NEW ORLEANS (KELO.com) -- South Dakota Air and Army National Guard units continue to earn top honors for performance excellence as they brought home six awards from the 2018 National Guard Association of the United States annual conference in New Orleans, Aug. 27.
For the fourth year in a row, the S.D. Air National Guard's 114th Fighter Wing of Sioux Falls was the recipient of a Distinguished Flying Unit Plaque, which recognizes the five most outstanding Air National Guard flying units in the nation.
This is the eighth time the 114th has received the honor.The 114th also received the William W. Spruance Safety Award, presented annually to the National Guard unit that makes the most significant contribution to accident prevention, and the Maj. Gen. John J. Pesch Flight Safety Award, presented annually to two flying units judged to have demonstrated the highest standards of flight safety in the Air National Guard.S.D.
Army National Guard units received awards in all three of the Army categories. The 152nd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion of Pierre received the Maj. Gen. Milton A. Reckord Trophy as the most outstanding Army National Guard battalion in the nation for achieving the highest standards in training and readiness.
The Yankton-based B Battery, 1st Battalion, 147th Field Artillery, received the General John J. Pershing Plaque for weapons marksmanship. The unit attained the highest figure of merit (highest percentage of assigned members qualified) during annual weapons qualification firing with assigned individual weapons.
The Watertown-based Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 147th Field Artillery, received the Certificate of Victory for having the highest overall figure of merit in the nation.
"The state of readiness and overall quality of our units is unmatched by any other state as evidenced by the selection for these prestigious awards," said Maj. Gen. Tim Reisch, SDNG adjutant general. "I couldn't be more proud of the Soldiers and Airmen of the South Dakota National Guard!"
SOURCE: SDNG