244th Theater Aviation Brigade
The Army Reserve includes the 244th Aviation Brigade at Fort Sheridan, IL, which has 2,100 soldiers and 350 full-time technicians and civilian workers. It has 16 support facilities for its 152 aircraft, predominately Chinooks and Apaches, in a dozen states.
Army Reserve aviation is centered on the 244th Theater Aviation Brigade. It is one of only two theater aviation brigades in the Army; the other is the active Army's 17th Aviation Brigade in Korea. The 244th functions as the command and control element for all Army Reserve aviation. The 224th commands two CH-47D Heavy Lift Helicopter Battalions, two Theater Aviation Battalions (fixed-wing), two AH-64A Apache Attack Helicopter Battalions and one Aviation Intermediate Maintenance Company.
The 244th Aviation Brigade was initially constituted 16 September 1988 in the Army Reserve as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 244th Aviation Group, and activated at Glenview, Illinois. The location changed 31 March 1995 to Fort Sheridan, Illinois. It was reorganized and redesignated 17 October 1995 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 244th Aviation Brigade. There are more than 2,400 citizen-soldiers and civilians assigned to the 244th. The vast majority of them voluntarily travel long distances to attend normal weekend drills. They also attend additional training to maintain their prof ic iency and enhance the over all readiness of their units. It is not unusual for the Army Reserve aviators and crewmembers to drive three to four hours from their homes or jobs to attend drills.
Since 1993, the Army Reserve aviation community has successfully restructured its force to remain relevant to the National Military Strategy and the wartime planning scenarios of today's Army and to meet the needs of the warfighting commanders in chief. Every Army Reserve aviation unit is required for the warfight.
The Army Reserve has 100 percent of the fixed-wing Theater Aviation Battalions, 100 percent of all Continental United States (CONUS) based Theater Aviation Companies, 63 percent of all fixed-wing Theater Aviation Companies worldwide, and 50 percent of the Army's Theater Aviation Brigades. It also has 50 percent of the Theater and Corps Heavy Helicopter Battalions and 50 percent of the Theater and Corps Heavy Helicopter Companies.
Army Reserve aviation units are continually in use, at home and abroad, on both training exercises and on operational deployments. These various missions -- peacekeeping, humanitarian, search and rescue, logistical resupply, troop movement, combat -- ensure that Army Reserve aviation units and soldiers are ready to answer the nation's call at any time.
As of 2001 all Army Reserve aircraft - both fixed-wing and rotary-wing - exceeded the Department of the Army Standard of being 50 percent fully mission capable. Fixed-wing aircraft exceeded or met the DA goal of being 80 percent mission capable and Apaches also met the Army mission-capable goal of 75 percent for AH-64s. The Chinooks were just a bit under the Army 75 percent goal.
The Aviation Intermediate Maintenance Company at Ft. Hood provides a unique training ground for a variety of Military Occupation Specialties to support both active and Reserve units. This real-time mission provides a training resource for Army Reserve soldiers and benefits their customers.
In addition, there are more than 300 civilian technicians at the Aviation Support Facilities (ASFs), as well as unit administrators who support daily operations.
The brigade operates 14 facilities to maintain readiness of its equipment. The number of aircraft, all current, fully modernized, is more than 150. This number will increase as the fielding plans for the UH-60L Black Hawks come to fruition.
In the 2005 BRAC recommendations, DoD recommended to realign Fort Sheridan IL by relocating the 244th Aviation Brigade to Fort Dix, NJ. Relocating the 244th Aviation Brigade to Fort Dix coupled with the Department of the Navy recommendation to close NAS Willow Grove, PA and relocate Co A/228th Aviation to Fort Dix, would consolidate Army aviation assets in one location.
