Kentucky Air National Guard Activates First Recruiting Unit

Kentucky Air Guard Activates Dedicated Recruiting Unit

By Dale Greer, Kentucky National Guard

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Kentucky Air National Guard has activated a new unit dedicated to recruiting the next generation of Guard Airmen statewide, marking the first time Kentucky Guard recruiters will have the resources and standing of a full-fledged unit instead of serving as a duty section at Headquarters.

The Kentucky Air National Guard Recruiting Flight uncased its colors during a ceremony at the 123rd Airlift Wing Sept. 27.

Lt. Col. James Campbell, who took command of the flight during the ceremony, predicted the move will further strengthen a team that already has recorded two back-to-back, record-setting years for new accessions, including a 4% increase in end strength over 12 months.

"I could not be more proud to serve alongside this outstanding team," Campbell said. "What we celebrate today, however, is bigger than performance metrics. We recognize that recruiting and retention are foundational to readiness. Every future maintainer, operator, defender, medic, communicator or support professional begins with someone in recruiting believing in their potential before they ever wear the uniform. That is the responsibility this team carries, and that is why the creation of the recruiting flight matters - because one decision changes everything."

Campbell said the Kentucky Guard was "not simply standing up a new flight. We are recognizing a mission, a team and a future that will shape the strength and readiness of Kentucky for years to come. We will never lose sight of the fact that behind every new recruit and valued unit member is a person, a family, a passion and a future contribution to our nation's defense."

Brig. Gen. Bruce Bancroft, the assistant adjutant general for Air for the Kentucky National Guard, praised the flight's recruiters for their dedication in the face of stiff odds, noting that only about 450,000 people out of an estimated 340 million U.S. residents are eligible and willing to serve in the Armed Forces because of disqualifying factors such as poor physical health, mental aptitude, criminal activity, drug use or age.

After those 450,000 eligible candidates are divided among the 54 U.S. states and territories, the number drops to 8,000 potential recruits across Kentucky, Bancroft said. The pool is divided yet again among the six uniformed services, the Reserves and the National Guard, bringing the final candidate pool to just 1,300 people. Those candidates become the Kentucky Air Guard's recruiting leads, and from them, the unit will sign about 130 new Airmen per year.

"We have heard multiple times that we are all recruiters, and that's very true," Bancroft told the audience. "The Kentucky Air National Guard does amazing things. Across the globe, across the nation, across the Commonwealth, we are executing the mission and answering the nation's call every day. But none of that happens without the people."

Bancroft congratulated the production recruiters, retention team and recruiting support team "on a banner year. The high caliber of newest accessions you're bringing into the Air National Guard family has never been better, and the emphasis on retention has never been higher. What you're doing and what you're building is important, and it's working."

"Military service continues to be an honorable pursuit and a sacred profession, and you serve as that critical first step in bringing America's 1 percent into our ranks. Thanks for what you do," Bancroft said.