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94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Nchopp (talk | contribs) at 00:14, 30 June 2022 (Added THAAD remote launch and Patriot live-fire, updated commander to new commanding general). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command (94th AAMDC)
94th Air Defense Artillery Command Shoulder Sleeve Insignia
Active1940 – Present
CountryUnited States
BranchUnited States Army
TypeAir Defense Artillery
RoleArmy's operational lead for Theater Air and Missile Defense
Part ofUnited States Army Pacific
Garrison/HQJoint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, U.S.
Motto(s)"First Line of Defense"
ColorsYellow and Scarlet
DecorationsPhilippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation 1944-1945, Superior Unit Award 1991-1992
Commanders
Commanding General MG Brian W. Gibson
Command Sergeant MajorCommand Sergeant Major Neil H. Sartain
Insignia
Distinctive Unit Insignia

The 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command (94th AAMDC) is an activated (at Fort Shafter on 16 October 2005) Air Defense Artillery command of the United States Army assigned to United States Army Pacific. It is headquartered at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawai'i at the Pacific Air Force Headquarters.

Current Structure

As of May 2021 the 94th AAMDC consists of the following units:

History

The 94th Air Defense Artillery was constituted on 16 December 1940 in the Regular Army as the 94th Coast Artillery. On 17 April 1941 it was activated at Camp Davis, North Carolina. The Regiment was later broken up on 15 May 1943 and its elements reorganized and re-designated as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 94th Antiaircraft Artillery Group. During the Second World War, the 94th Coast Artillery participated in major war campaigns within the East Indies, New Guinea, Leyte, and Luzon during which it received commemorate streamers and was additionally decorated with the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation streamer.

After World War II, the Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 94th Antiaircraft Artillery Group, was inactivated on 15 March 1947 in the Philippines. On 1 April 1960, it was re designated in Kaiserslautern, Germany as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 94th Artillery Group, as part of the 32nd Army Air Defense Command. The 94th Air Defense Artillery Group was re-designated on 15 March 1972 as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 94th Air Defense Artillery Group. The 94th Air Defense Artillery Group was later re-designated on 16 July 1983 as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 94th Air Defense Artillery Brigade.

Missile defense was important during the Cold War period, the 94th Artillery Group defended NATO with Nike Hercules, HAWK, PATRIOT, Chaparral and Vulcan Air Defense Systems inspiring the motto of "First Line of Defense". After the collapse of communism in Europe, the 94th Air Defense Artillery Brigade continued to support European Command contingencies throughout the European Command Area of Operations.

During deployment from September 1991 to February 1992, Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 94th Air Defense Artillery Brigade earned the Army Superior Unit Award for its direct support of United States led multinational operation "Determined Resolve" in the Persian Gulf. Before its inactivation in 1998, the 94th Air Defense Artillery Brigade formed the nucleus for the first ever Joint Theater Missile Defense Task Force that deployed to Israel in support of Operation Noble Safeguard and Desert Thunder.

On 16 July 2021 soldiers from 94th AAMDC conducted the first-ever MIM-104 Patriot live fire exercise in Australia during the Talisman Saber 21 exercise at the Shoalwater Bay Training Area in Queensland, Australia.[4][5][6]

On 7 October 2021 94th AAMDC announced it was deploying one of the Army's two Iron Dome Defense System - Army (IDDS-A) batteries to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam for experimental testing. The deployment was focused on gathering data on deployability, sustainment, and how Iron Dome integrates with current Army air defense architecture. [7][8][9][10]

In March 2022 the command deployed a THAAD remote launch package to the CNMI island of Rota - the first operational use of THAAD's new remote launch capability.[11]

On 15 June 2022 the command conducted the first Patriot live-fire in Palau as well as the first Patriot live-fire to integrate F-35 radar data outside of a testing environment.[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] The live-fire was a part of the Valiant Shield 22 exercise.

References

  1. ^ "Patriot TMD - Units". Global Security. Retrieved 10 November 2017.
  2. ^ "Patriot TMD - Units". Global Security. Retrieved 10 November 2017.
  3. ^ Sgt. Raquel Villalona. "38th ADA Brigade Welcomes Task Force Talon". Task Force Talon. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  4. ^ Defence, Department of (17 July 2021). "Troops in awe of Patriot firepower display". news.defence.gov.au. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  5. ^ "US Army launches Patriot missiles during Exercise Talisman Saber 21". www.army.mil. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  6. ^ First Patriot Missile launch in Australia - Talisman Sabre 2021, archived from the original on 20 December 2021, retrieved 25 August 2021
  7. ^ "94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command Deploys Iron Dome System to Guam for Operational Testing". www.army.mil. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  8. ^ Trevithick, Joseph. "The Iron Dome Air Defense System Is Heading To Guam". The Drive. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  9. ^ Judson, Jen (7 October 2021). "Iron Dome heads to missile defense experiment in Guam". Defense News. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  10. ^ "US Army deploys Iron Dome batteries to Guam for further testing". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  11. ^ Center, Pacific News (4 March 2022). "THAAD Remote Launch System Sent To Rota". PNC News First. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  12. ^ Eastwood, Brent M. (17 June 2022). "F-35A and Patriot Air Defense Team Up to Kill Mock Cruise Missile". 19FortyFive. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  13. ^ "US Army conducts first firing of Patriot missiles from Palau". Janes.com. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  14. ^ "Patriot missiles down drone target from Palau with assist from Lightning II". Stars and Stripes. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  15. ^ Eckstein, Megan (21 June 2022). "Lockheed Martin blends AI decision aide, virtual Aegis combat system in drill near Guam". Defense News. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  16. ^ "US INDO-PACOM Forces Conclude Exercise Valiant Shield 2022". Overt Defense. 20 June 2022. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  17. ^ "Patriot destroyed missile using target designation provided by F-35". 23 June 2022. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  18. ^ "US Army conducts first firing of Patriot missiles from Palau – Polygon Military Magazine". Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  19. ^ 日本放送協会. "米軍 パラオで迎撃ミサイル発射訓練 影響力拡大の中国けん制 | NHK". NHKニュース. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
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