Courtesy Photo | Brigadier General Gary T. Magonigle, Commander Washington Air National Guard, enters...... read more read more
Note: This is the second installment in a two-part series on the history of the 194th Wing. Part one is available at DVIDS: "194th Wing was Air Guard’s first non-flying wing in 2006."
CAMP MURRAY, Wash.—In the years following the activation of the Washington Air National Guard’s 194th Wing in 2006 (then designated the 194th Regional Support Wing), the wing sought a sense of shared identity across its units and grew in the field of cyberspace operations. In the words of Maj. Gen. Brian T. Dravis (retired), who commanded the wing from 2008 to 2013, “It's a modern day Air National Guard bootstrap story that deserves to be told, and remembered.”
Then-Col. Dravis was serving as Deputy Director of Air, Space, and Information Operations, NGB/A3 when the opportunity arose to command the 194th RSW. “I quickly and eagerly applied,” he said. Before his tour at NGB/A3, Dravis had been the first commander the Kansas Air National Guard’s 177th Information Warfare Aggressor Squadron, which followed on the formation of the Washington Air Guard’s 262nd Information Warfare Aggressor Squadron. As the 177th commander and then at NGB, Dravis got to know people in the Washington Air Guard.
Dravis accepted command of the 194th on November 1, 2008. He said that his first impression of the wing was “extremely positive, but there were challenges. I did quickly discover that not everyone favored the idea, and some had been very comfortable with the idea of geographically separated units and a ‘non-traditional’ USAF organization.”
The work of establishing a wing identity had begun with Col. John Tuohy, the first commander, and continued under Dravis. “The 194th was designated a ‘Regional Support Wing,’ - in my view an inaccurate and inappropriate designation,” said Dravis. “What we were - and what it is still today - is a composite Wing that properly presents USAF combat forces and capability to the Joint Force in respective warfighting domains - from cyberspace to intelligence to air support to expeditionary support and more. So, from that perspective getting the entire team - spread across four locations in the state - to align to the way the USAF organized in order to ‘normalize’ the idea of this brand new, composite, non-flying Wing with great people and missions so that it was accepted as something more than a novelty was vitally important. I'm confident - and I think the history shows - we were successful.”
With the enlisted force, Chief Master Sgt. Donald Cyprain played a critical role in the establishment of a wing identity. In 2007, Tuohy named Cyprain as the wing’s first command chief. Born and raised in Louisiana, Cyprain had served in the Louisiana Air National Guard as well as Army Air Defense Artillery units. He brought a background in vehicle maintenance, power production, quality assurance, human resources, first sergeant, and professional development. He had a civilian career as a State Patrol trooper. Cyprain had served in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Operation Southern Watch as well as the Kosovo Operation. In a 2010 profile of Cyprain, Master Sgt. Bettina Knaack of the Washington Air National Guard’s public affairs office wrote, “His quiet strength, energy, and wisdom, mixed with a sprinkling of humor, have been a life-line for many troops in the Washington Air National Guard.”
Over its first several years, the wing built a record of achievement in special warfare, cyberspace operations, and intelligence. According to the citation for a Meritorious Service Medal presented to Cyprain in 2012, the 194th was the first wing in the Air National Guard to receive approvals for Air Force Cyberspace Vulnerability Assessment missions known as “Hunter” capabilities in cyberspace and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. Its cyberspace operations units played a key role in the development of the Air Force’s network warfare field. The Wing also developed an Airman Care Guide that was praised by the National Guard Bureau and sent to all Air National Guard wings in the country. And for two years in a row, the Wing was recognized with the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award.
The wing found enthusiastic advocates in the halls of Congress. In 2007, U.S. Rep. Adam Smith worked to secure $800,000 for a training and operations center for the 262nd Information Warfare Aggressor Squadron at McChord.
But in 2009, the Air National Guard budget removed 98 of the wing’s command structure, recruiting and retention, training, and equipment positions. This resulted in a letter from members of Washington’s Congressional delegation to Lt. Gen. Harry Wyatt, director of the Air National Guard. “Simply put, the 194th RSW is the ANG wing of the future, and there is an immediate need for its capabilities and force structure,” wrote the lawmakers. In an interview with a Tacoma News Tribune reporter, Smith said that the airmen whose jobs were on the line “have skills that are crucial in today’s military.” Gov. Christine Gregoire also spoke up for the 194th, declaring in a statement, “These positions are essential for the support of more than 1,000 airmen in 15 Washington Air National Guard units…As commander in chief of the Washington National Guard, I am working hand-in-hand with our congressional delegation and the administration to restore funding and manpower authorizations to the 194th” (Scott Fontaine, “Jobs from state’s Air National Guard cut,” The News Tribune, July 19, 2009, A1, A12).
“That action was a wakeup call for the leadership at the time and efforts started to get the name changed to simply the ‘194th Wing,’” said Brig. Gen. Gent Welsh, assistant adjutant general for air, Washington National Guard. “Since that challenge a decade ago, the Wing has been in great shape and really has coalesced around the idea of ‘one Wing, many capabilities.’ The current branding of what the Wing does (Intel, Cyber, and Special Warfare) really speaks to the Airmen and our external audiences.”
Welsh was deputy commander of the 252nd Combat Communications Group from 2008 to 2011. “We were going down a path to convert some, but not all, Combat Communications units into emerging cyber and intelligence roles,” he said. “The Wing leadership at the time took risk in drawing down certain units such as the 215th Engineering Installation Squadron in order to convert them into a possible Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) mission.”
Looking back, Dravis says, “I was a bit tough on the Wing about mastering the ‘blocking & tackling’ on a daily basis. We were successful in most initiatives, but not all. We created the concept of the composite ‘Attack Wing’ and attempted to bring unmanned aerial systems to the 194th - and that effort cost the divestiture of the 215th EIS at Payne Field. But the ANG adopted the 194th concept and fielded similar units in several states after they too became ‘non-flying’ wings. Many of the key personal that helped mature and develop that concept are in key leadership positions within the wing today.”
“I'm still in awe of all that the men and women of the 194th Wing accomplished while I was there,” said Dravis.
Brig. Gen. Jill Lannan (retired), who was the Wing’s vice commander from 2009 to 2013, credited Dravis with boosting the wing’s national reputation within the Air National Guard. Dravis “paved the way in the ANG and pushed until everyone was saying 89 wings” to include the ANG’s most recent addition. “That was a major accomplishment to hear the DANG say 89 – and it was a long, long road because there were still naysayers within the ANG but we prevailed.”
As Wing commander from 2013 to 2015, Lannan said that her “main priority was to ensure our people had the training, equipment, resources and support to get the job done and come home safely.”
When Lannan handed over her command to Col. Jeremy Horn in 2015, she encouraged airmen “to remember their history,” she recalled. “They were all pioneers who were part of doctrine in the making. They had and still have impact at the highest levels of the AF and DoD. They need to remember that – remember where they came from and be proud of being part of such an important organization that had missions that span the entire Air Force. It is very unique. And the impacts are far-reaching even if it doesn’t seem obvious.”
When Lannan went on to national roles at the 24th Air Force and Pentagon, it was evident that the Washington Air National Guard had earned respect in every one of its mission sets, she said.
Dravis sees the 194th Wing as “a composite organization built for modernized, multi-domain twenty first century warfare in the digital age,” he said. “It's talented. Some of the best, most experienced, capable, and knowledgeable Airmen in the Total Force are within its ranks, and they bring that talent to the defense of the nation. It's lean. The 194th Wing is an organization that fought hard for its reputation, and has earned its stripes the old fashioned way - through hard work and performance. It's good. Everybody in the USAF will claim this - but not everybody can back up the words with demonstrated performance. The 194th Wing is now routinely accepted as the ‘norm’ within the USAF and ANG - something that wasn't always the case - and that is real testimony to the perseverance, dedication, performance, and quality of the Airmen of the 194th.”
“I hope the legacy continues,” said Lannan. “And I pray for all the Airmen who continue to support the multitude of domestic missions that have been such a large part of the past 2 years. These are our roots. I hope the future includes a balance of the federal and state missions. I hope the relationships continue to thrive. I hope leaders at all levels never forget who paved the way and never forget the importance of the SNCO corps who lead all the Airmen…It took everyone to make this happen.”
| Date Taken: | 02.25.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 02.28.2022 18:44 |
| Story ID: | 415325 |
| Location: | CAMP MURRAY, WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 174 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Early years of 194th Wing marked by transition and innovation, by Capt. Hans Zeiger, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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