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 National Guard flight crews conduct water bucket training with UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters Oct. 12, 2021, at a training area in Chesterfield, Virginia. Aviation assets can support fire-fighting efforts with the use of water buckets, which require periodic training for flight crews in order to ensure equipment proficiency. These Soldiers are scheduled to deploy to Kosovo with the Sandston-based 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, 29th Infantry Division in early 2022, where fire-fighting capabilities may be needed. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Terra C. Gatti)

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

1-169th conducts medical evacuation training during AT

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

Virginia National Guard aviation crews and Chesterfield County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Scuba Rescue Team members train on confined-space rescue hoist operations June 10, 2021, in Chesterfield County, Virginia.

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

Virginia National Guard aviators participate in an air operations exercise managed by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management May 10, 2021, at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Sandston, Virginia. The exercise aimed to test a new smart phone-enabled mission-management platform designed for use during a large-scale emergency response effort, such as a hurricane. With the potential for air support from multiple agencies, all on different communications platforms, the new program aims to simplify mission assignment and reporting efforts. In addition to VNG and VDEM personnel, the training included members of the U.S. Coast Guard, the Virginia State Police, the Federal Aviation Administration, the North Carolina National Guard and the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. The training also allowed for a test of loading and using communications by air crews and helicopter crews from VNG, VSP and USCG tested the new platform during a simulated response exercise. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Terra C. Gatti)

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

The Virginia National Guard’s 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment welcomes newly-promoted noncommissioned officers to the NCO Corps during a ceremony held April 18, 2021, at the VNG’s Army Aviation Support Facility in Sandston, Virginia. A total of 16 NCOs, all promoted to sergeant since 2019, were recognized during the ceremony in front of state and unit enlisted leaders and members of their battalion. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Terra C. Gatti)

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

U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger visits the Virginia National Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility March 29, 2021, near the Richmond International Airport. 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 to discuss the complex mission of the VNG’s aviation assets and the need for a new aviation support facility. The group also toured the current AASF, and conducted an aerial tour of the proposed location for the future facility, as well as key VNG facilities in the Richmond area. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Terra C. Gatti)

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

Virginia Deputy Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs Kathleen Jabs tours the Virginia National Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility alongside Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia, Dec. 11, 2020, near the Richmond International Airport. The tour served to better familiarize the deputy secretary with the capabilities of the VNG’s aviation assets, the support capabilities of the AASF, and the initiative to build a new facility.

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

Virginia National Guard flight crews train with Chesterfield County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Scuba Rescue Team members on rescue hoist operations Nov. 19, 2020, in Chesterfield, Virginia. Together, the Virginia aviators and Chesterfield first responders form the Virginia Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team, or HART. Their training focused on conducting litter hoists and is part of an ongoing partnership that first began in 2011.

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

VNG AASF reaches top aviation maintenance readiness level
June 18, 2020 — SANDSTON, Va. — After a thoughtful investment in their people and processes, the Virginia National Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility reached the pinnacle of maintenance readiness with 100 percent of their fleet fully mission capable, or FMC. Virginia’s AASF, located in Sandston, Virginia, reached this peak during late spring. Leaders… ... MORE

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