The 164th Air Defense Artillery Brigade is an

air defense artillery The Air Defense Artillery Branch is the branch of the United States Army that specializes in anti-aircraft weapons (such as surface to air missiles). In the U.S. Army, these groups are composed of mainly air defense systems such as the Patrio ...

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. B ...

of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

as part of the

Florida Army National Guard The Florida Army National Guard is Florida's component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. In the United States, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the federal army's available combat forces ...

. The unit is headquartered in

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

on the site of the former

McCoy Air Force Base McCoy AFB (1940–1947, 1951–1975) is a former U.S. Air Force installation located 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Orlando, Florida. It was a training base during World War II. From 1951 to 1975, it was a front line Strategic Air Command ...

and is composed of two air defense artillery battalions and one field artillery battalion located at 12 National Guard armories across Central Florida.

Units

* 1st Battalion, 265th Air Defense Artillery Regiment (1-265th ADAR) (Avenger) - Palm Coast, FL ** Headquarters and Headquarters Battery (HHB)- Palm Coast, FL ** Battery A - Palatka, FL ** Battery B -

Deland, FL DeLand is a city in central Florida. It is the county seat of Volusia County. The city sits approximately north of the central business district of Orlando, and approximately west of the central business district of Daytona Beach. As of the 2020 ...

** Battery C -

** Battery D - Palm Coast, FL * 3rd Battalion, 265th Air Defense Artillery Regiment (3-265th ADAR) (Avenger) - Sarasota, FL ** Headquarters and Headquarters Battery (HHB) - Sarasota, FL ** Battery A - Bradenton, FL ** Battery B -

Fort Myers, FL Fort Myers (or Ft. Myers) is a city in southwestern Florida and the county seat and commercial center of Lee County, Florida, United States. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 92,245 in 202 ...

** Battery C -

Palmetto, FL Palmetto is a city in Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was listed as 13,323. It is part of the Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. History A post office called Palmetto ha ...

** Battery D - Sarasota, FL Peacetime mission command: * 3rd Battalion, 116th Field Artillery Regiment (3-116th FAR) (HIMARS) High Mobility Artillery Rocket System -

Plant City, FL Plant City is an incorporated city in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States, approximately midway between Brandon and Lakeland along Interstate 4. The population was 39,764 at the 2020 census. Despite many thinking it was named for flora ...

** Headquarters and Headquarters Battery (HHB) -

** Battery A -

** Battery B -

Avon Park, FL Avon Park is a city in Highlands County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 8,836, and in 2018 the estimated population was 10,695. It is the oldest city in Highlands County, and was named after Stratford-upon-Avon, ...

** 3116th Forward Support Company (3116th FSC) -

Lake Wales, FL Lake Wales is a city in Polk County, Florida. The population was 14,225 at the 2010 census. , the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 16,759. It is part of the Lakeland– Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area. Lake Wales is ...

** 715th Military Police Company (715th MPC) -

Melbourne, FL Melbourne is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando. As of th2020 Decennial Census there was a population of 84,678. The municipality is the second-largest in the county by both size and population. ...

Commanders

*First two years were in command of DET 1/32 AAMDC, which later became 164 ADA BDE.

Recent Activities

The unit has supported the homeland defense mission through seven deployments commanding a multi-component task force responsible for securing the airspace in and around the National Capital Region. The latest deployment is Task Force Apollo. In 2016, the brigade headquarters participated in Warfighter 16–3, a corps-level exercise in Fort Carson, Colorado, that allowed the unit to practice its warfighting functions, integrate as a fully functioning staff, and achieve its training objectives of planning and executing a theater-level air defense mission. In response to Hurricane Matthew, the brigade was activated in its entirety, with 1,139 Soldiers assigned to 14 counties from 6–10 October 2016. Brigade Soldiers staffed 21 shelter in 5 counties for 3,304 displaced persons; distributed 34,824 bottles of water, 17,364 MREs, and 377 tarps at 6 Point of Distribution Sites; and conducted one security mission. Later in 2016, the brigade headquarters participated in Yama Sakura 71, a theater-level exercise on Kyushu, Japan to enhance the U.S. and Japan's combat readiness and interoperability, strengthen bilateral relationships, and demonstrate U.S. resolve to support the security interests of allies and partners in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. In response to Hurricane Irma, the brigade was activated in its entirety and augmented with almost 400 Airmen, as well as Emergency Assistance Compact (EMAC) forces from the Georgia National Guard (both Army and Air), the New Jersey Army National Guard, and the United States Army Reserve, performing missions in 27 counties from 7–23 September 2017. Brigade Soldiers rescued hundreds of persons from rising water; staffed 79 shelters for 10,260 displaced persons; distributed 1,914,864 bottles of water, 1,013,808 MREs, and 366 tons of ice at 40 Point of Distribution Sites; and conducted six security missions. The University of Central Florida housed many brigade units in their stadium and practice field house, made available because of a canceled football game.

References

External links

The Institute of Heraldry: 164th Air Defense Artillery Brigade Shoulder Sleeve InsigniaNews: Hearon relinquishes command to SlaydenNews: Patching ceremony paves the way for 254th Transportation to align missionNews: Joint Task Force Archangel departs to NCRNews: Year in Review - 2016
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170512014714/http://fl.ng.mil/commands/Pages/164th-Air-Defense-Artillery-Brigade.aspx , date=12 May 2017
News: ABC News Persons of the Week
164 Military units and formations established in 2004 Orlando International Airport