High ranking Kentucky National Guard officials recently met with Frankfort lawmakers to talk about some of the services they perform in the Commonwealth.
Brigadier General Bruce Bancroft is in command of the Kentucky National Guard. He said despite only operating at 75 percent funding, the Guard’s air services are the most awarded wing in the nation.
“In light of that 75 percent funding and in light of all the activities and capabilities that we bring we have 21 Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards,” Bancroft said. “Why should you care about that? That is not just the Guard, that is not just the Reserves, that the highest awarded Airlift Wing in the entire air force. That you have in your Commonwealth, I am very, very proud of that.”
The general said the aircraft maintainers are a skilled group of technicians the consists of anyone from propulsion and hydraulic engineers to data and trend analysis specialists. He said many of these tacticians also have a civilian job outside of their service as Guardsmen.
Bancroft said the Kentucky Air Guard is notable in that it has a Special Tactics Squadron.
“We are only one of two units across the National Guard, the other is in Portland, ours is in Louisville. They are specialists in pararescue, combat control, and special reconnaissance,” Bancroft said.
Bancroft said the unit has been the first responders to recent Kentucky flooding, supplying boat and air rescues and humanitarian supply aid. The general added that the Guard does not need an airfield or even lights to operate.
Bancroft said the Guard also has mobile kitchens that produce 300 meals a day for response teams and disaster victims. He said most everyone who comes through the Guard learns a skill that translates to a civilian career in the Commonwealth.