Ohio National Guard News

Ohio Army National Guard brings its armor back to Fort Knox

Story by Sgt. Joanna Bradshaw, Ohio National Guard Public Affairs
Photos and video by Kentucky National Guard Public Affairs

M88 Hercules Armored Recovery Vehicles sit on train beds July 19, 2018, at Fort Knox, Ky. The equipment was transported from Orchard Combat Training Center in Idaho, and now will be kept and maintained at the Kentucky National Guard’s Maneuver Area Training Equipment Site (MATES) facility.

Master Sgt. Nathaniel Ketchum, battalion master gunner with the Ohio Army National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 145th Armored Regiment, checks an M1A1 Abrams tank prior to it being offloaded

A Soldier with the Ohio Army National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 145th Armored Regiment ground guides a M1A1 Abrams tank off a train bed.

FORT KNOX, Ky. (07/19/18) — A metal box on metal wheels throwing metal chunks. It sounds strange until your mind turns to military tanks. Capable of firing armor-piercing ammunition over 4,000 meters, the M1 Abrams tanks are central to American military might. This strength has been housed at Fort Knox, the traditional home of armor for many years, since the development of tanks for World War I.

Twenty-seven of Ohio’s Abrams tanks, Bradley armored fighting vehicles and tank recovery vehicles on 15 train cars traveled 1,800 miles from Orchard Combat Training Center in Idaho to Fort Knox, where they will be stored and maintained.

The vehicles belong to the Ohio Army National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 145th Armored Regiment, and the Soldiers of the battalion will be training on and firing them. Training sites with enough space to fire the massive weapon systems are scarce, so Ohio armored units partner with National Guard facilities in other states to maintain the tanks and keep Soldiers up to date on their training.

“Track vehicles are a lot different to maintain than a truck. There are special alignments on sights that need to be done before they fire them,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Darren Guinn, the Unit Training Equipment Site (UTES) track supervisor at Camp Ravenna Joint Military Training Center, located near Newton Falls, Ohio. “An annual service takes about 120 hours to complete. The crews have to do a bunch of tests themselves before they fire. Troubleshooting a track issue could be days to figure out.”

During transportation, these high maintenance vehicles were briefly held up in Cincinnati while special permits for the extra-wide train were obtained, said Master Sgt. Nathaniel Ketchum, the battalion tank master gunner. When the train arrived, Ohio Soldiers were on ground to drive the tracked vehicles to the Kentucky Maneuver and Training Equipment Site (MATES).

“They performed well, it was pretty seamless,” said Ketchum of the Ohio Soldiers responsible for offloading the train. “Of course, our guys see stuff on the rail and they’re anxious to move it so we did the safety brief and they jumped in to help.”

Trains full of tanks have not been uncommon since the inception of the 14-ton vehicles.

“With the outbreak of World War II in Europe, the American Army prepared with the creation of the Armored Force and headquartered it at Fort Knox in the summer of 1940. It was responsible for establishing armored formations, doctrine and training in the use of armored vehicles,” according to Fort Knox’s historical webpage.

Sixty-five years later, in 2005, recommendations from the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) forced armor vehicles and units to move to Fort Benning, Georgia.

“When armor left and went down to Fort Benning, it left a big void here, not only for the MATES but also for the installation. With armor coming back here to Fort Knox, the relevance to the Kentucky Army National Guard as well as Fort Knox is elevated and puts that significance of Fort Knox back on the map for the whole Army. I truly believe that this relationship will endure, will be lasting and that there will definitely be additional positive impacts across the Army,” said Lt. Col. Steven Engels, surface maintenance manager for the Kentucky Army National Guard.

Some Soldiers have spent a majority of their lives on military bases and see other Soldiers, units, equipment and entire installations evolve or relocate.

“For some of the older Soldiers like me, it was kind of nostalgic. I got to go out and block traffic to let armor roll down the roads of Fort Knox again,” Ketchum said. “It was a good feeling that maybe there will be some more armor heading back to Knox that can partner with us and build that training area for the future.”

Now, Ohio Soldiers have a six-hour drive to train and be certified on their tanks rather than 18 hours that could have been spent training, said Master Sgt. Steven Tack, a logistics noncommissioned officer for the Ohio Army National Guard.

In addition, an interstate partnership between Ohio and Kentucky provides opportunities for Soldiers to capitalize on information and resources.

“The MATES was built to support training and maneuvering and that has not been the case in recent years. When Ohio approached us about it, we welcomed it and we’re glad to work with them and so far it seems like things are running smoothly. We hope to make it a successful relationship that will last a good while into the future.” said Col. Calvin Covany, director of logistics for the Kentucky Army National Guard.

Moving lethal metal boxes across state lines on a train has been logistically challenging, but the rewards that Ohio and Kentucky National Guard entities now reap from the partnership are numerous. Armor has returned to the home of the armor, thanks to Soldiers dedicated to their craft.