News from the Oklahoma National Guard

OKNG senior leader goes extra mile for 50th birthday
August 3, 2022 — For one Oklahoma National Guard senior leader, simply turning 50 was not enough - he needed a challenge... MORE

Command Sgt. Maj. Walter Jolly, the command sergeant major for the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, completes a 50 kilometer trail run near Quanah, Texas, May 14, 2022. Jolly ran 50 kilometers to celebrate his 50th birthday. (Photo provided by Command Sgt. Maj. Walter Jolly)

Soldiers from 700 Brigade Support Battalion conduct annual training at the Sustainment Training Center
August 3, 2022 — More than 200 Soldiers with the 700th Brigade Support Battalion, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Oklahoma National Guard, received specific Military Occupational Specialty training at the Sustainment Training Center at Camp Dodge Joint Maneuver Training Center, Iowa, July 2022... MORE

Spc. Schneider Njifunuh, an automated logistical specialist with Company A, 700th Brigade Support Battalion, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Oklahoma National Guard, conducts simulated warehouse functions at the Sustainment Training Center on Camp Dodge near Johnston City, Iowa, July 18, 2022. The 700th BSB conducted annual training at the STC to enhance technical and tactical unit training. (Oklahoma National Guard photo by Spc. Danielle Rayon)

Oklahoma Guard units conduct airborne operations with Nebraska, Indiana
August 3, 2022 — Tactical Air Control Party Specialists (TACPs) from the 146th Air Support Operations Squadron (ASOS), Will Rogers Air National Guard Base, Oklahoma City and jumpmasters with the 2nd Battalion 134th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Battalion Combat Team (IBCT), Nebraska, and a detachment in Indiana, who wear the “Thunderbird” patch of the 45th IBCT, Oklahoma Army National Guard, conducted static-line airborne operations at Fort Chaffee Joint Maneuver Training Center near Fort Smith, Arkansas, July 23, 2022... MORE

Staff Sgt. Rob Stokley, an airborne Soldier with Company C, 2nd Battalion, 134th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Nebraska Army National Guard aligns his parachute to pack up after a high-performance jump from a C-130 “Hercules” on Rattlesnake Drop Zone at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas, July 23, 2022. The 2nd Battalion is the newest unit to join the 45th IBCT, bringing with them airborne capabilities that the 45th has not had in more than 50 years. (Oklahoma National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. John Stoner)

Oklahoma National Guard Supports Wildland Firefighting
August 2, 2022 — OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma Army National Guard helicopter crews dropped nearly 400,000 gallons of water on wildfires in Northwestern Oklahoma July 16-19 and 27-29.During the two multiday missions, Oklahoma Army National Guard crews flying UH-60 Black Hawk and LUH-72 Lakota helicopters conducted 744 water drops, releasing around 399,700 gallons on... MORE

An Oklahoma Army National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk flies over the 702 Fire in Blaine County, Oklahoma, after dropping more than 600 gallons of water on the fire, July 16, 2022. The Oklahoma National Guard is supporting the Oklahoma Forestry Services and local fire departments from the air using a UH-60 Black Hawk and a LUH-72 Lakota.

Oklahoma Guard F-16s receive fifth-generation radars
July 1, 2022 — The 138th Fighter Wing is one of nine Air National Guard bases chosen to receive upgraded, fifth-generation radars for the F-16 Viper... MORE

Lt. Col. David S. Gritsavage, F-16 pilot, 138th Fighter Wing, performs a flyby during his 5,000th hour of flight time in an F-16, Sept. 21, 2021, at Tulsa Air National Guard Base, Okla. Gritsavage is one of few pilots to accomplish this feat in an F-16, and the first to cross that threshold at the 138th Fighter Wing.

(Oklahoma Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. C.T. Michael)

137th SOMDG medical personnel conduct SPP visit to Azerbaijan
June 30, 2022 — Members of the 137th Special Operations Medical Group traveled to Azerbaijan to conduct a combat casualty care knowledge exchange with Azerbaijan Operational Capabilities Concept Battalion doctors and medical noncommissioned officers during a State Partnership Program visit to Baku, Azerbaijan, June 20-24, 2022... MORE

Northern Agility 22-1 Begins in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula
June 28, 2022 — MARQUETTE, Michigan - U.S. Air Force KC-135 aircraft from the 127th Wing, Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Michigan, arrived at Sawyer International Airport June 27 to kick off Northern Agility 22-1, a total-force Agile Combat Employment exercise led by the Michigan Air National Guard.Upon arrival, the tankers performed wet-wing defuel... MORE

DM hosts mental health first aid course
June 27, 2022 — An Oklahoma Air National Guard first sergeant hosted a Mental Health First-Aid class to certify Airmen as mental health first-aiders at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., June 21-24, 2022... MORE

Pictured above is a group of Airmen listening to a brief in a classroom.

Oklahoma National Guard Team Wins Colorful Cyber Shield 2022 Gaming Competition That Allows Cyber Warriors to Test Their Skills Against Their Peers
June 23, 2022 — If it wasn’t for the rows upon rows of computers and the random 7-foot man in a ghillie suit, you might have thought you ran into a wayward group of tourists on the way to a tropical paradise. The place was filled with Hawaiian shirts and flip flops, with one man strumming on his ukulele. Nope – this was Netwars. ... MORE

Oklahoma National Guard Participates in Cyber Shield 2022, the DoD’s Largest Unclassified Cyber Defense Exercise
June 23, 2022 — Approximately 15 Oklahoma National Guard cyber and computer security specialists are honing their skills, June 5-17, as part of Cyber Shield 2022, the Department of Defense’s largest unclassified cyber defense exercise involving approximately 800 National Guard cyber specialists as well as law enforcement, legal, government and corporate partners from across the country... MORE

Lt. Col. Steven Stanford, Oklahoma National Guard G6, speaks with Oklahoma National Guard cyber and computer security specialists during Cyber Shield 2022.

Video by Sgt. Haden Tolbert

Oklahoma National Guard trains alongside Oklahoma Highway Patrol to protect rights and property

Oklahoma National Guard

Oct. 2, 2024 | 1:32

“Always Ready, Always There” is the motto National Guardsmen train and live by. It’s more than a motto though, it is a promise to their fellow Oklahomans that they will be ready to support their state and nation in times of need.

It is a promise that members of the Oklahoma National Guard Reaction Force, a rotating unit assignment that provides manpower to civil authorities to support their agencies during natural disasters or civil unrest. It is a promise that requires consistent preparation. (Oklahoma National Guard Video by Sgt. Haden Tolbert)