Powering Through the Dark: How the Texas Military Department Leads the Nation in Redefining Energy Resilience
AUSTIN, TX (April 20, 2026) – When the power goes out, most organizations sit around and wait for it to come back. But for one Texas agency, those dark days are over. The Texas Military Department (TMD) does the opposite — it plans for it, trains for it, and deliberately shuts power off to prove it can operate without it.
In fact, TMD is at the forefront in implementing such exercises across the Department of Defense (DoD). After last week’s successful real-time run, the Texas National Guard became the first in the entire DoD portfolio to operate on microgrids alone for 72 straight hours – breaking the DoD record by over...
Colonel Rolando Aguilar, an F-16 pilot with the Texas Air National Guard, recalls the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, a day off that turned into a scramble to intercept an inbound aircraft he didn't yet know was Air Force One.
Woken by his unit's crew chiefs with news that a plane had hit the World Trade Center, Harris ran for his jet and was strapped in when his wing commander gave the order: intercept an aircraft belonging to "one of our former members." Harris didn't understand what that meant until he was airborne and caught his first look at the unmistakable blue-and-white livery of Air Force One.
With the FAA having grounded every other aircraft in the country, Aguilar and his fellow Houston-based Guardsmen, flying for the same...
Chief Warrant Officer 5 Bernard L. Aguon, Command Chief Warrant Officer of the National Guard (center) addresses a cohort of warrant officers during Cyber Shield 2026 at the Professional Education Center in Little Rock, Ark., July 23, 2026. Cyber Shield 2026 is the largest annual Department of Defense cyber training event, consisting of over 1,000 participants from 44 states and territories as well as 23 countries who have gathered to collaborate and strengthen cyber capabilities globally. (Texas Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Archer)
Airmen assigned to the 149th Medical Group Detachment 1 demonstrate disaster response readiness during a 6th CBRN Enhanced Response Force Package evaluation exercise at Disaster City in College Station, Texas. The exercise tested the medical element’s ability to provide sustained emergency care, integrate with Army National Guard response elements and support civil authorities during a complex domestic emergency.
Texas Army National Guardsmen attend Cyber Shield 2026 both as attendees and trainers. They will use the information gained to thwart would-be cyber attackers targeting infrastructure in the Lone Star State.
