Montana News

Federal budget cuts not hitting Montana Air National Guard yet

Posted: Mar 5, 2013 1:35 PM by Erin Schermele - MTN News

GREAT FALLS - Federal budget cuts due to sequestration so far aren't affecting the Montana Air National Guard, but that doesn't mean they won't down the line.

Maintenance and the ability to train could slowly start to diminish if there's less funding in the future. But as of now, the cuts do not affect the federal mission that the MT ANG's F-15 fighter jets are currently supporting in Alaska.

But regardless of the federal budget, the Montana Air National Guard will always be available at the request of the governor.

"That is a mission that falls under the state funding, not necessarily the federal side. We bring federal assets to the fight, but the airmen and soldiers from the Montana Air National Guard are from the communities and they are ready to respond to the governor's needs," MT ANG public affairs officer Major Tim Crowe explained.

He added the Montana National Guard has a highly elevated readiness level, so it would take some time to degrade those levels to where it would affect its ability to support a federal mission.