News from the Oklahoma National Guard

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.

National Guard Members Conduct Innovative Readiness Training
June 10, 2022 — TAHLEQUAH, Okla. - Oklahoma National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are building homes and treating patients in health clinics in Eastern Oklahoma.They are helping fellow Oklahomans thanks partly to the Innovative Readiness Training program – a Department of Defense initiative.While Soldiers of the 2120th Engineer Company, 120th Engineer Battalion, 90th... MORE

Air National Guard Airman First Class Cabrera, 124th Civilian Engineer Squadron, smooths out gravel as a part of an Innovative Readiness Training mission while building homes for the Cherokee Veterans Housing Initiative in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, June 6, 2022. IRT is a Department of Defense initiative that is a joint environment with National Guard Soldiers and Airmen.

Former 137th commander turns 100
April 9, 2022 — Seals, a former commander of the 137th Special Operations Wing (then Military Airlift Wing), celebrated his 100th birthday April 9, 2022, where he received the The Stanley F.H. Newman Award for his contributions as a civilian to the Oklahoma Air National Guard mission... MORE

Oklahoma National Guard, Azerbaijan hold SPP exchange
April 8, 2022 — OKLAHOMA CITY – Five doctors with the Azerbaijan Operational Capabilities Concept Battalion exchanged medical knowledge with the Oklahoma Army and Air National Guard March 28-April 1.The Guardsmen provided a comprehensive picture of U.S. military standards of care, from the point of injury to Role 4 care, as part of the knowledge exchange under the... MORE

Oklahoma Army National Guard Soldiers and doctors with the Azerbaijan Operational Capabilities Concept Battalion evacuate a simulated patient from a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter during a medical knowledge exchange in Oklahoma City, April 1, 2022. The Oklahoma Army and Air National Guard participated in support of the Department of Defense National Guard Bureau State Partnership Program.

Video by Sgt. Haden Tolbert

Oklahoma Army National Guard hosts Best Warrior

Oklahoma National Guard

Nov. 9, 2024 | 1:30

Sixteen Soldiers from the Oklahoma Army National Guard competed in the 2025 OKARNG Best Warrior Competition at Camp Gruber Training Center, Oklahoma, Nov. 6-8, 2024.

At the conclusion of the competition, Spc. Juan Lopez, a resident of Stillwater, Oklahoma assigned to the 1st Battalion, 160th Field Artillery Regiment, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team as a signal operations support specialist, won the title of Soldier of the Year, while Sgt. James Bording, a resident of Claremore, Oklahoma assigned to the 1st Battalion, 279th Infantry Regiment, 45th IBCT as an infantryman, was awarded the title of Noncommissioned Officer of the Year. (Oklahoma National Guard Video by Sgt. Haden Tolbert)

CG:
00:23:15
Command Sgt. Maj. John Hernandez
Command Sgt. Maj. for Oklahoma

00:38:14
Spc. Juan Lopez
2025 Soldier of the Year

00:46:23
Sgt. James Bording
2025 Noncommissioned Officer of the Year