Pages
Stay In Touch
More
© 2013 KentuckyGuard
By Master Sgt. Phil Speck, 123rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
Staff Sgt. Kyle Miller (left) and Tech. Sgt. Dewayne Gibson, fire protection craftsmen from the 123rd Civil Engineer Squadron, inspect firefighting equipment Sept. 10, 2013, at the Kentucky Air National Guard Base in Louisville, Ky., prior to an overseas deployment. More than 85 Kentucky Air Guardsmen are being mobilized to support Air Expeditionary Force rotations and other Air Force missions this summer and fall. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Phil Speck)
KENTUCKY AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, LOUISVILLE, Ky. – More than 85 members of the Kentucky Air National Guard are being deployed to multiple locations this summer and fall in support U.S. military operations around the world, including Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.
The most recent group to mobilize consisted of 26 Airmen from the 123rd Security Forces Squadron, who deployed in support of an Air Expeditionary Force rotation earlier this month. They will provide security at an undisclosed air base in the Persian Gulf region for six months, according to Col. Jeffrey Peters, 123rd Mission Support Group commander.
In other mobilizations, 11 cargo handlers from the 123rd Logistics Readiness Squadron reported to Afghanistan in July and August to support Aerial Port operations, and 11 firefighters from the 123rd Civil Engineer Squadron are slated to deploy overseas in mid-October.
“Mission Support Group has seen an increase in deployments lately as group personnel are deploying as volunteers and in association with Air Expeditionary Force buckets,” Peters said. “The 123rd Civil Engineer Squadron, 123rd Force Support Squadron, 123rd Logistics Readiness Squadron and 123rd Security Forces Squadron all have Airmen deployed supporting contingency operations.”
Additional personnel from the 165th Airlift Squadron and 123rd Special Tactics Squadron deployed to Afghanistan in June and July, while other Kentucky Airmen are currently supporting domestic missions at sites across the United States.
“Most of the deployments are for six months,” Peters noted, adding, “We look forward to our Airmen’s safe return to their families.”
By Master Sgt. Philip Speck 123rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
This magazine advertisement, which appears in the centerfold of the 2012-2013 ESPN 680 College Basketball Guide, promotes the Kentucky Air National Guard’s college tuition assistance benefits. The ad is part of a new targeted-recruiting initiative. (Courtesy photo)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Kentucky Air National Guard is now using local radio and magazine ads to capture the attention of potential recruits.
The new targeted campaign, which began in November, includes radio advertisements aimed at prior service members and magazine ads designed to appeal to students who want help paying for college tuition, according to Master Sgt. Tommy Caruso, 123rd Airlift Wing Recruiting Office supervisor.
The radio ads are being broadcast on ESPN 680, a local AM sports station, while the magazine ads appear in the centerfold of the ESPN 680 College Basketball Guide, a full-color compendium of statistics, profiles, schedules and tournament brackets. The guide is being distributed at local businesses and during games for the University of Louisville, University of Kentucky and Indiana University.
Caruso said the new effort is a more effective use of recruiting dollars than handing out promotional items at job fairs and local schools.
“If you buy a backpack or a pencil, you’re only reaching one person, but by buying a 30-second radio ad you can exponentially increase exposure to your target audience,” he noted.
With local college basketball teams starting the season at the top of the rankings, the partnership with ESPN radio was an easy choice to get the Air Guard message to the masses, he added.
Master Sgt. Brett Dew, recruiting and retention superintendent for the Kentucky Air National Guard, said the campaign also is an excellent fit for the unit’s goal of recruiting a diverse and robust group of Airmen that reflects the local population.
“With college sports not knowing a color or creed, it’s a perfect tool for diversity recruiting,” he said.
Caruso said the radio ads are already getting some attention.
“Since the radio ads have started to run, we’ve seen a slight bump in prior-service applicants.”
Future ads are planned to help fill job vacancies in advanced computer fields and to find individuals interested in technology. Others openings in the health profession are being advertised in national medical journals, Caruso said.
“We are trying to get the right message to the right people at the right time,” he said.
Check out www.Kentuckyguard.com next week for the full story on the Ecuadorian Air Force visit to Kentucky!
Col. Greg Nelson, Commander of the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Airlift Wing, met with Ecuadorian Air Force members during their week-long visit to Louisville, Ky. Because of the ongoing partnership between the Kentucky National Guard and Ecuador, Five Ecuadorian Air Force aircrew members visited the Kentucky Air National Guard on a Subject Matter Expert Exchange in Mid-February. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Phil Speck)
By Master Sgt. Phil Speck, 123rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
KENTUCKY AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Military officials from five European countries toured the 123rd Airlift Wing Nov. 14 to learn about the Kentucky Air National Guard’s dual role of supporting both federal and state missions.
The group, which was comprised of military and government officials from Bulgaria, Hungary, Ireland, the Slovak Republic and the United Kingdom, participated in the tour as part of the International Visitor Leadership Program. The program was created by the U.S. State Department to
Lt. Col. Robert Hamm, vice commander of the 123rd Airlift Wing, briefs five international military officials about the mission of the Kentucky Air National Guard during a tour of the base in Louisville, Ky., on Nov. 14, 2011. The officials were visiting as part of a leadership program affiliated with the U.S. State Department. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Phil Speck)
develop stronger relations with the international community, said Eran Huber of the World Affairs Council of Kentucky and Southern Indiana, which coordinated the local visit.
The visitors were first briefed about the 123rd Airlift Wing and its general mission capabilities. Next, they were taken on a tour of the 123rd Contingency Response Group and given a briefing on the unit’s disaster-response capabilities by the CRG commander, Col. Warren Hurst. The visit then concluded with a tour of aircraft maintenance facilities and a static display of the Kentucky Air National Guard’s workhorse transport plane, the C-130 Hercules.
1st Lieutenant Mate Toth, a member of the Hungarian military and an aide de camp at the NATO Center of Excellence for Military Medicine, was most impressed with the Contingency Response Group, a self-sufficient unit capable of quickly establishing an airbase in an austere location so military airlift can begin flowing into an area affected by disaster.
“What is most amazing for me,” he said, “is that you are offering a capability package —the capability of getting in and operating an airbase for a short amount of time, and bringing everything that you need.”
Chief Master Sgt. Bill Davis, a component maintenance flight chief for the 123rd Maintenance Squadron, briefs international military officials on the C-130's cargo bay during a tour of the Kentucky Air National Guard Base in Louisville, Ky., on Nov. 14, 2011. The officials were visiting as part of a leadership program affiliated with the U.S. State Department. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Phil Speck)
The other visitors were Niolay Veskov Nikolov, deputy minister’s assistant for the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Bulgaria; Lt. Col. Anthony Cudmore, officer in charge, International Security and Defense Policy, Office of Strategic Planning, the Irish Defense Forces; Dalibor Pavolka, head of the Multilateral Relations Section for the Ministry of Defence of the Slovak Republic; and Rachael Elkins, HMG Strategy and Governance, Civil Service Fast Stream, United Kingdom.
“We were very excited to host the International visitors for their tour of the base,” said Lt. Col. Robert Hamm, vice commander of the 123rd Airlift Wing, who served as host for the event and briefed the visitors during the tour. “I found the visitors very motivated to understand what the Air National Guard does, and very interested in the dual-role mission sets and dynamics of the National Guard.”
