National Guard group protests Air Force cuts

A National Guard association is protesting the personnel cuts that are coming to the Air Force National Guard as part of the Pentagon’s 2013 budget, which implements cuts of $487 billion over the next 10 years.

Following a Friday briefing by top Air Force officials on the budget, which will be released in full on Feb. 13, the National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) issued a statement complaining that the Guard would take the bulk of the cuts.

“The Air Force’s definition of ‘balanced’ cuts tilts heavily against the nation’s most experienced and cost-effective flying units,” said retired Maj. Gen. Gus L. Hargett Jr., NGAUS president. “This not only squanders the opportunity to leverage the Air Guard to retain combat capability at a time when reductions must be made, it reduces the Air Force’s ability to quickly respond to unforeseen contingencies in the future.”

The Air Force is reducing its forces by nearly 10,000 in the new budget, which includes 3,900 active-duty, 5,100 Guard and 900 reserves, Air Force Secretary Michael Donley said Friday.

“We’ve carefully balanced our active and reserve component changes,” Donley said. “We’re fully committed to our total force capability.”

The Guard association, however, said the move “squanders the opportunity to leverage the Air Guard to retain combat capability” and “reduces the Air Force’s ability to quickly respond to unforeseen contingencies in the future.”

Donley said the cuts will affect nearly every state, and acknowledged there are “significant reductions” to the Guard and Reserve.

“We can’t do what we do without our Guard and Reserve and active components all working together,” he said. “So we will get smaller together, but as we get smaller we will get more integrated together.”

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