Tanks return to Texas Army National Guard for first time since 2004
TEMPLE, Texas - The Texas Military Department has announced that the Texas Army National Guard will be receiving a tank battalion from the United States Army. The move will bring tanks back to the Texas Guard for the first time since 2004.
The Texas Army National Guard was selected by the Chief of the National Guard Bureau and the United States Army to receive an additional force structure consisting of an Armored Cavalry Squadron, according to a press release from the Texas Military Department.
The Squadron, relocating from the Pennsylvania National Guard, is a subordinate unit of the 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.
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The 3rd Squadron of the 278th ACR will be re-stationed from Pennsylvania to the National Guard armory located in Temple, while the equipment will be relocated to the Texas National Guard Mobilization and Training Equipment Site on North Fort Hood. The 278th is aligned with the Texas 36th Infantry Division.
"In 1949, the 49th Armored Division was organized in Texas. With the end of the Cold War and the dawn of the War on Terror, light infantry was needed more than heavy armor and the Department of Defense made the decision to convert the 49th to a light infantry division. In 2004, the 49th was officially reflagged as the 36th Infantry Division," said Jeff Hunt, Director of the Texas Military Forces Museum. "Maintaining a Tank Battalion is not easy and it really shows great trust in the Texas National Guard and our maintenance, training, and recruiting abilities to be entrusted with this mission."