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Category: Idaho Army National Guard
Two Idaho Guardsmen earn air assault badges
Capt. Robert Taylor
Idaho Army National Guard
Two Idaho National Guardsmen graduated from the U.S. Army’s Air Assault School June 28 at Camp Rilea, Oregon. Idaho Army National Guard Soldier Cadet Porter Haux and Idaho Air National Guard Airman Senior Airman Matthew McKee completed the 10-day course to earn their air assault badges.
In addition to completing air assault school, McKee also graduated from the Army’s Rappel Master Course July 3.
“They were both good courses,” McKee said. “It was a good experience.”
McKee, a tactical air control party specialist with the 124th Fighter Wing’s 124th Air Support Operations Squadron, spent eight years in the Army Reserve before joining the Idaho Air National Guard in January 2018.
He becomes the unit’s third rappel master, which gives the squadron the required number of qualified airmen to conduct its own rappel training. The unit plans to train with the Idaho Army National Guard’s 1-183rd Assault Helicopter Battalion, which flies UH-60 Black Hawks.
The battalion’s Black Hawks supported the training courses, which included the Army’s Pathfinder Course.
Haux, a junior in Boise State University’s ROTC program, said he attended the course to become a better Soldier.
“I figured air assault course was something that I could do to better myself and further my career while doing something few people learn how to do,” he said. “I got paid to learn how to rappel from a helicopter, which is something people probably would pay a lot of money to learn how to do.”
Haux has served in the Idaho Army National Guard since November 2017. His father, Maj. Kelly Haux, is an active duty officer.
“It’s been my dream to be a Solider since I was capable of dreaming,” Haux said. “I always wanted to be a Soldier like my dad.”
The air assault course featured 10 days of instruction in three phases; combat assault operations, sling load operations and rappelling.
In phase one Soldiers and Airmen received training on combat assault, aircraft orientation, aircraft safety, aeromedical evacuation, pathfinder operations and hand and arm signals. In phase two they learned to prepare, rig and inspect various military sling-loads for equipment and vehicles such as the M998 HMMWV and M1102 Cargo Trailer. In the final phase Soldiers received instruction on tying a rappel seat, hook-up techniques, lock-in procedures, belay procedures and rappelling.
Throughout training students received several written and performance-oriented tests, conducted multiple runs and foot marches and rappelled from multiple towers and rotary wing aircraft.
Towards the end of the course, Soldiers demonstrated what they learned while repelling from a Black Hawk 90 feet above the ground.
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Grounded: Idaho pilots land to work with Idaho Soldiers
FORT IRWIN, CA, UNITED STATES
06.08.2019
Story by Capt. Robert Taylor
During combat operations, there’s no substitute for the ability to talk face-to-face with a supporting unit. For pilots from the 124th Fighter Wing’s 190th Fighter Squadron, this means landing their A-10 Thunderbolt IIs in a dry lake bed to discuss current operations with the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team’s air liaison officer while supporting the brigade’s National Training Center rotation at Fort Irwin, California, June 4 – 9.
“We can talk about the latest conditions on the battlefield,” said 124th Air Support Operations Squadron Maj. Johnny Reyes, the brigade’s air liaison officer. “They can get the latest update on the commander’s intent for use of close air support.”
The Idaho Air National Guard’s 190th Fighter Squadron is supporting the 116th CBCT’s month-long NTC rotation through its participation in Green Flag-West 19-8, a realistic air-land integration combat training exercise. Pilots launch out of Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas to provide close air support to the 116th CBCT in the brigade’s fight against opposing forces provided by the U.S. Army’s 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment.
Pilots spent the week completing qualification landings on the NTC’s Freedom Landing Strip to be prepared to land in austere environments in a combat environment.
“The training gives us confidence we can do it in a combat situation if required,” said Lt. Col. “Champ” Clark, 190th Fighter Squadron commander.
Landing in austere conditions is a task the A-10 Thunderbolt II is well designed for, Clark said. The aircraft’s twin engines are placed high on the aircraft, minimizing the risk the engines could be damaged during landing. Its tires are wide and rugged. Its high ground clearance assists with landing on less-then-ideal surfaces.
“It’s the same as landing on a paved runway, but different,” Clark said. “You have to ensure you land soft and you can’t really break as much as you’d like to. The runway is a little rougher. It’s a little more challenging, so you have to be more careful.”
Once pilots land, they have the ability to communicate directly with Soldiers and Airmen on the ground, including the unit’s air liaison officer, the ground force commanders and their staffs.
Reyes, and the 190th ASOS, is aligned with the 116th CBCT. Because the 124th Fighter Wing’s and the 116th CBCT’s headquarters are located less than a mile apart on Gowen Field in Boise, Reyes is able to fully integrate into the brigade’s staff. Reyes and the unit’s joint terminal attack controllers deploy anywhere the 116th CBCT does to coordinate the use of close air support to support the brigade’s deep fight. The 190th Fighter Squadron’s participation in Green Flag-West happened to coincide with the brigade’s NTC rotation.
“It’s really cool to work with Idaho Army National Guard Soldiers,” Clark said. “Those relationships we build at home, we continue out here and take back with us.”
Rayes said it would tie up brigade communication channels for a significant period of time to communicate all of the latest updates to pilots in the sky. In addition, pilots are able to offer updates to the unit’s maps based off what they saw on their way to the brigade’s tactical operations center, which helps improves the brigade’s common operating picture.
“Pilots serve as an extension of the tactical air control party and get a lot of work done in the deep fight,” Reyes said.
The 116th CBCT’s tactical air control party consists of Reyes, more than a dozen 190th ASOS JTACs, two Marine JTACs and five members of the Brazilian Special Operations Command.
The 116th CBCT, is comprised of 3,000 Soldiers, including 1,800 from 137 Idaho communities and 1,200 Soldiers from the Montana, Nevada and Oregon Army National Guards. The unit is completing a month-long rotation at the National Training Center to build combat readiness and improve Soldier proficiency in their wartime missions. More than an additional 1,000 Soldiers from units in nine Army National Guard states are supporting the 116th CBCT’s rotation. The 116th CBCT is one of five National Guard armored brigade combat teams.
Intel Center of Excellence deputy general visits National Training Center
FORT IRWIN, CA, UNITED STATES
06.05.2019
Story by Capt. Robert Taylor
Brig. Gen. Michael K. Hanifan, deputy commanding general, United States Army Intelligence Center of Excellence, visited with 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team’s intelligence officers and sections June 3-4, 2019, at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California, to see firsthand how the Army’s school for professional training of military intelligence prepares Soldiers to operate in a combat training center environment.
“I saw some sharp leader who knew what they were doing,” he said. “We need to equip them with the correct equipment and training.”
Hanifan said the school, located at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, has recently made three chances to its training requirements to provide Soldiers with effective and relevant training to be successful in their units. Those changes include placing an emphasis on getting away from creating only digital products and enhancing analog skills; shifting away from training on counterinsurgency in favor of decisive-engagement operations; and offering more training in a field environment outside of a classroom
“The changes in our focus has been very affective,” Hanifan said. “We’re headed in the right direction.”
Hanifan saw the effect of those changes on full display as the 116th CBCT’s intel sections worked to track the enemy on the battlefield using a combination of digital systems and analog products in the most realistic decisive-engagement field training environment the Army provides.
Throughout the simulated battle against opposing forces provided by the U.S. Army’s 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, brigade and battalion intelligence personnel work together to provide commanders at all levels with a common operating picture of friendly and enemy forces’ locations and dispositions.
Information flows up and down echelons across the battlefield to answer commanders’ priority intelligence requirements and to detect, find and destroy enemy assets using available assets, including non-lethal targeting options.
Information collected is analyzed and fed through the brigade’s planning process and current operation cell. Information collected on the battlefield is imperative for commanders and their staffs.
“As elements move forward, we provide the commander with the best enemy picture possible so he can leverage the combat power he has available to make the best decisions possible,” said Capt. William Miller, 2nd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment intelligence officer.
Hanifan, who also serves as the assistant adjutant general, Nevada Army National Guard, believes the National Training Center is the hardest intelligence battle Soldiers will fight, specifically designed to prepare Soldiers for operations in a combat zone. The training provides intel analyst the chance to test their skills against an actual force.
“It’s very realistic,” Spc. Anna Tinseth said. “It’s not notional. What you see on the map is what you’re going to see on the battlefield.”
Tinseth, a 35F intelligence analyst assigned to the Oregon Army National Guard’s 3-116th Cavalry Regiment, said the hands-on experience she is receiving during the 15-day field training exercise is increasing her understanding of her role in a battalion headquarters.
“I’m starting to understand how effective intelligence can be,” she said. “We can better prepare our line units to know what they are going to face on the battlefield.”
The 116th CBCT, one of the National Guard’s five armored brigade combat teams, is completing a National Training Center rotation at Fort Irwin, May 24 – June 20. NTC provides the brigade with the opportunity to train against a near-peer opposing force, challenging Soldiers’ tactical proficiencies and their technical expertise. More than 4,000 Soldiers, including Soldiers from Army National Guard units in 13 states, are participating in the exercise.
Idaho National Guard marksmanship team trains with local Treasure Valley sniper police
MELBA, ID, UNITED STATES
06.09.2019
Story by Master Sgt. Becky Vanshur
MELBA, Idaho – “Everybody wants to be a sniper, until it’s time to do the sniper stuff,” said Cpl. Brian Lueddeke, a sniper instructor from the Meridian Police Department. “It’s just what it is, right, the hard truth. We are called lizards because we are out there lying on the hot rocks baking ourselves, or we are up on a rooftop blanketed by snow in a blizzard.”
The Idaho National Guard marksmanship team participated for the first time in the urban and rural sniper training held in Melba by the Treasure Valley’s SWAT sniper element. The Meridian Police Department sponsored the course and the SWAT team instructors volunteered their time to produce the intense 50-hour, five-day course, held from June 3 through June 7.
Police officers from the Ada County sheriff’s office, Gem County sheriff’s office and Soldiers from Idaho National Guard completed their week of training with a certified qualification exam. These are essential skills necessary to operate effectively as a designated precision marksman, commonly referred to as DPM, or sniper.
The two most essential skills learned were marksmanship and field craft. Marksmanship is engaging select targets with consistent precision fire and the use of a bolt-action scope riffle. Field craft is the ability to effectively detect, observe and report critical information to their operational command while remaining in a concealed position.
“What are some things in the urban environment that can cause us problems when we are out on a mission? Sound. Yes, but that can also be a cover,” said Lueddeke. “People. Yes, the lookie-loos. Everybody flocks to where the police are and now you have all sorts of issues in the event that you run into an immediate threat situation and need to take a shot. Vision obstruction from buildings and wind compression problems can occur more frequently in the urban environment than in a rural environment.”
As the course concluded, a sniper now has the training and discipline to research an objective and pre-select locations where they can move into undetected to observe their objective.
“Everyone sees us as just shooters but that’s not really what it is,” said Patrol Officer Travis Woodbury, from the Nampa Police Department and a volunteer sniper instructor for the course. “It is a constant surveillance roll. We are information gathers before we are anything else. For example, if we gather enough information from a reconnaissance surveillance, and report it back, it might just be enough information to issue a search warrant from command.”
The city of Melba and Melba High School graciously volunteered classroom space, building rooftops and shooting ranges in support of the joint training.
The military and the police departments across the Treasure Valley have continued to work together throughout the years in real-world missions as well as in a training scenario like this one.
“The joint relationship between the Idaho National Guard and the Police Department is great. We love them, they love us,” said Patrol Sgt. Chris Bones, an Ada County SWAT member, who is also training to be on the sniper team. “I think what bolsters that relationship is a lot of deputies are either current military or former military, and that naturally forms a common bond, especially when we get into a training environment together.”
It may be the first sniper training for the Idaho National Guard marksmanship team Soldiers, but they foresee a future of continuous joint training.
The Idaho National Guard’s 2nd of the 116th Calvary Brigade Combat Team started their sniper program just over a year ago and formed their small sniper scout platoon.
“The marksmanship team is coming out here so that we can start building the foundation for future training within our own sniper program,” said Sgt. 1st Class Jared Frogley, the IDNG state marksmanship NCO in charge. “We are heavily involved with our sniper team and I believe we are going see this type of joint training continue.”
Command Sgt. Maj. Randolph takes cares care of Soldiers
FORT IRWIN, CA, UNITED STATES
06.02.2019
Story by Capt. Robert Taylor
Command Sgt. Maj. Alice Randolph knows she’s the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team’s senior female noncommissioned officer, but it’s not something she spends a lot of time thinking about.
“I identify as a command sergeant major,” Randolph said.
As the 145th Brigade Support Battalion’s command sergeant major, Randolph’s primary mission is the taking care of the battalion’s 300 enlisted Soldiers.
“Taking care of Soldiers means teaching them, training them and mentoring them,” she said. “The best part of the job is watching Soldiers grow throughout their careers.”
Randolph enlisted into an U.S. Army Reserve unit when she was 17 and four years later transferred into Idaho Army National Guard.
“It was the best decision of my life,” she said. “The Army has been really good to me.”
Randolph has served as a 68W combat medic throughout her career. She’s spent the majority of her career in the 145th BSB, including time as a platoon sergeant and company commander before she was appointed to the battalion’s top enlisted spot in May 2017.
“I love 145th BSB Soldiers,” she said. “They really are the best group of Soldiers I’ve worked with. With most of the unit located in Northern Idaho, we have to be close knit.”
The 145th BSB provides logistic support to the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team. Its distribution company, A Company, and maintenance company, B Company, are both located in Post Falls. The unit’s brigade support medical company is located in Boise. The battalion’s headquarters is located in Lewiston, along with detachments from B and C companies. Forward support companies are attached to each of the brigade’s seven battalions to provide direct support.
As the battalion’s senior enlisted member, she serves as a member of the commander’s personal staff and provides him technical and tactical advice on the planning, training, preparation and execution of all unit missions. As the only female sergeant major in the battalion, she said it’s not uncommon for her to be the only female in senior brigade leader meetings.
“I’ve gotten used to being include in ‘gentlemen,’” she said, while adding she’s never felt she’s been treated differently throughout her career because she is a female Soldier.
The battalion is currently supporting the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team’s National Training Center rotation at Fort Irwin, California, which offers the unit the opportunity to sustain one of the National Guard’s five armored brigade combat teams across an astute environment roughly the size of Rhode Island. The U.S. Army’s 11th Armored Calvary Regiment provides the brigade with a near-peer opposing force, challenging Soldiers in the unit’s tactical proficiencies as well as its technical expertise.
“No matter how hard things get, the Soldiers make it fun and get the job done,” she said.
Like father like sons, Bundy brothers serve together
FORT IRWIN, CA, UNITED STATES
06.01.2019
Story by Capt. Robert Taylor
Idaho Army National Guard Soldiers 2nd Lt. Zane Bundy and his big brother Sgt. Nathan Bundy take after their father, Mountain Home city councilman Matt Bundy, in a number of ways.
All three work for the Mountain Home School District. Matt and Nathan both teach at Mountain Home High School and Zane is a substitute teacher who hopes to have his own classroom someday. In addition, all three either have, or are currently serving in the military.
Matt retired from the United States Air Force. Nathan and Zane both serve in the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team’s 2nd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, headquarted in Caldwell. For the next couple weeks, both are participating in the brigade’s National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California.
“I was raised on the idea of serving my country,” said Nathan, who enlisted into the Idaho Army National Guard in 2012 as a 35F intelligence analyst.
Nathan is the intelligence section’s senior noncommissioned officer. His team’s job is to help analyze intel Soldiers in the combined arms battalion collect to help his battalion commander make good decisions on the battlefield.
It’s a position that’s vastly different than Zane’s job, who leads a platoon in Idaho’s only infantry company from his Bradley Fighting Vehicle.
“Serving together gives us a new dynamic in our relationship,” Nate said. “It’s a new common ground and a shared experience, but we’re also on different sides of the Army as an enlisted intel Soldier and an infantry officer.”
Zane joined the Idaho Army National Guard in January 2017 and later earned his commission in November 2017.
“I saw how great of an opportunity Nate had to be in the Guard so I thought I would follow,” Zane said.
At his commissioning ceremony, Nathan was the first to salute his younger brother of four years.
“I was really proud of him when he commissioned,” Nathan said.
Zane said he doesn’t get to see much of his brother during unit operations but that it’s always good to see him when the two cross paths. Both agreed that serving in the National Guard provides them with experiences they don’t get to have in the classroom as teachers.
“I enjoy both jobs,” Nate said. “Being able to serve part-time is a great experience.”
The 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team is completing a month-long rotation at the National Training Center to build unit readiness and increase Solider proficiency in their wartime missions. The unit will train against a near-peer opposing force provided by the Army’s 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. More than 4,000 Soldiers, from more than 30 Army National Guard states, are participating in the exercise.
116th CBCT arrives at the National Training Center
FORT IRWIN, CA, UNITED STATES
05.28.2019
Story by Capt. Robert Taylor
Soldiers from the Idaho Army National Guard’s 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team have mobilized to the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California, to participate in a large-scale exercise. This deployment is the state’s largest since 2015.
“The National Training Center provides some of the most realistic training the Army has to offer,” said 116th CBCT commander Col. Scott Sheridan. “This gives us the opportunity to exercise our warfighting functions in a way we can’t anywhere else. 116th CBCT Soldiers have trained extensively over the past four years and are ready to demonstrate their tactical and technical proficiencies in an austere environment.”
The 116th CBCT is comprised of more than 3,000 Soldiers, with roughly 1,800 Soldiers from 137 Idaho communities and 1,200 Soldiers serving in battalions from the Montana, Nevada and Oregon Army National Guards.
Through force-on-force simulated combat operations, Soldiers will have the rare opportunity to train against a near-peer force, provided by the U.S. Army’s 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. Soldiers will also live-fire major weapon platforms, to include the M1A1/A2 Abrams Main Battle Tank, the M2A3/M3 Bradley Fighting Vehicle, the M109A6 Paladin and the M58 Mine Clearing Line Charge.
The NTC is one of the Army’s largest combat training centers and is roughly the size of Rhode Island. Its desolate climate and varied terrain will test the brigade’s ability to sustain itself in a large and austere environment.
More than 1,000 Soldiers in Army National Guard units from eight additional states and Puerto Rico, along with three U.S. Army Reserve units, will join forces with the 116th during the rotation to complete the brigade’s combat power. In addition, the Idaho Air National Guard’s 124th Fighter Wing will provide close air support using A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft during the 116th CBCT’s simulated combat operations.
“Everybody in this task force is a member of the 116th CBCT regardless of the patch on your shoulder,” Sheridan told senior battalion leaders Sunday during a unit movement rehearsal.
The task force comprises an additional 56 National Guard companies, platoons or sections, to include the Arizona Army National Guard’s 158th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion and the California Army National Guard’s 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion of the 140th Aviation Regiment.
The 116th CBCT last attended the NTC in 2015. The training rotation is the brigade’s capstone training event in its four-year training cycle before the unit is available to complete a real-world mission in 2020.
IDAHO ARMY NATIONAL GUARD UNIT WELCOMED HOME FROM AFGHANISTAN DEPLOYMENT
SUN VALLEY, ID, UNITED STATES
05.18.2019
Story by Capt. Robert Taylor
Soldiers from the Idaho Army National Guard’s Detachment 2, C Company, 1-168th General Support Aviation Battalion were welcomed home from the unit’s deployment to Afghanistan by Gov. Brad Little and senior Idaho National Guard leaders in a Yellow Ribbon Ceremony in Sun Valley Saturday.
More than 30 Soldiers from the unit deployed to Fort Hood in April 2018 for training and then to Afghanistan in support of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel. Soldiers began returning individually in February and the ceremony marked the first time the unit reunited since leaving Afghanistan.
“I am extremely proud of the professional service each member of this unit provides to our state and nation and very grateful that they all returned safely home to their loved ones,” said Maj. Gen. Michael Garshak, adjutant general of Idaho and commander, Idaho National Guard. “This service requires many sacrifices, not only from the deploying Guardsmen, but even more so, from their families who carry on while they are gone. We are committed to providing our Guardsmen and families with all the possible care and support as they integrate back into their lifestyles here in Idaho.”
The UH-60 Black Hawk unit provided aeromedical evacuation support for the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade in the Kandahar and Helmand providences. Throughout the deployment, Medevac crews collectively flew approximately 100 missions and more than 1,000 hours.
Soldiers worked 24-hour shifts and had 15 minutes to be in the air to respond to calls from up to 40 miles away.
“It’s an instant adrenaline rush,” said flight paramedic Staff Sgt. David Egersdorf. “There’s nothing I can compare saving someone’s life to, whether it’s an American, an Afghanistani or a foreign service member, it’s fulfilling.”
As an aeromedical evacuation unit, its UH-60L Black Hawk helicopters are equipped with defibrillators, medical fluids, oxygen tanks, medications and other advanced combat life-saving tools in addition to an external hoist system and forward-looking infrared cameras. Flight crews consist of two pilots, a crew chief and flight paramedic.
The detachment stood up in March 2017. Prior to deploying, aviators and crew chiefs had to be trained on hoist operations and other critical medevac procedures. Combat medics from other Idaho Army National Guard units were selected and trained as flight paramedics.
“In less than a year, everyone came together to help stand up the unit, learn the mission and mobilize,” said 1st Lt. Morgan Hill, detachment commander. “Not only did we go over there, do our jobs and have everyone come home in one piece, we saved lives on the battlefield. There are people alive today because of the efforts everyone put in the past two years.”
During the deployment, the unit worked closely with similar units from the Maine and Washington D.C. Army National Guards to provide medical support to coalition forces.
The Department of Defense’s Yellow Ribbon Program provides assistance to National Guard and Reserve members before, during and after deployments by connecting unit members and their families with local resources and information regarding health care, education and financial and legal benefits. Soldiers and their families attended a Yellow Ribbon event prior to the unit’s deployment and family members attended an event during the unit’s deployment.
Unit members and their families are in Sun Valley to attend a two-day reintegration program, which concludes Sunday.
This deployment marks the eighth time in the past decade an Idaho Army National Guard aviation unit deployed.
The 204th RTI claims the Idaho Governor’s Outstanding Unit Award
05.17.2019
Story by Master Sgt. Becky Vanshur
Idaho Governor Brad Little, along with Idaho Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Michael Garshak, recognized the Idaho National Guard’s top unit and several exceptional individuals in a ceremony on Gowen Field, May 17.
Little and Garshak presented the Governor’s Outstanding Unit Award to the Idaho Army National Guard’s 204th Regional Training Institute Regiment.
The regiment was recognized for aggressively directing efforts across three primary focuses of strength management, accreditation visits and supporting the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team.
Additionally, the governor and Garshak presented the Idaho Distinguished Service Medal to Cheryl Miller and Cynthia Krapff, and the Idaho Meritorious Service Award to Ric Johnston and retired Chaplian Thomas Westall for their years of valuable service to the Idaho Military Division.
“This is a great opportunity to be able to recognize the impressive units we have here in the Idaho National Guard, as well as several individuals who have made notable contributions to our Soldiers, Airmen, our families and the mission,” said Garshak. “It’s always a great honor to have the governor, our commander in chief, here to make these significant presentations.”
Idaho Army National Guard deploys to Guatemala
Courtesy Story
Idaho Army National Guard
Approximately 30 Soldiers from Idaho’s 1st Battalion of the 183rd Assault Helicopter Battalion deployed to Huehuetenango, Guatemala, Sunday in support of Beyond the Horizon 2019.
These Idaho Army National Guard aviation Soldiers will spend their annual training period providing casualty evacuation support and equipment transportation for U.S. military engineers and medics as they build schools and set up medical clinics for the citizens of Guatemala from April 28 to July 27.
“This mission is an excellent opportunity for our Soldiers to deploy to a foreign country and do their jobs in an unfamiliar environment,” said Maj. Bryan Reid, the unit’s operations and training officer.
Nearly 150 pilots, crew chiefs, mechanics, petroleum specialists, signal specialists and supply personnel from the 1-183rd Assault Helicopter Battalion will rotate through Guatemala in two-week rotations.
“It is really exciting to get an opportunity to fly helicopters in a foreign country,” said 1st Lt. Colton Ankeney, the Beyond the Horizon 2019 project officer. “It will provide its own challenges and experiences that you can’t get training in the States.”
Beyond the Horizon is a U.S. Southern Command-sponsored, joint foreign military humanitarian civic assistance exercise. Hundreds of Active Duty, National Guard and Reserve members from all services will participate in the annual exercise.
The mission helps build relationships with the host nation by working with its military to improve the infrastructure and medical wellness of their citizens. Idaho Army National Guard Soldiers will receive valuable training in a deployed location to maintain their individual and unit readiness.