FLORIDA
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
National Guard defends skies over Nation’s Capital
and providing ground-based air defense. We remain vigilant and dedicated to performing our no-fail mission — defending the homeland.”
By Sgt. 1st Class Whitney Hughes National Guard Bureau JUNE 14, 2023
NORAD utilizes 24/7/365 multilayered air defense systems to protect the skies over the National Capital Region. The JADOC is a part of that, said Army Lt. Col. Greg Rogers, who was the deputy commander of the JADOC mission in 2015 and is now the commander of the Ohio Army National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 174th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, which has as- sumed responsibility for the mission after mobilizing to the National Capitol Region last week. About 220 unit members support JADOC by providing ground-based air defense and radar coverage to protect the region as part of Operation No- ble Eagle. The 1-174th is one of only seven National Guard units nationwide that man, organize, train, equip and deploy to execute this mission — an assignment unique to the National Guard. The Integrated Air Defense System in the NCR also consists of sensors, alert fighters and ground-based air defense weapons systems. Guard members staff the defense and radar systems that are controlled by Command and Control, or C2 homeland defense system. Data and information from those assets feed into the JADOC, where military leaders can properly evaluate threat assessment. ”The fact that defense of the NCR has been entrusted to the National Guard is a testament to the confidence and expectation of excellence that our national leadership has in our Soldiers and Airmen who have proved them- selves time and again for the last 20 years,” Sasseville said.
JARLINGTON, Va. – The crack of the sonic boom over Washington from Dis- trict of Columbia Air National Guard F-16s scrambling to intercept a private plane flying off course in restricted airspace June 3 was a reminder of the Guard’s vital role in air defense over the nation’s capital. The 121st Fighter Squadron jets were alerted to the aircraft that later crashed near the George Washington National Forest in Southwest Virginia, tragically killing all three passengers and the pilot. The alert came from the North American Aerospace Defense Command, which is fed information by the Joint Air Defense Operations Center (JADOC) at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington. Since 2003, Guard units have operated the Joint Air Defense Operations Center on a rotating basis. The JADOC is the critical element of the com- mand-and-control system that drives the National Capital Region Integrated Air Defense System. The mission is responsible for defending Washington and surrounding areas from hostile aerial threats by combining air-to-air and ground-to-air missile defense assets. ”The National Guard plays a crucial role in operationalizing the National Defense Strategy. Especially the No. 1 priority, defend the homeland,” said Air Force Lt. Gen. Marc Sasseville, vice chief of the National Guard Bureau. “We do that by providing fighter jets available to respond at a moment’s notice
Florida National Guard activated to assist with hurricane response
By David Vergun DOD News | AUG. 30, 2023
assets or any forces that might be needed in the aftermath of the storm,” Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said Tues- day at a Pentagon press conference.
AWASHINGTON - Some 6,500 Florida National Guard members were supporting the response to Hurricane Idalia Wednesday, focused on search and rescue, clearing roads of debris and assessing damage caused by the storm that made landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast. Guardsmen from numerous other states were standing by to assist as needed. At a midday news conference at the state emergency operations center in Tallahassee Wednesday, Maj. Gen. John Haas, Florida adjutant general, said the Guard’s response included 2,400 vehicles, 14 aircraft and 23 small watercraft. The Kentucky National Guard was contributing UH-60 helicopters, with the South Carolina and Tennessee National Guard also available to help. Idalia made landfall on Florida’s West Coast at Keaton Beach Wednesday morning and, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, “may bring a life-threatening storm surge to portions of the Florida Gulf Coast, as well as strong winds and signif- icant flooding across Southeastern states.” FEMA is closely coordinating with affected states and stands ready to provide support. FEMA Incident Management Assistance Teams are deployed to affected areas and additional supplies and teams were on standby. “This is a storm that we are certainly taking seriously, the state of Florida is taking seriously, in terms of not only making sure that we have the appropriate number of people in the state of Florida to help with any response that’s needed but also prepositioning any
Singh also provided an update on the relief efforts in the aftermath of the western Maui wildfire in Hawaii.
As of Tuesday morning, approximately 580 National Guardsmen, 133 additional Defense Department personnel and 119 Coast Guardsmen were actively engaged in the coordinated response, she said. U.S. Army Pacific is executing mission assignments from FEMA. The most recent mission assignment is potable water distribution support, she said. Navy mobile diving salvage unit teams from Pacific Fleet concluded their dive operations. Joint Task Force 5-0 continues search and rescue activities with the Hawaii National Guard teams, the FBI and the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Singh said. Hawaii National Guard continues round-the-clock support of local law enforcement. The 25th Infantry Division’s fueling trucks distrib- uted about 470 gallons of fuel over the past 48 hours in support of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ temporary power operations, she said. Pacific Fleet’s Navy Environmental Preventive Medicine Unit Six will deploy two sailors to Maui to support potable water testing for the task force’s water distribution mission, Singh said.
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