Uke eorgta
uarJJtnan
GEORGIA ARMY GUARD IS TOPS IN FIRST ARMY AREA
see p. 1

A MESSAGE FROM

MAJ. GEN. BILLY M. JONES

My Fellow Guardsmen: With the advent of the New Year, it is now
time to look at some of the highlights of 1977 and set goals for 1978.
Combat readiness was foremost in out thoughts and efforts during 1977 and as a result of intensive management, 93 percent of the Army National Guard units evaluated were rated as "combat capable" by Active Army evaluators, using increasingly stringent measurement standards. This compares very favorably with 1976's assessment of 77 percent. The Air Guard also had substantial gains in the readiness status. All of its units are combat ready.
Many of our units, Army and Air, outshone those in other states by taking top honors in inspections and overall performance . The 116th Tactical Fighter Wing and the !65th Tactical Airlift Group, for example, both achieved 'Outstanding' ratings on their operational readiness inspections. In the Army Guard, the First U.S. Army rated Georgia tops in Overall Achievement among the twenty-three states in the First Army Area.

We also made great increases in our personnel strength, but it is especially in this area that we must not let up. The Army Guard showed well over 100 ner cent of its authorized strength in late Fall, but by now the rate of decline has put them back to 99 .1 percent. Until this trend is reversed, maintenance of strength will rank with training readiness as primary concerns for 1978.
Many challenges lie ahead in this next year. I am certain of our success in all endeavors if we continue to give our maximum effort and set ever higher goals. I am extremely proud of the performance of all personnel in every unit of the Army and Air National Guard of this state. I know we will be able to .say at the close of 1978 as we did in 1977, that this was our best year ever.

Volume 27- Number 3 - - - - -.......
Vke (ieorgia

165TH IS TOPS--AGAIN

(iuarJjman
October- December 1977
HONORABLE GEORGE BUSBEE Governor of Georgia
MAJ. GEN. BILLY M. JONES The Adjutant General
COL. DOUGLAS EMBRY (GaANG, Ret.) Information Director
CPT. RUFUS BARBER Editor
The GEORGIA GUARDSMAN is a quarterly publication of the Georgia Department of Defense Public Information Office. It is published in the interest of the Georgia National Guard and distributed free to all members of the Georgia Army and Air National Guard. All correspondence for the GUARDSMAN should be directed to Editor, The GEORGIA GUARDSMAN, Ga. Dept. of Defense, P.O. Box 17965, Atlanta, Ga. 30316.

The 165th Tactical Airlift Group has done it again!
The 800-man Savannah Air Guard unit was rated OUTSTANDING on its recent Operational Readiness and Management Effectiveness Inspection given by the Air Force.
A letter to Maj . Gen. John Guice, Director of the Air National Guard from General Moore, Commander of the Military Airlift Command sums up the unit's accomplishments.
"I was really glad to see the outstanding results the 165th Tactical Airlift Group achieved during the recent combined ORI/MEI. This organization attained levels of excellence (eight laudatory findings) that all Air Reserve Force units will strive for in the future. While completing its first ORI under Military Airlift Command criteria, the 165th successfully extended its string of outstanding ORI's to four, dating back to December, 1971. The Total Force Concept can be enhanced by inspection efforts like this one. I commend the people of the 165th Tactical Airlift Group for their achievements. Their proud record reflects strong leadership and a lot of plain, hard work. I am proud of them and I am sure you are too."

SQT: BEST WAY YET TO TEST SOLDIER SKILLS

Have you eve r taken a test and after you fi n ished (or it fi n ished you) you ask you rself "Why didn't I get tested on someth ing I kno w " or " I know how t o do it , but I can 't put it dow n on pape r ?"
The U.S. A rm y h as begun t o recognize t he problems that cause these questions to be asked . Fo r acti ve duty Ar-ny personnel, A rmy Gua rdsmen and A rmy Reservists, the A rmy has devised a new way of testi ng sold iers ' ski lls. Cal led t he Ski lls Qual ifi cation Test, this new method of measu ri ng sk ills is perfo rman ce-or ien t ed . Th is mean s that it measu res the soldie r 's ability to perform the sk ills that are cr itica l to h is j ob. The pu rpose of the SQT is to imp rove the combat effectiveness of un its by getting the so ld iers to do the ir jobs better .
For some Geo rgia A rmy Guardsmen testing with the SQT w ill beg in in Ap ri l, 1978.
The SQT may cons ist of one, two or th ree components : a hands-on test , a wr itten test and perfo rmance cert ificat ion.
The Hands-On Component (HOC) tests a sold ier's ability to perform critical tasks on actual equipment or simulators. The written Component (WC) is almost ent irely based on mental ability or acquired knowledge. The Performance Certification Component (PCC) requires extensive use of man ipulative or other skills involving use of the soldier 's hands, ar ms and legs . Howeve r, the PCC allows a supervisor to observe a soldier's performance during the twelve months preceding the test date and rate him using standards and conditions contained in the Soldier's Manual.
Which brings us to another important part of the SQT concept, the Soldier's Manual.
The Soldier's Manual is the basis for selecting tasks used in the SQT. There may be as many as 150 tasks in the Soldier's Manual divided among various skill levels. The tasks have a number and a title and will remain constant throughout the program. Of those 150 tasks, however, there may be only 50 on the SQT.
The SQT test notice tells which tasks will be tested. If the task is not in the test notice or the Manual, it won 't be on the test.
Test notices will be sent to each individual ten to twelve months before each test per iod. The test period will last six months and commanders may test anytime during that period when the soldier and he feel the soldier is ready.
OCTOBER - DECEMBER 1977

During the December senior commanders meeting at State Headquarters these commanders took time out from a busy schedule for this photograph with the newly acquired plaques and trophy signifying the achievements of the Georgia Army Guard . They are (lr) Maj. Hugh Estes, acting commander, 151 st Aviation Battalion; Col. John McGowan, 75th Engineer Detachment; Brig. Gen. Horace Cheek, 122nd Support Center; Maj. Gen . Jones, The Adjutant General; Brig. Gen. Gillette, A sst AG Army; Brig, Gen. Raymond Grant, 48th Brigade; Col. Dan Bullard, 265th Engineer Group; and Col. Joseph Griffin, 118th Artillery Group.
GA ARNG First In 'Overall
Achievement' In 1st Army Area
The Georgia Army National Guard has been recognized by the First United States Army as the best among all Army Guard components in the Eastern United States.
Major General Billy M . Jones, Adjutant General of Georgia, received this accolade from Lt . General Jeffrey D . Smith, First Army Commander in ceremonies at Ft. Meade, Maryland Friday (Dec. 9th).
Besides being recognized as first in overall achievement among all 23 Army Guard States and Territories in the First Army area, Georgia was rated first in individual weapons qualification, training readiness and number of overall ready units (less equ ipment on hand). In addition, the Georgia component was rated second in annual training attendance and crew served weapons qualification.
General Jones presented the awards to senior commanders of Army Guard components Saturday December 17th at National Guard Headquarters.
General Jones credited Georgia's 10,000 Army Guardsmen and women with "hard work, dedication and a great spirit of enthusiasm ."
The Adjutant General said this official recognition confirmed his belief that Army components of the Georgia National Guard "are at their highest state of combat readiness in history."

180TH siGNAL IS TOPS AT ANNUAL TRAINING

"Out of thirteen National Guard signal companies that participated in this year's annual training signal exercise, the 180th Signal Company was superior to them all."
This was the conclusion in the final evaluation of the Georgia Army Guard's 180th Signal Company after completing its annual training at Ft. Bragg, N .C. this past August.
This was not the only indication of the superior performance of this unit. Colonel Thomas Nelson, Commander of the 35th Signal Group at Ft. Bragg, also presented the 180th with a certificate of achievement.
Performing like they did at annual training was not just something that happened once the unit reached Ft. Bragg. Preparations and intensive training for this two-week trial began long before the convoy rolled away from the Covington armory.

In February, 1977, Cpt. John Bruno took command of the 180th and immediately began to prepare for annual training '77 . All training was aimed at the primary mission of the company: to establish an Army area signal center providing communication between surrounding units and the Army theater.
After months of practical but intensive training the unit was ready to head for Ft. Bragg.
On July 23, the unit left Covington for Ft. Bragg. As Capt. Bruno put it, "things went well right from the beginning. The convoy even left on time."
"In spite of the fact that shower points were miles away, all meals were served in the field and twelve of the fifteen nights were spent in tents, the morale started high and stayed high," Bruno pointed out.

116TH TFW MEMBERS MAKE IT A FAMILY AFFAIR - (Left photo) Senior Master Sergeant Otis Hansard (2nd from left) watches as his daughter, Barbara, is sworn into the 116th Tac
Fighter Wing by Lt. Col. James Mercer, Commander
of the 116th Combat Support Group. SMSgt. Hansard's son, SSgt. Leroy Hansard (1). has been a member of the Air Guard since 1972. (Center photo) Master Sergeant Roy Owenby (r) stands with his daughter, Linda 0. Jones, as she is sworn into the 116th Combat Support Group by Major Bob
Cochran. (Right photo) Lt. Col. James Hulsey (I)
left his weekend military duties with \he Georgia
Air Guard but his son, Second Lt. Mark Hulsey, is
also a member of the same unit, the 116th Civil
Engineering Squadron. Welcoming Lt. Hulsey to the unit is Lt. Col. Mercer, Commander of the 116th
Combat Support Group.
2

TH E GEORGIA G UAR DS MAN

164TH GOES TO ANNISTON FOR A-T - The 164th Maintenance Company from Savannah showed off its skills at Anniston Army Depot, Alabama during annual training 1977. (left photo) Brig. Gen. John Gillette (2nd from left), Asst. AG for Army, talks with Georgia Army Guardsmen while they work in the depot alongside active Army and civilian employees. (right photo) Guardsmen not only worked, but they learned. This Guardsman gets some instruction on a piece of equipment from one of the civilian technicians.

GUARD GENERATORS SAVE FISH -Actually this tale is not as fishy as it may sound. When fish at the Georgia Trout Hatchery at Buford began dying, a team from the Environmental Protection Agency -came in to run tests on the water. In order to complete their tests the EPA team needed a good electrical power source for their equipment and power outages had been occurring in the area. In this photo, SSgt. Henry Miller, Bethlehem, checks out the generator in the background furnished by the 158th Military Intelligence Company in Winder. Capt. Lee Richter, 151 st Aviation Battalion, looks over one of the fish holding tanks with Assistant Hatchery Superintendent Howard Delo (r).

OCTOBER - DECEMBER 1977

3

ANG'S 283rd Creates
Landmark At Ft. Stew
How do you create a Ia days?
Ask Savannah's 283rd C Squadron, Georgia Air Nat
They created one h two monster "radars"
ance. Taller
are very h trailers, equ make the sq
But how landmark in just
Picture two unfold and ex Visualize 24 gia gether to form big trailers contain gadgetry and instant landmark.
The whole setu
Once a complete syst nation, its 11-man erect can have it assembled a
If mobilized and provid can deploy up to ten systems world, according to Chief War Prince, the squadron's commu maintenance officer.
"The squadron mission cations facilities and servi . U.S. Air Force requi "We might also be of Staff to suppo . fense operation a
The 283r
training purposes only Ft. Stewart and Savannah
4

n simutaneously ications or a com-
ype communiThe Ft. Stewart
have two any has four tewart base
ion r at een
L.
ave to
"the
equipment." 283rd doing ravis Field and
In just four
THE GEORGIA GUARDSMAN

Soldiers of the 24th Division gather around a tank retriever as one of the Guard instructors goes over some operating procedures.

A Reversal Of Roles: Guardsmen Teach Regulars

by SP4 Steve Janosco, USA

When it comes to training of Army components, some may assume active duty soldiers are the instructo rs and national guardsmen the students. Not always.
In an exchange of roles, soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 108th Armor, Georgia Army National Guard, gave some valuable training to the Army's 24th Division at Ft. Stewart.
Their class was made up of 59 men from two new 24th Infantry Division units, the 2nd Battalion, 70th Armor and the 5th Battalion, 32nd Armor. Both are part of the recently reactivated 2nd Brigade .
Major Benny Blalock, operat ions and training officer of the 70th Armor, said that because both units are new, they have not received their own equipment yet and have none to train on .
The Georgia Army National Guard has an equipment motor pool at Ft. Stewart with tanks that are almost identical to what the 24th will be receiving.
Blalock said that in planning for the act ivation of the two 24th Division tank battalions it was soon realized they were going to have brand new troops right out of advanced individual training.
"We were not sure what their skill level would be . In order to nave qualified, certified drivers on board when our first tanks arrived , we decided on asking the 48th Brigade, which is the roundout brigade for the 24th, to corre in and do the training for us and put the shoe on the other foot," explained Blalock.
Captain Johnny Brown, adjutant of the 108th Armor, said his men were going through the "bare basics" of driving techniques for the soldiers.
The "Victory" Division students started their

first day of training, Brown said, with the before, during, and after-operational maintenance checks a driver must perform before he "gets in his vehicle and cranks it up."
Day Two saw the Taro Leafers going into the driver's hatch, starting an(j stopping the tanks, and pulling maintenance.
In the afternoon "they got out into the woods with the tanks and maneuvered them around" and had arm and hand signals "so they can move the tanks around safely in the motor pool," said the captain.
On their third and final day they started with tank recovery, had driver testing, and were issued licenses by their battalions.
"I think we have a lot to teach . We've got a lot to give to the Army and the Army's got a lot to give to us," commented 2nd Lieutenant Kenneth Hackney from Dalton, Ga., a platoon leader in Company C of the 108th.
Hackney, one of the primary instructors , said teaching active duty soldiers was a little weird at first because he'd never been confronted with a situation like that.
But Specialist 4 Edwin Caraballo, a former combat engineer assigned to the 70th Armor's Headquarters and HQ Co ., noted, " . . . It doesn't really make any difference whether you get trained by the regular A r my or by the National Guard ... as long as you get trained and have somebody that knows what he's doing and telling you."
(Besides Capt . Brown and Lt. Hackney, those
instructing from the 108th Armor were Staff Ser geants Dale Brumbelow, James Pass, Michael Leonard and Ben Livesay .)

OCTOBER - DECEMBER 1977

5

AIR GUARDSMAN SECOND IN PHOTO CON- States/National Guard Bureau Photo Contest. Sgt. TEST - This is the photo that won SSgt. Jimmy Watford is a photographer with the 165th Combat Watford runner-up honors and 75 dollars in the Support Squadron in Savannah. 1977 National Guard Association of the United

FORMER GA ARMY GUARDSMEN IS FORSCOM CSM - Command Sergeant Major William A . Connelly assumed the position of Command Sergeant Major for Headquarters, U.S. Army Forces Command at Ft. McPherson this past summer. A native Georgian, CSM Connelly was once a member of the Georgia Army National Guard's 190th Tank Battalion from 1950 to 1954 when he joined the active Army. CSM Connelly was born in Monticello and attended Georgia Southwestern College in Americus. He will be CSM for the Army's largest command which includes soldiers in 22 Army installations and all U.S. Army Reserve units throughout the U.S., the Canal Zone, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
6

THE GEORGIA GUARDSMAN

Guardsmen Assist Toccoa Flood Victims

Georgia Army National Guardsmen of Toccoa's 166th Maintenance Company assisted in emergency operations in the aftermath of the Toccoa Falls dam tragedy on Nov. 6. Initially, the Guard furnished a 600-ga lion water trailer to the Stephens County Hospital when water lines were severed by the rushing waters from the rupture in the dam.
Thirty Guardsmen were placed on State Active duty on Nov. 7 to assist the Georgia State Patrol and local law enforcement agencies in policing the large area of destruction. Two five-ton wreckers from the Toccoa and Lavonia units were employed in debris clearance by the Guard organizations. National Guard helicopter crews were also involved in transporting the Adjutant General and other officials to the scene of the Toccoa Falls tragedy where emergency operations continued to assist the survivors in their recovery effort.
President Carter, at the request of Governor George Busbee, approved federal disaster assistance and teams of officials from many agencies of the state and federal government manned a disaster assistance center to provide emergency aid to the survivors and others affected by the loss of life and property.

In these two photos Guardsmen pull demolished vehicles from the river. The Guardsmen and their wreckers assisted cleanup operations at the site of one of Georgia's worst disasters.

REIDSVILLE'S BATTERY B TOP ARTILLERY UN IT - Battery B, 1st Battalion 230th Artillery in Reidsville took top honors in the Battalion during their two-week annual training at Ft. Stewart in August. The awards are Commander's Trophy, Best Firing Battery, Best Howitzer Section and Best Tactical Bivouac Area. Looking over the awards with the unit commander, Capt Larry Bacon (left ctr}. are (1-r) SFC Robert Hutcheson, Chief of the Firing Battery; PFC Tommy Jarriel, a member of the Fire Direction Center; and Sgt. Dan Hodges, the Forward Observer .

OCTOBER- DECEMBER 1977

7

SSgt. Tim Evans and Sgt. Linda Evans
The Guard Brought
Them Together
"The Guard has really more to offer than they publish in those fancy brochures," according to SSgt. Tim Evans of the 283 rd Combat Communications Squadron, Geo rgia Air National Guard. "The 283rd brought us together," says Sgt . Linda (M rs. Tim) Evans, "and that is much more special to both of us."
Tim joined the Savannah unit after coming out of the U.S. Air Force on the Palace Chase program. Linda, who had moved to Savannah to live with her sister, enlisted in the Guard in 1974. At the end of the January unit training assembly, Tim met Linda in th.e hall of the armo ry and asked her out. Since Tim was living in Charleston where his civilian job is with the Naval Shipyard, they initially only saw each other during training weekends .
In July, 1976, they were on a morale flight with other members of the unit to Las Vegas .
"It was quite a thrill to be able to see Las Vegas together," said Linda, "and now we are anx iously awaiting new travels ." Engaged in early 1977, they were married July 27, 1977. Now living in Charleston, they make the two-and-a-half-hour drive to Savannah for drills each month and are both active in recruiting efforts of the unit.
Interestingly enough, they were "separated" before they were married! During the last annual field training, "Operation Healthy Strike," Linda, assigned to the medical section, and Tim, assigned to long-haul communications, were 1200 miles apart. She had to stay in Savannah and he was working at Otis ANG Base, Massachusetts.
"While we both enjoyed that time away just before we were married," explained Tim, "we're looking forward to being together during future training periods."
8

SOME AWARDS AT ANNUAL TRAINING- (Left to right, top to bottom) (1) MG Billy M. Jones receives the Georgia Distinctive Service Medal from Governor George Busbee. (2) Col. Joe Griffin, Army Commendation Medal. (3) Lt. Col. Evert Heath, Ga. Commendation Medal. (4) Capt. William Nesbitt, GCM. (5) Capt . Marvin Wyatt, GCM. (6) Capt. Teresa EhrliCh, GCM. (7) Capt. William Lardin, GCM. (8) Sgt. Maj. Daniel Ross, GCM. (9) Sgt. lC. Ralph Pippin, GCM. (10) Sgt. lC. Roy Callaway, GCM . (11) Staff Sgt. Douglas Tolbert, GCM. (12) Capt . William Thielmann, Armor Leadership Award for 348th Cav. Other recipients of the Georgia Commendation Medal were Maj. George Walker, Capt. Winburn Dickens, Capt. Jean Cobb, Capt. William Brooks, CW4 Edwin Gale, CSM John Woods, 1st Sgt. Virgil Hickox, and M. Sgt. Bernard Kenemer.
THE GEORGIA GUARDSMAN

DOD To Test Re-Up Bonus In Army Guard

Seven states have been selected to test the effect of a reenlistment bonus on recruiting and retention in the Reserve Components. In light of the re-up bonus success of the active forces, Congress has authorized the Secretary of Defense to run a limited test program in the Army National Guard and the Army Reserve. The Reserve Compensation System Study (RCSS) is directing the test for the DOD. Organized a year ago at the direction of the President, the RCSS is studying the impact of various current and deferred compensation elements on the ability of the Guard and Reserve to meet manpower requirements for mobilization.
STATES SELECTED
All states were examined with regard to size, per capita income, retention rates, urban population, and manufacturing population in order to arrive at the seven states where the bonus will be used and the seven additional states with similar characteristics, but where the bonus will not be applied. Reenlistment rates in both bonus and non-bonus states will be monitored throughout the test. Estimating that 2,000 bonuses could be paid, the desired number of eligible members is 5,450. The seven test states selected, with an eligible population of approximately 5,500, are Kansas, New Jersey, Oregon, Michigan, Georgia, North Dakota, and West Virginia. The seven states which will not pay the bonus but whose extension rates will be monitored are Iowa, New York, Washington, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Idaho and South Carolina.
TO BE ELIGIBLE
Legislative provisions and further restrictions designed to produce a meaningful test design have limited eligibility to those persons who:
a. have initially enlisted in a reserve component (other

than an enlistment in a reserve component under the delayed enlistment program for the active forces). b. have completed less than eight years of total service. c. have an expiration of term of service (ETS) between 1 January 1978 and 31 December 1978 and
( 1) sign a reenlistment contract or extension agreement prior to 30 September 1978.
(2) NOTE: ARNG members with an ETS between 1 October 1978 and 31 December 1978 must reenlist prior to 30 September 1978 to earn the bonus. d. be a member of the designated test unit since 1 October 1977 and in a satisfactory participation status in accordance with NGR 350-1. e. possess the required military skill and the ability to perform without further training in the position for which reenlisting or extending. f. not be a civilian employee of a unit whereby membership as a Guardsman is a condition of employment. g. meet all other eligibility criteria normally associated with reenlistment or extension.
THE OBLIGATION
In order to participate in the program and receive a bonus, a person must reenlist or voluntarily extend his/her current enlistment for a period of three or six years and contractually obligate him/herself to serve satisfactorily as prescribed by Army National Guard Regulation 350-1. The complete reenlistment/extension period must be in a selected unit of the Army National Guard.
THE BONUS
The bonus will be an initial payment of $450 for a three year reenlistment or extension or $900 for a six year re-up.
A subsequent payment of $150 will be paid upon completion of each year of the period of the reenlistment or extension during which the member satisfactorily participated with a selected reserve unit of the Army National Guard.

Get Out of the Guard
All You Can

Why should you get in the Guard? Bec::>use you belong in the Guard.
Think about it. Without you there would be no National Guard to back up our active armed forces in the event we 're called upon to meet state or federal emergencies. No National Guard to save lives or protect property should natural disasters and other emergencies strike your community.
The National Guard is the most important part-time job in America. And if you leave you 'll be tossing away some very important benefits, too.

Think some of them over and decide: You 're earning good pay-extra money that could be as much as 20% of your annual income. How will you replace it once you 're out?
You already have a good start on the promotion ladder. And your experience and longevity will enable you to be promoted faster.
Many leadership positions you hold in the Guard can help you attain supervisory positions in your civilian job too .
The close friends you 've made in the Guard share the same sense of respon-

sibility as you do. And they're countir on you not to quit.
You 're nearly a third of the way qualifying for a substantial governmer pension. There's other retirement bene fits , too. Lots of them after you 've co~ pleted 20 years of creditable service. ,
If you 're thinking about giving up t~ Guard , think about all you 're giving UR The Guard is a good deal. For your cour~ try. For your community. And for you .
Keep the most important parttime jol in America!