On Oct. 1, 2012 then-Detachment 2, Company C, 2nd Battalion, 135th General Support Aviation Battalion (GSAB), more commonly known as “DUSTOFF” started writing its own history chapter as part of the Illinois Army National Guard.
The final chapter for Detachment 2, Company G, Detachment 7, Company D, and Detachment 8, Company E, 1-111th GSAB was written July 12, as the unit cased its guidon at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Kankakee, ending a storied chapter in aviation medical evacuation in the Illinois Army National Guard.
“Today, we close an important chapter in Illinois Army Aviation as we deactivate these detachments and case their guidon,” said Lt. Col. Zachary De Groot, Commander, 1-106th Assault Helicopter Battalion (AHB). “Although this ceremony marks the end of the unit’s current organizational structure, it does not mark the end of its legacy, its Soldiers, or its contribution to the readiness of Illinois Army Aviation.”
In November 2012, 1-106th AHB sent out a statewide announcement to begin manning Detachment 2, Company C, 2-135th GSAB specifically focused on the unique skill set required of a flight paramedic.
“There is a profound philosophy embedded in the very DNA of the MEDEVAC culture,” said Capt. Jonathan Mercado, the MEDEVAC Commander. “The acronym DUSTOFF – Dedicated Unhesitating Service To Our Fighting Force is not only a callsign, but a promise that when the world is at its worst, the best is on their way.”
In 2015, 21 Soldiers from Detachment 2, Company C, and two Soldiers from Detachment 8, Company D, 2-135th GSAB mobilized to Kuwait in support of Operation Enduring Freedom-Spartan Shield. Along with members of Company C, 171st GSAB from New Mexico and Medevac detachments from Nebraska and Wisconsin, Company C, 2-135th GSAB provided aeromedical evacuation and aeromedical evacuation support from July-December 2015.
During the Detachment’s 2015 deployment, they performed 14 medical evacuation missions under day and night vision conditions, executed more than 1, 200 flight hours, and performed numerous training missions with Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines throughout the Kuwait area of responsibility.
Sgt. 1st Class Timothy Panatera, the detachment’s noncommissioned officer in charge and senior enlisted leader said the purpose of a medical evacuation or MEDEVAC is simple.
“MEDEVAC’s purpose is to provide rapid transport and enroute medical care for ill or injured patients,” he said. “While the concept is simple, accomplishing this goal has many challenges. It takes every Soldier of that DUSTOFF unit to ensure those patients are afforded the absolute best level of care. Our Soldiers have proven themselves time and time again. From deployment missions, training exercises, and advanced training courses, our focus never wavered.”
On Sept. 21, 2016, upon return from deployment, the unit was reflagged as Detachment 2, Company G, Detachment 7, Company D, and Detachment 8, Company E, 1-111th GSAB.
De Groot said the unit’s commitment was demonstrated during the unit’s 2015 deployment to Kuwait but didn’t stop there.
“It continued through thousands of flight and maintenance hours, international engagements with our partners in Poland, personnel recovery training at Nellis Air Force Base, support to Special Operations training at Fort Bliss, and numerous joint missions,” said De Groot. “Most recently the unit’s 2025 annual training at Camp Ripley demonstrated the professionalism and readiness of this formation. For the first time in more than two years, the detachment conducted critical MEDEVAC training missions that exercised the full organization – from tactical operations center functions and mission coordination to patient treatment and movement from the point of injury to a medical treatment facility.”
De Groot said the unit’s training missions did more than validate aircrews.
“They required leaders, maintainers, flight medics, operations Soldiers, and sustainment Soldiers to work as one team,” he said. “Captain Mercado played a central role in that effort. He helped ensure the detachment maintained readiness level one crews who were available and ready for MEDEVAC missions. He led his formation to be the fiscal year 2026 runner up in the Army National Guard’s Modified Tables of Organization and Equipment small category of the Army Award for Maintenance Excellence.”
The award recognizes units with outstanding maintenance operations and readiness. It honors those units whose maintenance practices set the benchmark for the Army. De Groot said the honor would not have been possible without the leadership and hard work of the organization.
De Groot also recognized Panatera.
“Together Captain Mercado and Sergeant First Class Panatera approached the deactivation with discipline, accountability, and genuine concern for their Soldiers,” De Groot said. “Their professionalism ensured the unit completed its responsibilities with dignity and honor.”
De Groot emphasized the training at Camp Ripley will not be lost.
“Readiness does not reside only in an organization’s name or in the guidon we case today,” he said. “It resides in trained Soldiers, experienced leaders, proficient crews, disciplined maintainers, and cohesive teams. Those Soldiers will carry their knowledge, standards, and experience into their next formations where they will continue supporting the Illinois Army National Guard and the mission of the U.S. Army.”
Mercado said the July 12 ceremony honored how the history of the MEDEVAC detachment lived up to that promise.
“I’ve had the unique privilege of serving as the commander during this final chapter of our timeline. But the strength of this unit was not built overnight. We follow a long line of great commanders, warrant officers, and noncommissioned officers who came before us, paving the way and setting the standard for what this organization became,” he said. “What truly makes an organization great isn’t the aircraft or the equipment. It’s the Soldiers. Our most valuable asset – the ones who routinely step away from their civilian lives, from friends and family, dedicating time and energy to the collective effort of building on the foundation of this unit.”
Mercado said each Soldier who served in the detachment should be proud of their role in the unit’s history.
“You drove this mission and made it happen,” he said. “Your dedication and service to the MEDEVAC mission more than just the Soldier who relies on our support on their worst day.”
He said the Soldiers will carry that legacy forward.
“While we spend today casing our colors, the true legacy of this organization is not rolled up in a piece of fabric,” he said. “It lives on in the way we carry ourselves, the standards we keep, and the professionals we will continue to be in our next duty assignments.”
Panatera said from the beginning of the unit’s formation in 2012 to today, every Soldier, regardless of military occupational specialty, exceeded the standard. But each Soldier’s support system also played a role in the unit’s success.
“We also thank our families for their continued understanding and support,” he said. “It has been an absolute honor to watch this unit evolve throughout the years. For myself, I have grown as a Soldier, instructor, leader and most proudly a senior aviator.”
De Groot summed up everyone’s sentiment during the ceremony.
“Today, we case the guidon, but the spirit of DUSTOFF and Company G, 1-111th continues,” he said.
The approximately 30 Soldiers serving in the detachment have transferred to other Illinois Army National Guard units.