The Texas Army National Guard bid farewell and good luck to more than 300 members of the 136th Expeditionary Signal Battalion as the unit prepares to deploy to the CENTCOM area of responsibility. The ceremony took place on November 20, 2020 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas.
This will be the second deployment for the signal battalion, which has been around for nearly 10 years and falls under the Texas National Guard’s 71st Troop Command. During their deployment, the unit will be responsible for providing voice and network capabilities to other military assets across the CENTCOM region. The battalion is made up of more than 300 Soldiers from the Texas, Louisiana, and Alabama National Guards and will fall under the regular Army’s 160th Strategic Signal Brigade while overseas.
“This unit is one of only a handful across the entire Army with this specific capability,” said Brig. Gen. Charles Schoening, Commanding General of the 71st Troop Command. “They are highly skilled and well trained. The capability they will provide throughout the area of operation is critical to the success of the USARCENT mission.”
The 136th ESB was formed in 2011. Between 2012 through 2014, the battalion focused on validating more 250 pieces of equipment fielded across three states: Texas, Louisiana, and Alabama.
In 2015, the battalion mobilized to the CENTCOM region to provide tactical and strategic communications support for Operations Freedom’s Sentinel, Spartan Shield, and Inherent Resolve. The battalion returned from its mission to install, operate, maintain, and defend tactical and strategic communication capabilities and services to be rapidly deployed worldwide in support of both civil and military operations. The 136th has served the local community by assisting with homeland response force missions, most notably Hurricane Harvey.
Links to 136th Deployment Ceremony:
https://www.dvidshub.net/video/773569/136th-expeditionary-signal-battalion-casing-colors
https://www.dvidshub.net/video/773565/136th-expeditionary-signal-battalion-casing-colors
https://www.dvidshub.net/video/773568/136th-expeditionary-signal-battalion-casing-colors
The mission of the Texas Military Department (TMD) is to provide the Governor and the President with ready and trained forces in support of the citizens of Texas and State and Federal civil/military authorities at home and abroad.
The Texas Military Department is commanded by the Adjutant General of Texas, the state’s senior military official appointed by the governor, and is comprised of the Office of State Administration (formerly the Office of the Executive Director), the Texas Army National Guard (TXARNG), the Texas Air National Guard (TXANG) and the Texas State Guard (TXSG).
For more information about the Texas Military Department visit our website at https://tmd.texas.gov.