Air National Guard
The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.[7] It, along with the Army National Guard component of each state, district, commonwealth or territory, makes up the National Guard of each region as applicable.
Air National Guard
When Air National Guard units are used under the jurisdiction of the state governor they are fulfilling their militia role. However, if federalized by order of the President of the United States, ANG units become an active part of the U.S. Air Force.[8] They are jointly administered by the states and the National Guard Bureau, a joint bureau of the Army and Air Force that oversees the U.S. National Guard.
Organization[edit]
Air National Guard operations are arranged according to U.S. state structure, so that each of the fifty states and Washington, D.C. host at least one wing. Additionally, Guam, Puerto Rico and The US Virgin Islands each support a wing or support squadron. Some larger states such as California, Ohio, New York, and Texas host as many as five wings as well as smaller geographically separated units (GSUs). Air National Guard wings are either assigned aircraft or, in some cases, operate as "non-flying" wings. Examples of non-flying wings include regional support wings and intelligence wings. For the most part, the ANG "own" their own equipment, but in some cases, aircraft and mission support operations are shared with active-duty Air Force or the Air Force Reserve. ANG stations may be located on or next to active-duty Air Force bases, Air Reserve bases, civilian airports, Naval Air stations, Army installations, or stand-alone Air National Guard stations.
The majority of ANG wings fall under either ACC or AMC MAJCOMS. Some exceptions include the Alaska, Hawaii, and Guam wings, whose CAF and MAF units are operationally gained by Pacific Air Forces, and wings associated with U.S. Space Force, Air Education and Training Command, Air Force Global Strike Command, and Air Force Special Operations Command,[9] and U.S. Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa.
As of 30 September 2019, the U.S. Air National Guard has about 107,100 men and women in service.[10] Like the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC), most ANG members serve part-time at least one weekend a month and an additional two weeks a year (e.g., 38 days). However, the demands of maintaining aircraft mean that some AFRC and ANG members work full-time, either as full-time Air Reserve Technicians (ART) or Active Guard and Reserve (AGR) personnel. Even traditional part-time air guardsmen, especially pilots, navigators/combat systems officers, air battle managers and enlisted aircrew, often serve 100 or more man-days annually. The Air National Guard and the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) comprise the "Air Reserve Component" of the U.S. Air Force under the "Total Force" construct.
Title 32 and Title 10 Structure[edit]
Established under Title 10 and Title 32 of the U.S. Code, the Air National Guard is part of the state National Guard and is divided up into units stationed in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia (D.C.), the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the two U.S. Territories.
ANG units typically operate under Title 32 USC. However, when operating under Title 10 USC all ANG units are operationally gained by an active-duty major command of the Air Force or the U.S. Space Force. ANG units of the Combat Air Forces (CAF) based in the Continental United States (CONUS), plus a single air control squadron of the Puerto Rico ANG, are gained by the Air Combat Command (ACC). CONUS-based ANG units in the Mobility Air Forces (MAF), plus the Puerto Rico ANG's airlift wing and the Virgin Islands ANG's civil engineering squadron are gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC) The exception to this rule is the District of Columbia Air National Guard (DC ANG). As a federal district, the units of the DC ANG are under the direct jurisdiction of the President of the United States through the office of the Commanding General, District of Columbia National Guard.
In the "state" role, the Air National Guard may be "called up" for active duty by the governors to help respond to domestic emergencies and disasters, such as those caused by hurricanes, floods, fires, and earthquakes.[11] In the case of the D.C. Air National Guard, the Adjutant General of the District of Columbia reports to the Mayor of the District of Columbia, who may only activate DC Air Guard and Army Guard assets for limited activation after consultation and approval of the President of the United States.
With the consent of the state governor, members or units of the Air National Guard may be appointed, temporarily or indefinitely, to be federally recognized members of the armed forces, in the active or inactive (e.g., reserve) service of the United States.[12][13] If federally recognized, the member or unit becomes part of the Air National Guard of the United States,[14][15][16] which is one of two reserve components of the U.S. Air Force,[14] and part of the U.S. National Guard.[14] Because both state and federal ANGs go relatively hand-in-hand, they are both usually referred to collectively.
Air National Guardsmen who become members of the Active Guard and Reserve (AGR) receive full active duty pay and benefits just like active duty members of any branch of the armed forces.[17]
U.S. ANG units or members may be called up for federal active duty in times of Congressionally sanctioned war or national emergency.[11] The President may also call up members and units of the Air National Guard using a process called "federalization", with the consent of state governors or equivalents, to repel invasion, suppress rebellion, or execute federal laws if the U.S. or any of its states or territories are invaded or is in danger of invasion by a foreign nation, or if there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the federal government, or if the president is unable to execute the laws of the U.S. with the regular armed forces.[18]
Many ANG pilots work for commercial airlines, but in the ANG they may train to fly any of the aircraft in the USAF inventory, with the current exception of the B-1B Lancer and B-52 Stratofortress bombers, E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft, KC-10 Extender and the AC-130 Gunship. The Georgia Air National Guard and the Kansas Air National Guard previously flew the B-1B Lancer prior to converting to the E-8 Joint STARS and KC-135R Stratotanker, respectively. In addition, the 131st Fighter Wing of the Missouri Air National Guard transitioned from flying the F-15C/D Eagle at St. Louis International Airport/Lambert Field Air National Guard Station to the B-2 Spirit at Whiteman Air Force Base as an "Associate" unit of the Regular Air Force's 509th Bomb Wing and was re-designated as the 131st Bomb Wing.[19]
In 2012, General Norton A. Schwartz, the then-Chief of Staff of the Air Force, defended cutting nearly twice as many service members from the Air National Guard and the AFRC as from the active duty Regular Air Force in order to maintain the service's surge and rotational capabilities in the Active Component.[20] These proposals were eventually overruled and cancelled by the U.S. Congress.
Chain of command[edit]
As state militia units, the units in the Air National Guard are not in the normal U.S. Air Force chain of command. They are under the jurisdiction of the United States National Guard Bureau unless they are federalized by order of the President of the United States.[21]
The Air National Guard Readiness Center, a field operating center of the U.S. Air Force at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, performs operational and technical functions to ensure combat readiness of ANG units and is a channel of communication between the Air Force and the National Guard Bureau regarding readiness and operations.[21]
Air National Guard units are trained and equipped by the U.S. Air Force. The state (or equivalent) ANG units, depending on their mission, are operationally gained by a major command of the USAF if federalized. In addition, personnel and equipment are routinely federalized and deployed by the USAF as part of Air Expeditionary Forces.[22]
Air National Guard personnel are expected to adhere to the same moral and physical standards as their "full-time" active duty Air Force and "part-time" Air Force Reserve federal counterparts.[23] The same ranks and insignia of the U.S. Air Force are used by the ANG, and Air National Guardsmen are eligible to receive all U.S. military awards. The ANG also bestows a number of state awards for local services rendered in a service member's home state or equivalent.[24][25]
History[edit]
Origins[edit]
The modern day National Guard in the U.S. traces its origins to 13 December 1636, when the Massachusetts Bay Colony's General Court passed an act calling for the creation of three regiments, organizing existing separate militia companies in and around Boston. The creation of the militia regiments was caused by the perceived need to defend the Bay Colony against American Indians and from other European countries operating in North America. This organization formed the basis of subsequent colonial and, post-independence, state and territorial militias which later became the Army National Guard.
Being "local" ground forces affiliated with the Army, militias were considered state-centric/territorial-centric in nature, this versus naval forces, which were considered wholly activities of the federal government. This distinction accounts for why there are no National Guard components in the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps or U.S. Coast Guard. Because the present day U.S. Air Force evolved from the U.S. Army, it was only natural that a separate Air National Guard would be established with the divestiture of the former U.S. Army Air Forces and its establishment as a separate and independent U.S. Air Force in 1947.
