by Duke Doering
On January 30, 2003, the 665th Maintenance Company shelved its tool boxes and took on a homeland security mission as Military Police. They were mobilized for Federal Active duty. These Guardspersons were called to active duty under an authority known as a partial mobilization (10 USC 12302). In a time of national emergency declared by the President, partial mobilization authorizes the President to order members of the National Guard to active duty for a period not to exceed 24 consecutive months. The 665th was activated for Operation Noble Eagle. Noble Eagle was the name given to the military operations related to homeland security in support of federal, state and local agencies.
Operation Noble Eagle had actually begun September 14, 2001 in response to the September 11 attacks. National Guard personnel were mobilized to perform security missions on military installations, airports and other potential targets such as bridges, power plants, and port facilities. The 167 members of South Dakota’s 665th Maintenance Company, located in Mitchell and Rapid City, were called on January 30, 2003 for their security missions at Ellsworth Air Force Base and Joe Foss Field.
The unit was challenged with the task of quickly converting from maintenance to military police. Responding to the call the men and women of the 665th shelved their tool kits and reported to Fort Carson, Colorado for two weeks of intensive law enforcement training. Captain Deb Bartunek remembers, “The very week when we showed up at Ft Carson, the actual air temperatures were around -19 degrees and we were at the range. Most of the post was closed but we continued our weapons qualification and MP training.”
Most of the company moved back to South Dakota to take up duty stations at Ellsworth Air Force Base (EAFB) near Rapid City and Joe Foss Field, home of the Sioux Falls-based South Dakota Air National Guard.
In addition to the South Dakota stations, the 665th troops provided smaller detachments for performance of similar security duties at Fort Sill, Okla., and the Army’s National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif.
Those deployed to Ellsworth Air Force Base (EAFB) teamed with the Air Force Base Security. The 665th Soldiers manned all entry and exit gates, performed necessary vehicle searches, and operated the visitor’s center. In addition they secured the flight line and enforced traffic ordinances. Because there is Base housing in the confines of EAFB, the 665th troops were often the first responders in emergencies, domestic disputes, burglary, and routine police actions. The Air Force Security Forces were continually being deployed to overseas stations. Therefore the responsibility of continual training of replacements, both Army and Air, fell to the National Guard. CW2 Kevin Pudwell, the units training officer, established and executed the training plan for replacements.
Sgt. Luke Brickey recalls several bizarre incidents, one of which, “About 10 p.m. one evening a spray plane buzzed the airstrip at Ellsworth. We called the Air Guard and were surprised at how quickly the two F-16 fighters appeared. However, the spray plane made only one pass and then slipped into the night, never again to be seen or identified”.
Capt. Deb Bartunek, the 665th’s company commander for the entire two year activation, tells of one mission that gained national media coverage. “A Northwest Airlines passenger plane landed at EAFB. During approach to Rapid City Regional Airport, the pilot of the Northwest plane made an error in calculating his landing. Instead of landing at the smaller regional airport, he touched down at the larger Air Force base. Due to the high threat of terrorism, the soldiers of the 665th immediately surrounded the plane on the tarmac and held the plane at gunpoint for hours until it was determined not to be a threat. Once the passengers were evacuated to the Rapid City Regional Airport, another Northwest pilot was flown in to return the plane to Minneapolis.” The Guardsmen of the 665th were recognized by the wing commander for an outstanding response to an immediate, unidentified threat on the base.
At Joe Foss Field in Sioux Falls, SD a platoon of the 665th Maintenance Company fell in to support the 114th Security Forces Squadron (SFS). This turned out to be a necessary mission as the men and women of the 114th SFS were constantly being deployed to the countries of Qatar, Oman, Cypress, Bosnia, Pakistan, Kuwait or Iraq. The 32 Army Guard Soldiers were led by Lieutenant Joe Hardin, CW5 Dennis Welch and 1st Sgt. Joe Puetz. In the second year of deployment Puetz retired and 1st. Sgt. Tom Day assumed that position. These Soldiers split into three shifts daily. They manned the front gate and had four roving patrols. All the time carrying loaded M-16 rifles and when on gate duty, the M-9 pistol.
The members were housed at a local motel and had no access to military dining facilities so they were on their own for meals, receiving per diem. They went through the two year deployment at Sioux Falls without any serious accidents, incidents or injuries. Sgt. Gregg Brower, who was deployed for the entire two-year deployment said, “We were a valuable asset to the South Dakota Air National Guard, whose Security Forces were constantly deployed.”
During the years following the 9/11 attack, during Operation Noble Eagle, Army Guard troops nationwide were deployed to protect events that attracted large crowds like the Super Bowl, the Mardi Gras and popular music concerts.
One South Dakota event that deployed local troops was the Fourth of July fireworks display at Mount Rushmore. A second local event was the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, which is conducted annually in the second week of August. The rally draws crowds ranging from 300,000 to 500,000 each year. Security forces were deployed at that event. The Soldier’s were out of public view as much as possible, as not to detract from the event, but also be prepared to react if necessary.
During the two years of excellent, professional service, the 665th ended the tour with no fatalities or life threatening injuries.
