Washington National Guard Bids Farewell to Local Aviation Unit

Ben Sclair | February 28, 2013

CAMP MURRAY – The Washington National Guard will bid farewell to Detachment 2, C Company, 1st Battalion, 168th Aviation, (Forward Support Medevac Team) in a ceremony on Saturday, March 2 at 11:00 a.m. in the Army Aviation Support Facility #1 on Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

The unit will serve in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and will be based in Afghanistan. Approximately 20 Army National Guard aviators, crew and flight medics will comprise the deploying force.

“The Medevac Team is comprised of daring professionals, who will brave dire circumstance to save lives. Their tenacity and expertise will be remembered long after they have accomplished their mission in Afghanistan,” said Major General Bret D. Daugherty, the Adjutant General and commander of the Washington National Guard.

The FSMT is a new unit, which began in 2011 and is part of the Washington Army National Guard’s 66th Theater Aviation Command headquartered at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. The unit flies UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters that have been configured as air ambulances. Their mission is medical evacuation and recovery.

This is the first deployment for the FSMT, although many of its members have previously deployed overseas. They will be mobilized for approximately 12 months; we anticipate their return home in the spring of 2014.

The citizen-soldiers and airmen of the Washington National Guard are dedicated to the mission of safeguarding lives and property in Washington State, and serving as sentinels for freedom overseas. We are Neighbors Helping Neighbors through a Tradition of Service.