Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Lawrenceburg National Guard Unit Honored As National Guard's Best Artillery Battery
The Lawrenceburg based Battery A, 1st Battalion, 181st Field Artillery Regiment of the Tennessee Army National Guard was named as the 2014 Alexander Hamilton Award "Best National Guard Artillery Battery" in December 2014.
"It's an extreme honor and privilege just to be nominated for this award, " said Sgt. 1st Class Scott Dollar, Readiness NCO for Battery A, 1-181st FAR. "Being chosen speaks volumes to the incredible accomplishments of every soldier in the unit. They truly exemplify the best artillerymen and rocketeers the Army National Guard has to offer."
The award recognizes the outstanding Air Defense Artillery and Field Artillery Reserve Component Army National Guard battery for exceptional achievement, superior mission accomplishment and overall unit excellence. Nominations were evaluated on tactical proficiency, operational readiness rate, safety, and other key and distinguishing indicators.
Battery A deployed to Afghanistan to provide non-standard precision artillery fire support for the Task Force against the war on terrorism in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. The unit was dispersed across three regions in the country, providing fire support to two-thirds of the country of Afghanistan, conducting 24 hour operations.
In October 2013, the unit fired the first combat artillery fire mission for the Battalion since World War II. The Battery also fired the Battalion's first High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) combat fire mission destroying terrorists and a house born improvised explosive device compound.
During the nine month deployment, the Battery conducted more than 359 missions, covering 369 objectives. They were awarded 29 Combat Action Badges, 13 Bronze Stars, two Meritorious Service Medals, five Joint Service Commendation Medals, 56 Army Commendation Medals, and one Army Achievement Medal. In addition, 12 Soldiers were also promoted during this deployment.
Prior to the deployment, the unit performed more than 10 weeks of annual training at various locations in Tennessee, as well as at Fort Chaffee in Arkansas and at Fort Campbell, Ky. During their pre-deployment training, Battery A became the most highly skilled and trained unit on pre-deployment tasks in the Tennessee Army National Guard's history.
