|
Three
Aviation Units Begin Mob Process
Three Georgia
Army National Guard units, all from the First Aviation
Group, are the latest to be notified for mobilization in support
of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. All three
units are expected to mobilize and deploy within the
December-January time frame. They include:
-
1st
Battalion, 171st Aviation from Dobbins Air Reserve Base
which flies UH-60 Black Hawks.
-
Company H,
171st Aviation from Dobbins which flies C-23 Sherpas
-
Detachment
1, Company F, 131st Aviation from Savannah which flies CH-47
Chinooks.
The three
aviation units represent about 370 soldiers. Nearly 3,000 Georgia Army and Air
Guardsmen remain mobilized with more than half of them
deployed to the Persian Gulf. List
of Mobilized
Georgia Guard Units
|
116th
Medical Squadron
Earns High Marks on Inspection
by Tech. Sgt.
Jacqueline Boucher
116 ACW Public affairs
 The 116th Medical Squadron scored an overall excellent during
a three-day health services inspection Nov. 12-14. Air Force Inspection
Agency officials from Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., focused on
leadership and management, personnel fitness and internal
programs supporting 10 areas of the unit’s operation. The unit
garnered three outstanding, four excellent and three
satisfactory ratings. The inspection occurs every four years.
"This is the
(operational readiness inspection) of the medical field,"
said Chief Master Sgt. Stephen Sudduth, health systems manager.
"I’m so proud of the people in the squadron."
Read full story
Top
of page
116th
ACW Honors Security Force Squadron
by Tech. Sgt.
Jacqueline Boucher
116th ACW Public Pffairs
 Thirty-five
members of the 116th Security Forces Squadron were honored Nov.
15 for their service in operations supporting America’s War on
terrorism.
Squadron members received awards and
decorations including the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air
Force Commendation Medal and the Air Force Achievement Medal.
Dr. John Winkler, deputy assistant secretary
of the Air Force for Reserve Affairs, assisted in the awards
ceremony and was the guest speaker. He talked about the
increasing importance of the reserve and guard. Read
full story
Top
of page
State
Defense Force
Holds FTX at Milledgeville
 The
Georgia State Defense Force's Second and Fifth Brigades
conducted their annual two-day field training exercise in
mid-November at the Georgia Army National Guard’s
Milledgeville armory.
About 30 SDF volunteers participated in
training, said SDF Maj. George
Scott, Second Brigade public affairs officer. They trained in
events such as map reading and land navigation, search and
rescue, first aid, dealing with injured personnel, the loading
and unloading of patients. They also participated in setting up
helicopter landing zones, shelter management, crowd and traffic
control techniques and running and tactical operations center. Read
full story
Top
of page
JIMIS,
GPS Essential
To JSTARS Radar Capabilities
by Airman 1st Class Tim Beckham
116th ACW Public Pffairs
 The
joint integrated maintenance information system and the global
positioning system play key roles in the success of the Joint
Surveillance Target Attack Radar System’s mission.
Without the GPS and JIMIS
capabilities the JSTARS radar would be useless thus making the
E-8C aircraft nothing more than a luxurious Boeing 707.
"It they (operators) can’t
use the radar or the computers, what’s the point? They (JSTARS)
would just be an expensive cargo plane," said Airman 1st
Class Nicholas Fetty, a surveillance radar technician assigned
to the 116th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. Read
full story
Top
of page
Dog
and Handler Bring Anti-drug Message to Area School
 Jenny,
a drug-sniffing Labrador retriever with the Georgia Counterdrug
Task Force, proved recently that she not only has a nose for
illegal drugs but also the talent for entertaining.
Hired seven years ago, this four-legged
Georgia Guardsman with the Task Force Drug Detection Team, aided
by her handler, gave a demonstration of her abilities in support
of Counterdrug’s Drug Demand Reduction program. Jenny’s high
energy, coupled with her easy-going personality made her an
instant hit with the fifth grade students at Holly Springs
Elementary School. While it was this canine anti-drug agent’s
first demonstration, this is the detection teams third annual
visit to Holly Springs. During such events team members inform
students of the consequences of drug use and abuse.
Read full story
Top
of page
Ga Guard's Relationship
with
Republic of Georgia Intact
The Georgia National Guard’s relationship
with the Republic Georgia remains unchanged despite political
upheavals in that Black Sea state, said Lt. Col. Dennis Brown,
planning officer with the Directorate of Joint Operations and
Planning, recently. Opponents of the 12-year administration of
Eduard A. Shevardnadze ousted the President in November charging
the administration with widespread corruption and election
"rigging." New elections are scheduled for early
January.
Brown said that some 13 Georgia Army and Air
National Guardsmen were in Tibilsi during the protests that led
to Shevardnadze’s resignation and a peaceful transfer of power
to an interim government. Army Guard Lt. Col. Ricky Barr is the
Georgia National Guard liaison to the Republic of Georgia as
part of the National Guard’s State Partnership Program.
The Georgia Guard’s relationship with the Republic has been
in place since the mid 1990s. It continues to foster democracy,
assist in the development of the Republic’s National Guard as
well as build a bi-lateral relationship between the two Georgias.
Top
of page
Georgia Guard
Helps Youth ‘Be All He
Can Be’
With assistance from the Georgia Army
National Guard this past month, a Thomson youngster suffering
from a rare form of cancer had his wish of being a soldier come
true.
Among the Guardsmen who helped make that
dream a reality for 5-year-old Ethan Hobbs were Col. Don Venn,
chief of staff; Col. Billy Wells, professor of military science
at Dahlonega’s North Georgia College and State University; Lt.
Col. John Owning, state chaplain; and Staff Sgt. William Estes,
chaplain’s assistant.
Estes, now known to Ethan and his family as
"Uncle Buddy," spent four days escorting the Hobbs to
Fort Benning, then Fort Stewart and then to Fort Gordon.
"They’ve become my extended family," Estes said.
"They’re a great loving and very caring group of
people."
"Missions such as this remind us that being a
humanitarian is just as much a part of being a soldier as
anything we do, especially because we are Guardsmen,"
Ownings said. "I believe I speak for everyone involved when
I say it was absolutely delightful to help make little Ethan’s
wish come to life."
Top
of page
JROTC
Gets Insight to Army Guard:
Guardsmen
Give Future Soldiers
Look at Military Occupations, Hardware
 Junior
Army Reserve Officer Training Corps students from Tifton’s
Tift County High School met recently with Georgia Army National
Guard recruiters, aviators and soldiers at Henry Tift Myers
Airport for an orientation flight and a look at the Army Guard’s
M2 Bradley fighting vehicle.
About 128 students and their instructors
talked with crewmembers of a CH-47 helicopter assigned to
Savannah’s Detachment 1, Company F, 131st Aviation. Afterward
the students boarded the helicopter four different times for a
20-minute flight over Tifton.
While they waited their turn, the students
looked over the Bradley put on static display by Tifton’s
Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 121st Infantry Regiment. Read
full story
Top
of page
Army Guard OCS
Orientation Set for January
Georgia’s Army Officer Candidate School and
Summer Accelerated OCS orientation will be held Jan. 10, 2004 at
Macon’s Regional Training Institute. Orientation is from 9
a.m. to 4 p.m. Interested and qualified soldiers are encouraged
to attend.
OCS Packets can be obtained by visiting the OCS
website or by contacting Capt. Josie Hobbs in the State
Recruiting Office by calling 404-675-5266 or email josie.hobbs@ga.ngb.army.mil
Questions concerning the State OCS program
can be addressed to SFC Rodney Becton @ 478-464-3229 or
email rodney.becton@ga.ngb.army.mil.
See the attached word
document for more specific information pertaining to OCS
eligibility requirements and orientation schedule.
Top
of page
The Department of Defense announced in
November that when President Bush signed the National Defense
Authorization Act for fiscal year 2004, National Guard members and their families would be permitted unlimited access
to military commissaries.
"Instructions have gone out to all
continental U.S. stores informing them that Guardsmen and
Reservists now have unlimited shopping privileges, and telling
store managers how to welcome Guard and Reserve members to the
full use of the commissary benefit," said Patrick Nixon,
deputy director of the Defense Commissary Agency.
"Commissary shoppers will begin to see banners saying ‘Welcome
Guard and Reserve to Full Time Savings,' along with other events
recognizing these new full-time shoppers." Read
full story
Top
of page
Georgia
DOD Customer Survey
Results Available on the Web
During the early
summer of 2003, the Georgia Department of Defense conducted the
latest in a series of internal customer satisfaction surveys.
More than 1,500 employees and members responded to this unique
web-based survey which asked over 40 questions about the Georgia
DOD climate. The results provide a unique insight into the range
of views and attitudes of those working for the Georgia DOD and
National Guard. The executive summary and key findings and
comments are available on the web at
http://www.dod.state.ga.us/customersurvey/.
Top
of page
Course
Touts ‘a Different Path to Improving Leadership Skills’
Members of the Georgia Department of Defense searching for
new ways to improve their abilities as a leader and gain
promotion points in the process should look into attending the
first 2004 Leadership Skills Enhancement Course set for Jan. 27
to 30 at Marietta’s 283rd Combat Communications Squadron.
More than 20 people, including Maj. Gen. David B. Poythress,
Georgia’s Adjutant General, participated in the course held in
July at Macon’s 202nd Engineer Installation Squadron. Each had
a great time, learned quite a bit about them selves and came
away with a new perspective on the ideas and goals of
leadership, said Capt. Tiffany Sneed, who operates the course. Read
full story
Top
of page
Annual
Toy Drive is Underway
Once again, members of the Georgia Army
National Guard area being asked to help make a needy child’s
Christmas brighter by giving to the United States Marine Corps’
annual TOYS FOR TOTS campaign.
Donations of new unwrapped toys can be
dropped off in collection box at Building No. 3 on the
Confederate Avenue state Department of Defense complex and the
box in the main foyer at Oglethorpe armory on Mooreland Drive in
Ellenwood.
The last day to donate is Dec. 10. Toys in
the collection boxes will later be picked up by the Marines and
then distributed to area children shortly before Christmas.
Top
of page
Holiday
Blood Drive Set
The Georgia Department of Defense holds its annual holiday
blood drive in Building No. 21, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Dec. 11.
Veteran and new donors need to mark their calendars for this
event. This is a critical time of the year for blood, and
everyone who can, should consider donating. More more
information see the American
Red Cross flyer.
First
Friday Foto Gallery
lick on photo for larger
picture |
1/214
FA Participates
In Army Ten Miler |
Co
H, 121st Salutes Veterans
In Villa Rica |
|
Twelve soldiers from
1/214th Field Artillery Battalion took part in the
Army Ten Miler in Washington D.C., along with several
family members. They were also joined by Capt. Bill Goss of
the 202 EOD. The soldiers have been mobilized since March
in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Noble Eagle.
They are currently stationed at Ft. Bragg, N.C.
|
Members of
Company H, 121st Infantry Long Range Surveillance fire their
rifles during a 21 Gun salute at a church in Villa Rica. The
salute was part of the church's’ annual Veterans Day
ceremony |
|
530th Air Guard
Band, LRSU March in Veterans Day Parade |
 |
 |
| The
530th Air Force Band of the Georgia Air National Guard marches in the
Atlanta Veteran’s Day parade. Company H, 121st Infantry
Long Range Surveillance also participated in the event. |
Top
of page
Georgia DOD Home
|
