirteen National Guard members were among thirty Soldiers inducted in the NCO corps at a ceremony at Conmy Hall on Fort Myer, Va., Thursday, March 19, 2009. The event was part of the Year of the NCO celebration, an initiative highlighting NCO contributions. From left: Sgt. Osvaldo Cruz, Staff Sgt. Misael Santamaria, Sgts. Jamie Coleman, Annette Bowen and Jasmin Vazquez, Sergeant Major of the Army Kenneth Preston, Staff Sgt. Michael Noyce Merino (The Army's NCO of the Year), Sgt. Justin Wanat, Cmd. Sgt. Maj. John D. Gipe, the command sergeant major for the Army National Guard, Sgt. Jennifer Rosario, Staff Sgt. Keli Foultner, Sgt. Jackie Williams, Sgt. Irizarry, and Staff Sgt. Valerie Jones.

DoD to fund family travel to Dover
March 19, 2009 — WASHINGTON - The wishes of the families will be the overriding principle guiding any media coverage of fallen warriors' remains arriving at Dover Air Force Base, Del., Defense Secretary Robert M... MORE

Stop loss to end for Army Guard in September
March 19, 2009 — WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Army will phase out use of the so-called "stop-loss" program between now and January, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today.Since the beginning of his term as defense... MORE

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates responds to a reporter's question during a press conference at the Pentagon, March 18, 2009. Gates announced a comprehensive plan to eliminate the current use of "stop-loss" policy while retaining the authority for future use under extraordinary circumstances.

Education, contact key to cutting suicide rate, Army personnel leader says
March 18, 2009 — ARLINGTON, Va. - Ending a policy where Citizen-Soldiers were excused monthly drills for 90 days after deployment helped the Army Guard better take care of its troops, the Army's deputy chief of staff... MORE

Gates pays respects to fallen Guardsmen at Dover
March 18, 2009 — WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates traveled to Dover Air Force Base, Del., last night to pay his respects to four servicemembers killed recently in Afghanistan, a senior... MORE

Virginia National Guard Team Trains for Disaster Response

D.C. Air Guard Makes Improvements at Capital Guardian Youth ChalleNGe Academy

Maine Guard Airmen Exercise Rapid-Response Communications Skills

Louisiana Guard Hosts International Interrogation Competition to Build Readiness

Air Reserve Component Test Center Marks Milestone With F-35 Test Force at Eglin AFB