Virginia National Guard

VNG aviators train fire-fighting skills before KFOR deployment
October 19, 2021 — With an upcoming deployment to Kosovo, Virginia Army National Guard flight crews took to the skies of Chesterfield, Virginia, to certify their ability to fight fires with massive water buckets Oct. 12, 2021. The buckets are capable of picking up and hauling nearly 6,000 pounds of water, which can then be flown to the site of a wildfire and dropped to assist with fire-fighting efforts on the ground. ... MORE

Virginia Army Guard pilot continues family’s aeronautical legacy
October 15, 2021 — When Chief Warrant Officer 3 Darrell Busquets joined the military, it was an enlisted engineer. Since then, he’s trained as an infantryman, deployed as a combat engineer, and earned his wings as an Army aviator. Today, he’s the battalion standardization pilot for the Virginia National Guard’s Sandston-based 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, 29th Infantry Division. ... MORE

VNG brigade HQs, aviation battalion will deploy to Kosovo
August 26, 2021 — The Virginia National Guard’s Staunton-based 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Headquarters will mobilize for federal active duty in early January 2022 to take responsibility for the NATO-led Kosovo Force Regional Command-East, and the Sandston-based 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, 29th Infantry Division will mobilize as their aviation task force according to an announcements made Aug. 13 and 23, 2021, by Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia... MORE

Va. National Guard Sandston-based aviation battalion to mobilize for duty in Kosovo
August 23, 2021 — Approximately 140 Soldiers assigned to the Virginia National Guard’s Sandston-based 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, 29th Infantry Division will mobilize for federal active duty in early January 2022 as the aviation task force for the NATO-led Kosovo Force Regional Command-East, according to an announcement made Aug. 23, 2021, by Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia... MORE

HART trains on rooftop rescue hoists during quarterly exercise
June 30, 2021 — Virginia National Guard aviation crews and Chesterfield County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Scuba Rescue Team members trained on rescue hoist operations during a training exercise June 8-10, 2021, in Chesterfield County, Virginia. ... MORE

Dual-military couple provides mutual support through unique challenges
June 15, 2021 — U.S. Air Force Maj. Jonathan Patterson and U.S. Army Sgt. Mark Patterson knew within the early stages of their respective careers that military service was the right fit for them. The couple joined their respective branches about a decade apart, Maj. Patterson first, in early 2001, and Sgt. Patterson later, in 2011. The decade between their entry into the military saw a drastic change in policy toward members of the LGBTQ+ community. ... MORE

Virginia’s aviation assets test response tools as hurricane season nears
May 27, 2021 — As hurricane season inched closer to the East Coast, aviators from the Virginia National Guard participated in an exercise managed by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management to test the state’s air operations plan. The exercise, held May 10, 2021, at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Sandston, Virginia, made use of a new mission assignment tool and ensured communications capabilities between participating agencies. ... MORE

NCO induction ceremony held for 12 new aviation battalion NCOs
May 17, 2021 — SANDSTON, Va. — The Virginia National Guard’s 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, 29th Infantry Division welcomed 12 Soldiers to the noncommissioned officer corps during an NCO Induction Ceremony held April 18, 2021, at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Sandston, Virginia. The ceremony honored those Soldiers promoted to the rank of sergeant over the last two years... MORE

Spanberger, Cline rep tour VNG aviation facility
April 7, 2021 — U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger visited the Virginia National Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility March 29, 2021, to learn more about the complex mission of the VNG’s aviation assets and the need for a new aviation support facility. Spanberger was joined by a member of Rep. Ben Cline’s staff and received briefings from Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia, and other VNG senior leaders. The group also toured the current facility and conducted an aerial tour on board a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter of the proposed location for the future facility, as well as key VNG facilities in the Richmond area... MORE

Dep. Sec. Jabs visits VNG aviation facility
January 14, 2021 — RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Deputy Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs Kathleen Jabs toured the Virginia National Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility Dec. 11, 2020. Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia, joined Jabs on her tour of the facility, which is located adjacent to the Richmond International Airport in Sandston, Va. The tour served as opportunity for the deputy secretary to learn more about the VNG’s aviation footprint, the mission of the facility and state’s aviation battalion, as well as the plan for a new facility in the coming years... MORE

HART partnership cited as career highlight for participants
December 1, 2020 — CHESTERFIELD, Va. — For nearly a decade, Virginia National Guard flight crews have worked alongside technicians from the Chesterfield County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Scuba Rescue Team. Over those many years, the two organizations created, built and grew Virginia’s Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team, or HART. Since the program’s inception in 2011, the HART has deployed for hurricane response, flown countless hours over the waterways and landscapes of Virginia and now boasts approximately 20 trained technicians. ... MORE

Marines repair Harrier jet engine at Va. Guard aviation facility
October 21, 2020 — RICHMOND, Va. — The Virginia National Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility hosted a few unusual guests this fall when 14 Marines from the Cherry Point, North Carolina-based Marine Attack Squadron 223 descended upon the hangar to replace the engine of an AV-8B Harrier jet... MORE

203rd RED HORSE helps with AASF improvements
September 3, 2020 — Virginia National Guard Airmen assigned to the Virginia Beach-based 203rd Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operational Repair Squadron Engineers Squadron, 192nd Wing, completed several improvement projects July 27 – Aug. 7, 2020, at the Virginia National Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility in Sandston, Virginia. During the two-week project, the RED HORSE engineers removed a large earthen berm to make room Aviators to conduct Army Combat Fitness Tests, as well as made some improvements to the facility’s flight line... MORE

Lewis takes command of VNG aviation battalion
July 28, 2020 — SANDSTON, Va. — Lt. Col. Matthew Lewis took command of Sandston-based 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, 29th Infantry Division during a change of command ceremony held July 26, 2020, at the Virginia National Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility. Maj. Gen. John M. Epperly, 29th Infantry Division Commander, presided over the… ... MORE

Virginia Army National Guard command selections announced
June 22, 2020 — RICHMOND, Va. — Selections for Virginia Army National Guard brigade and battalion commands were made June 19, 2020, by the Adjutant General of Virginia, and June 18 with the release of the results of the annual VaARNG Field Grade Assignment Board. Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of… ... MORE

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