The

Guam National Guard The Guam National Guard is the National Guard in the United States territory of Guam, made up of the Guam Army National Guard and the Guam Air National Guard. History The National Guard of the Island of Guam can be traced back to the first m ...

is a federally funded military force, part of the

National Guard of the United States The National Guard is a state-based military force that becomes part of the reserve components of the United States Army and the United States Air Force when activated for federal missions.Army National Guard The Army National Guard (ARNG), in conjunction with the Air National Guard, is an organized Militia (United States), militia force and a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States A ...

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

which, together with the

Guam Air National Guard The Guam Air National Guard (GU ANG) is the aerial militia of Guam, an unincorporated territory of the United States of America. It is, along with the Guam Army National Guard, an element of the Guam National Guard. As territorial militia unit ...

, comprises the

. GU ARNG is the ground component of the Guam National Guard under control of the

governor of Guam The governor of Guam ( ch, I Maga'låhen / ) is the head of government of Guam and the commander-in-chief of the Guam National Guard, whose responsibilities also include making the annual State of the Island (formerly the State of the Territor ...

that performs missions equivalent to those of the Army National Guards of the different

states of the United States In the United States, a state is a Federated state, constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it ...

, including ground defense, disaster relief, and control of civil unrest. The Guam Army National Guard also includes residents of the

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonwea ...

. A proposal has been introduced by U.S. Delegate

Gregorio Sablan Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan (born January 19, 1955) is a Northern Mariana Islander politician and former election commissioner. Elected in 2008, Sablan became the first delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the Commonwe ...

to form a National Guard unit in the Northern Mariana Islands, and feasibility studies are in progress in response to the proposal.

History

On June 27, 1980, Democratic

U.S. House The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

Delegate Delegate or delegates may refer to: * Delegate, New South Wales, a town in Australia * Delegate (CLI), a computer programming technique * Delegate (American politics), a representative in any of various political organizations * Delegate (United ...

Antonio Won Pat of

introduced H.R. 7694 to the

96th United States Congress The 96th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 1979 ...

which would authorize the establishment of a National Guard unit in Guam. On December 24, 1980, President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

signed the bill into law as Public Law 96-600. On June 5, 1981, Public Law 16-18 established the Guam Army National Guard and the

. On August 6, 1997, the Guam Army National Guard assisted with the recovery efforts of

Korean Air Flight 801 Korean Air Flight 801 (KE801, KAL801) was a scheduled international passenger flight operated by Korean Air. The flight crashed on August 6, 1997, on approach to Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport, in the United States territory of Guam, k ...

, which crashed on approach to Antonio Won Pat International Airport. In December 1997, the Guam Army National Guard was activated by Guam

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Carl Gutierrez Carl Tommy Cruz Gutierrez (born October 15, 1941) is an American (U.S. citizen) politician who was the 6th Governor of Guam, serving two four-year terms with Lieutenant Governor Madeleine Z. Bordallo from January 2, 1995 to January 6, 2003. Gutier ...

to assist with relief and cleanup efforts after Supertyphoon Paka struck Guam, causing over $100 million in damage. In 2002, members of the Guam Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 294th Infantry Regiment and the 105th Troop Command were deployed to Afghanistan as a part of

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...

. In October 2012, over 500 GU ARNG personnel formed Task Force Guam and trained at Camp Roberts, a

California Army National Guard The California Army National Guard (CA ARNG) is one of three components of the California National Guard, a reserve of the United States Army, and part of the National Guard of the United States. The California Army National Guard is composed o ...

facility near

Paso Robles, California Paso Robles ( ), officially El Paso de Robles (Spanish for "The Pass of Oaks"), is a city in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Salinas River approximately north of San Luis Obispo, the city is known for its hot ...

prior to their deployment to

Camp Phoenix Camp Qargha, was an Afghan National Army facility which was home to its Officer Academy. The Afghan Army was supported by mentors from the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Denmark. The facility was located in Kabul, about six miles from ...

near Kabul and other forward operating bases in Afghanistan. In April 2013, Task Force Guam replaced Task Force Centurion Prime, composed of 1st Battalion, 167th Infantry Regiment of the

Alabama Army National Guard The Alabama Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. National coordination of various state National Guard units are maintained through the National Guard Bureau. Alabama Army National ...

. Task Force Guam was the largest deployment in the history of GU ARNG and also included 17 soldiers who resided in the

Northern Mariana Islands The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...

. Task Force Guam returned to Barrigada in December 2013 and was replaced in Afghanistan by Task Force Fury, composed of elements of the

508th Infantry Regiment The 508th Infantry Regiment (508th PIR, 508th AIR, or 508th IR) ("Red Devils" or "Fury from the Sky") is an airborne infantry regiment of the United States Army, first formed in October 1942 during World War II. The 508th is a parent regiment u ...

82nd Airborne Division The 82nd Airborne Division is an Airborne forces, airborne infantry division (military), division of the United States Army specializing in Paratrooper, parachute assault operations into denied areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops ...

. On June 10, 2015, the Guam Army National Guard gained its first aviation assets with the delivery of two

UH-72 Lakota The Eurocopter (now Airbus Helicopters) UH-72 Lakota is a twin-engine helicopter with a single, four-bladed main rotor. The UH-72 is a militarized version of the Eurocopter EC145, built by American Eurocopter (now Airbus Helicopters, Inc.), a ...

helicopters previously assigned to D Company, 1st Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment,

District of Columbia Army National Guard The District of Columbia Army National Guard is the Army component of the District of Columbia National Guard. As the District of Columbia is a federal district and not a state, the guard is placed under the authority of the President of the Unite ...

. The helicopters were delivered via a

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

C-17 Globemaster II and transferred to the newly activated Detachment 2 within D Company. The aircraft are currently housed at

Andersen Air Force Base Andersen Air Force Base (Andersen AFB, AAFB) is a United States Air Force base located primarily within the village of Yigo in the United States territory of Guam. The host unit at Andersen AFB is the 36th Wing (36 WG), assigned to the Pacific ...

and will eventually be based at a new complex to be built at the Guard Readiness Center in Barrigada. As of January 2016, the Guam Army National Guard has about 1,300 members, with about 280 of them authorized as full-time support.

Structure

* Joint Force Headquarters Guam ** Army National Guard Element *** 473rd Judge Advocate General Detachment ** 1st Battalion, 294th Infantry Regiment *** Headquarters & Headquarters Company *** A Company *** B Company *** C Company *** D Company *** Detachment 2, Headquarters & Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 487th Field Artillery Regiment ** 105th Troop Command *** H Company, 29th Brigade Support Battalion *** 1224th Engineer Company *** 721st Army Band *** Detachment 2, D Company, 1st Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment ** 203rd Regiment — Multi-Functional Training Regiment (Regional Training Institute) ** 94th

Civil Support Team A Weapon of mass destruction Civil Support Team (WMD-CST or CST) supports civil authorities in the event of the use, or threatened use, of a weapon of mass destruction. CSTs are federally funded units established under Presidential Decision Directi ...

** Recruiting and Retention Battalion ** Medical Detachment

References

External links

Bibliography of Guam Army National Guard History
compiled by the

United States Army Center of Military History The United States Army Center of Military History (CMH) is a directorate within the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command. The Institute of Heraldry remains within the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Arm ...

Guam Army National Guard Economic Impact, from the Army National GuardGuam Guard Deploys for OEF Mission
{{NGbystate Military units and formations in Guam