Ohio National Guard News

Battery C, 1-174th ADA takes charge in Germany

Story by Capt. William Duvall, 263rd Army Air Missile Defense Command

Photos by Spc. Patrick Swanson, U.S. Army

Soldiers with Battery C, 1st Battalion, 174th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Ohio Army National Guard (left) and Battery C, 2nd Battalion, 263rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, South Carolina Army National Guard stand in formation during a transfer of authority ceremony Oct. 30, 2018, in Grafenwoehr, Germany. About 80 Soldiers from Battery C, 1-174th ADA, based in Marysville, Ohio, are providing enhanced air defense capability in support of U.S. European Command, as part of the European Deterrence Initiative.

Soldiers with Battery C, 1st Battalion, 174th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Ohio Army National Guard stand in formation during the transfer of authority ceremony.

Capt. Christopher Vasquez, commander of Battery C, 1st Battalion, 174th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Ohio Army National Guard.

GRAFENWHOEHR, Germany (10/30/2018) — The command team of Battery C, 1st Battalion, 174th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Ohio Army National Guard uncased the unit colors and officially took charge of the unit’s mission during a transfer of authority ceremony here.

The Ohio ADA unit takes over for Battery C, 2nd Battalion, 263rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, South Carolina Army National Guard, which for the previous year had been responsible for maintaining Short Range Air Defense (SHORAD) capabilities in its assigned area of responsibility. SHORAD is a group of anti-aircraft weapons and tactics utilized to defend against low-altitude air threats, primarily helicopters and low-flying close air support aircraft.

Now, about 80 Soldiers from Battery C, 1-174th ADA, from Marysville, Ohio, are providing enhanced air defense capability in support of U.S. European Command, as part of the European Deterrence Initiative, an ongoing series of exercises and training events to showcase the U.S. commitment to the security and territorial integrity of Europe, as members of the NATO Alliance.

Capt. Christopher Vasquez, commander of Battery C, 1-174th ADA, said he is excited for his Soldiers and the opportunities they will have professionally and personally over the next year.

“It will be very exciting to test the doctrine of SHORAD air defense. It really has not been tested other than a few trials like Charlie 2-263rd has done. …there (is) written doctrine based on hypotheticals and now we get to see how hypothetical works,” Vasquez said.  “Then we get to change it if it does not work. If the way they were designed does not make sense, we now have the opportunity to say this is why it does not make sense and here is how we can change it. We are at a point that we can give the why and the justification to fixing it and we will have the ear of the people that have the authority and the power to fix it.”

Vasquez said that his unit is up for any challenge that may arise, and that he and his Ohio Army National Guard unit is here to work with its allies and to continue the work of the 2-263rd.

“There (have) been tons of tactical information that Charlie (2-263rd) has passed on — how they operate in the field, how they have their platoon structured, how they utilize their equipment,” Vasquez said. “I think the biggest thing they have taught us is to be self-reliant and resilient to change. It is hard to describe the amount of information they have taught us, for it is countless. I know that my LTs (lieutenants) have been soaking up like a sponge all the information that their counterparts have been giving them.”

Vasquez said he sees this deployment as a personal and professional opportunity for the Soldiers under his command.

“I want them to be able to do their doctrinal mission. We have done C-RAM (Counter Rocket, Artillery and Mortar mission) before, we have done the NCR (National Capital Region) mission before, so I am really excited for them to experience the SHORAD maneuver aspects, and to just see Europe. I am excited for them to travel and see other places, even if we are there just doing military exercises. We will never get the chance to do this again,” Vasquez said.

“It is going to be really exciting to have that exposure to how the rest of the world does air defense and how the rest of the world lives,” he continued. “Because for so many people, the view of the world is their hometown, or 50 miles from their hometown. Now we really get to experience some other areas.”