Oklahoma TAG Visits Thunderbirds Overseas

Photo By Staff Sgt. Anthony Jones | Maj. Gen. Robbie Asher, the adjutant general for the state of Oklahoma, talks to Soldiers of Alpha and Bravo companies of the 1st Battalion, 179th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team while visiting troops deployed to the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, near Yavoriv, Ukraine, on Feb. 8. (Photo by Sgt. Anthony Jones)  

YAVORIV, UKRAINE

02.10.2017

Story by 1st Lt. Kayla Christopher 

45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team

Maj. Gen. Robbie Asher and Command Sgt. Maj. Tony Riggs, the adjutant general and the state sergeant major of the Oklahoma National Guard, dropped by Ukraine and Kosovo this week to check in on their deployed Thunderbirds.

Citizen-Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 179th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team are deployed to Ukraine as part of Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine. JMTG-U, which falls under 7th Army Training Command and U.S. Army Europe, pairs the Thunderbirds with Ukrainian army forces training on defensive infantry tactics.

Bravo Company, 45th Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 45th IBCT, known as the Military Intelligence Company, is mobilized in Kosovo. There, the MICO Soldiers are providing support, across an entire spectrum of military intelligence functions, to the Ohio National Guard and to Kosovo Force, the NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force.

Since 2001, the Oklahoma National Guard has deployed more service members, per capita, than any other state and, like the current assignments in Ukraine and Kosovo, the majority of past deployments have been in support of non-standard mission sets.

“Our ability to adapt is just incredible,” said Riggs. “What makes the Guard, in particular, great for missions like these is that our Soldiers are innovative; they have their military skill-sets, but then they also have their civilian skills-sets, so they’re able to attack problems from multiple perspectives.”

Inventive Oklahoma Guardsmen are solving problems every day.

For instance, when Sgt. James Elkins III, a combat training center development trainer, with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1-179th, saw that nearly 250 U.S. Soldiers deployed to Ukraine had to share a small and ill-equipped gym, he, along with other U.S. Soldiers, built an improved cross training facility.

“We wanted to design the gym to accommodate both weight-lifters and people who prefer high-intensity body-weight type workouts,” said Elkins.

In his civilian career, Elkins is a strength and conditioning coach.

“Ultimately, safety is paramount,” said Elkins. “We had to be very cautious with how we set up. We had to make sure the spacing of equipment allowed for maximum range of motion and that there was good storage, because when gear can’t be put away properly things get left out and becoming a tripping hazard.”

Asher said that in addition to the varied skill-sets Guardsmen bring to their missions, they also bring a different attitude.

“As Guard members, we work well with others,” said Asher. “When we’re called upon for state active-duty missions, we’re never the incident commander. So, we’re comfortable serving in these supporting and coaching roles.”

This mindset transitions well to the relationships the U.S. military has with coalition allies and partners, said Asher.

Both deployments have the Thunderbirds collaborating with multinational partners and allies. With JMTG-U, the 1-179th Soldiers are working with Canadian, British, Lithuanian, Polish, and Ukrainian troops; 30 different nations are contributing troops to the KFOR mission.

“It’s all about partnership,” said Riggs. “These young Soldiers, these E-4s and lieutenants, they’re our ambassadors; they’re forming relationships now that will benefit us long into the future.”

• Date Taken: 02.10.2017
• Date Posted: 02.10.2017 05:27
• Story ID: 223150
• Location: YAVORIV, UA