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The National Guard has come a long way since the butcher, baker and candlestick maker took up arms around Philadelphia in 1747 when Benjamin Franklin created an organization of citizen soldiers called the Associators.
***image1***Today, you are more likely to run into the student, the teacher and policy maker if you meet the patriotic progeny of the Pennsylvania National Guard. Regardless of occupation, the spirit and desire of the Guard to protect their communities,
commonwealth and country runs deep.
To do so, many Guard members rely on a critical two-week period of time called annual training in order to sharpen their job skills and prepare for deployment. For two weeks in June, more than 70 Guard members of the 193rd Special Operations Wing from Middletown, Pa., did just that at Ramstein.
“It’s extremely helpful for our younger Airmen to come to such an active base and really get to see how it’s done,” said Tech. Sgt. Mitchell Bailey, dining facility supervisor for the 193rd SOW services flight and civilian food service director. “Our goal is to come here, blend in and get to work. No one should be able to tell the difference between active-duty personnel and Guardsmen on annual training.”
Ultimately, these Airmen are no strangers to overseas missions or working alongside their active-duty counterparts. For many in the 193rd SOW, the days of one weekend a month and two weeks a year training have long since gone in the wake of the Global War on Terror.
In fact, before bombs dropped or troops deployed in Afghanistan, this wing of more than 1,700 was already flying its one-of-a-kind psychological operations mission.
Using a unique and specially modified EC-130 J-model called Commando Solo, the unit operates a virtual broadcast studio, whereby messages can be broadcast via television and radio to both allies and enemies down below.
“Essentially, this weapon of mass persuasion paves the way for the battlefield,” said Senior Master Sgt. Mike Kovach, electronic communications specialist aboard Commando Solo. “In Afghanistan, we got their attention with music. The citizens were starved for that and they wanted news from the outside world just like we all do.”
Prior to the invasion, the unit broadcast critical information in between entertainment, thus warning the Taliban of impending doom and helping friendly citizens assist our troops once the war began.
“We try and take people off the battlefield by non-lethal means before they are removed in another manner,” said Sergeant Kovach. “It works pretty well.”
Since the first days over the skies of Afghanistan, Airmen from this elite unit have deployed to some of the most austere and hostile lands throughout undisclosed locations in Southwest Asia.
“Add to that support of other global contingencies and national emergencies such as Hurricane Katrina relief and you get a high operations tempo that far exceeds a part-time job,” said Sergeant Bailey, who has recently deployed to several Southwest Asia locations and the state of Louisiana to stand up services in hurricane ravaged areas.
“We’ve been pretty hectic for a while. Our Guardsmen have to be ready to roll out of their day jobs and shift gears into a deployment anywhere in the world within 24 to 48 hours,” he added.
With the help and experience gained from their annual training at Ramstein, these Pennsylvania Air National Guardsmen are now better prepared to roll out of their day jobs, roll up their sleeves and roll out on a deployment, any time any place.
