Virginia National Guard

Virginia Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team departs for South Carolina
September 22, 2018 — A Virginia National Guard aviation crew of four Soldiers and a team of three Chesterfield County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Scuba Rescue Team members departed Sept. 22, 2018, from Chesterfield County, Virginia, to support the South Carolina National Guard with recovery operations after Hurricane Florence caused serious flooding across the state. The VNG aviators and Chesterfield rescue technicians form the Virginia Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team to provide rotary wing aviation rescue hoist capabilities that can conduct aerial rescue evacuation in situations where there is potential loss of life, limb or eyesight or significant property damage... MORE

VDF augments Virginia National Guard support for Hurricane Florence
September 21, 2018 — The Virginia Defense Force brought nearly 50 personnel on state active duty to assist the Virginia National Guard with the statewide response to Hurricane Florence Sept. 9-18, 2018. VDF personnel provided multiple capabilities including interoperable communications, operations center augmentation, operations center liaison, incident management assistance, state-managed shelter logistics and public information... MORE

VNG supports multi-state, multi-agency response to Hurricane Florence
September 20, 2018 — The Virginia National Guard staged more than 1,500 personnel Sept. 12, 2018, at key locations across the commonwealth to support local and state emergency management officials with possible response to Hurricane Florence, but most were not needed when the storm turned further south. When Governor Ralph Northam authorized Virginia’s resources could be redirected to North Carolina, the VNG sent sent approximately 40 Soldiers and 20 light medium tactical vehicles to support with recovery efforts where the hurricane caused widespread flooding... MORE

AG swears in new JFHQ Inspector General
September 19, 2018 — Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia, swore in Col. Anthony Daniels as the new Joint Force Headquarters – Virginia Command Inspector General Sept. 6, 2018, in Richmond, Virginia... MORE

CERFP search & extraction team trains in West Virginia
September 19, 2018 — Virginia National Guard Soldiers assigned to a specialized response force traveled to Camp Dawson, West Virginia, for a 12-day, four-phase course on the basics of search and extraction during the latter half of August. The eleven Soldiers who attended the course are all assigned to the 180th Engineer Company, 276th Engineer Battalion, 329th Regional Support Group... MORE

Va. National Guard Airmen prep communications gear for crisis
September 19, 2018 — A hurricane threatens to hit Virginia and Virginia National Guard Soldiers and Airmen respond. Mission command centers are set up and task forces are assigned in various regions throughout the commonwealth before the storm makes landfall. Commanders, Soldiers and Airmen rely on the use of technology to communicate with one another when geographically separated. It is vital to the mission to have a strong line of communication between mission command centers and the men and women out in the field... MORE

Virginia National Guard sending support to North Carolina
September 15, 2018 — The Virginia National Guard is sending approximately 40 Soldiers and 20 light medium tactical vehicles to support the North Carolina National Guard with recovery efforts after Hurricane Florence caused widespread flooding, and they departed Sept. 15, 2018. The VNG will keep a force of Soldiers on standby and postured for possible support to the Southwest Virginia region if needed, and personnel not on standby will return to routine operations... MORE

Flora shares leadership philosophy with U.S. Army Africa
September 14, 2018 — Brig. Gen. Lapthe C. Flora is the new U.S. Army Africa deputy commanding general and Army Reserve component integration adviser. He concurrently serves in the Virginia National Guard as the Assistant Adjutant General – Army. Flora recently agreed to participate in a leadership-based question and answer session during exercise Shared Accord 2018... MORE

Virginia National Guard staged and ready for possible Hurricane Florence support
September 13, 2018 — The Virginia National Guard has more than 1,300 personnel staged and ready to support local and state emergency management officials with response to Hurricane Florence Sept. 12, 2018. VNG Soldiers, Airmen and members of the Virginia Defense Force are staged at key locations across the commonwealth in order to rapidly respond if needed... MORE

Air Assault & Pathfinder Schools held at Fort Pickett
September 5, 2018 — It was “Zero Day” of Air Assault School, Aug. 7, 2018, and for most of the 270 Soldiers gathered at Fort Pickett, their reason for being there was simple: They wanted to prove something... MORE

Commonwealth ChalleNGe graduates 91 from Class 49
September 4, 2018 — The Virginia Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy graduated 91 cadets from Class 49 during a ceremony Aug. 25, 2018, at Ocean Lakes High School in Virginia Beach. Walt Mercer, chief operations officer for the Virginia Department of Military Affairs, joined Mark Chicoine, director of the Virginia Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy, in congratulating the cadets on finishing the five-and-a-half-month residential portion of the program... MORE

Va. flight crews build trust, train with W. Va. special operators
September 3, 2018 — A crowd of spectators started to form as two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters appeared over the tree line and landed along the shore of Lake Erie. It was almost lunchtime on Sept. 5, 2018, and already that morning a small group of Soldiers from the West Virginia National Guard’s 19th Special Forces Group were busy preparing their equipment and getting ready for the day’s training in Hamburg, New York, just south of Buffalo... MORE

Airman’s design selected for 192nd Fighter Wing commander’s coin
August 30, 2018 — The 192nd Fighter Wing Communications Flight superintendent created the winning design for the wing commander’s coin... MORE

Virginia Army National Guard welcomes 14 new lieutenants
August 28, 2018 — The Virginia Army National Guard welcomed 14 new lieutenants to its ranks with the commissioning of Officer Candidate School Class 60 and 61B Aug. 25, 2018, at Fort Pickett, Virginia. Class 60 was the traditional OCS program that runs nearly two years and taught by a cadre from the Fort Pickett-based 3rd Battalion, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, and Class 61B was the eight-week Accelerated OCS program at Fort McClellan, Alabama. The ceremony marked the end of the journey for the candidates as they took their oaths of office, received their OCS diplomas and their second lieutenant bars and delivered their first salute as new officers... MORE

34th CST conducts multi-state, multi-day exercise
August 24, 2018 — Soldiers and Airmen assigned to the Virginia National Guard’s Fort Pickett-based 34th Civil Support Team took part in a joint training exercise Aug. 19-24, 2018, near Edgewood, Maryland. CSTs from Deleware, Maryland, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. also took part in the multi-day exercise designed to enhance their response capabilities by simulating 24-hour operations where teams conducted mission handovers from one team to the next as well as operating in limited visibility conditions. ... MORE

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