Brittney Ermon Created: July 18, 2021 06:39 PM
The national decision comes down to funding.
Capt. Derik George says he spends more time in the air than on the ground. I’ve been flying since I was 15 years old. My grandpa used to take me up in a Cessna when I was in a car seat,” he said.
Minnesota National Guard troops disembark from a C-130 Hercules aircraft Saturday, Jan. 23, 2021, at the 133rd Airlift Wing in St. Paul.
KSTP
When he s not flying a C-130 for the Minnesota Air National Guard, he s a pilot for Sun Country Airlines.
The 133rd Airlift Wing is steps away from Terminal 1 at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Pilots say it s not only convenient for the service, but the community.
Jan 19, 2021
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) About 850 members of the Minnesota National Guard are among 25,000 soldiers streaming into Washington from across the country for Wednesday’s presidential inauguration.
The number of guard members is at least two and a half times the number for previous inaugurals.
Before this year, states rotated sending National Guard soldiers to inaugurations. Fewer than 10 from Minnesota were at President Donald Trump’s swearing-in and about 350 were at President Barack Obama’s inauguration in 2009.
“It’s sad that we got to this state that we have to have all those troops out there, but it’s comforting to know as leaders that we have the very capable airmen and soldiers out there,” Brig. Gen. Dan Gabrielli, the Minnesota Air Guard’s chief of staff, tells WCCO-TV.
‘Pretty Mild Protest’: Beefed-Up Minn. Capitol Security Heavily Outnumbers Handful Of Demonstrators
CBS Minnesota 1/18/2021 Syndicated Local – WCCO | CBS Minnesota
ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO) Hundreds of Minnesota National Guard and Minnesota State Patrol officers are standing by at the Minnesota State Capitol, discouraging any possible unrest ahead of this week’s inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.
A handful of protesters gathered at the Capitol on Sunday, but they were heavily outnumbered by the increased security presence and even members of the media. Some of the protesters were waving flags, but most sat talking in camping chairs. The number of state troopers dropped dramatically in the early evening. Dozens stood guard over what amounted to a few small pockets of protesters.
About 850 members of the Minnesota National Guard are among 25,000 soldiers streaming into Washington from across the country for Wednesday's presidential inauguration.
Minnesota’s Air National Guard: A century in the sky
A 1,600-mile journey not only set a course for military aviation in Minnesota but also for the United States. 3:23 pm, Jan. 17, 2021 ×
Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Greg A. Haase, left, former commander of the Minnesota Air National Guard’s 133 Airlift Wing, and Lt. Col. Dana Novinskie, commander of the Minnesota Air National Guard’s 109th Airlift Squadron, with a C-130 Hercules transport plane at the Wing’s home at Minneapolis – St. Paul International Airport on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021. Sunday, Jan. 17, will mark exactly 100 years since a squadron at the 133rd Airlift Wing received federal recognition, creating the first Air National Guard unit in the country. (John Autey / St. Paul Pioneer Press)