Planes, tanks and helicopters: Equipment shortfalls are hurting the Guard’s readiness, leaders say

By: Kyle Rempfer

NEW ORLEANS — The Tennessee National Guard currently has trainers in Ukraine, armored units in Poland, aviators in Kosovo, and other airmen and soldiers deployed across Southeast Asia and the Middle East. That's to say nothing of domestic missions like disaster relief for which they are also responsible.

Although those missions are broad, Tennessee Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Max Haston said his guardsmen are well trained to accomplish their tasks. Still, readiness shortfalls on big-ticket items strain their capabilities.

“The biggest thing that does impact readiness ... is ensuring we have a common platform across our services,” Haston told Military Times.

“We've done a terrific job of taking care of our soldiers with the fielding of individual personal equipment — ballistic vests, helmets, all that stuff. ... But it's the major end items. It's the tanks, the Bradley [fighting vehicles], the helicopters and the planes," he said.

Haston explained that readiness issues aren't exclusive to Tennessee Guardsmen. He said they were “enterprise-wide," and boiled down to “dollars and cents.”

Readiness concerns aren't something the Guard cooked up on its own. It was the first issue Defense Secretary Jim Mattis brought up during his speech at the 2018 National Guard Association of the United States conference in New Orleans last month.

“The way we're going to address the challenges we face is we're going to restore readiness across our force, and you [the National Guard] are considered every bit a part of that force as any active element," Mattis said. “We cannot be unprepared when destiny in the form of mobilization day taps us on the shoulder, for then it will be too late."

While his words were welcomed, Guard leadership was still left wondering what the next step will be while they juggle missions abroad with training constraints at home due to outdated equipment.

One example: the Tennessee Army National Guard's 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment operates M1A1 Abrams AIM SA tanks, according to Haston. However, active-duty Army units, by and large, are operating the newer M1A2 SEP variant.

Full article: https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-air-force/2018/09/06/planes-tanks-and-helicopters-equipment-shortfalls-are-hurting-the-guards-readiness-leaders-say