34th Infantry Division (Mechanized) Artillery.

The 34th Red Bull Div Arty--Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin ARNG--continues to strive to be the best Div Arty in the ARNG. Unit readiness, challenging training, external battery qualification lanes and the deployment of E/151 FA (TA) to Kosovo in early December were the focus of TY00. Forty-five soldiers from E/151 TAB were the first ARNG TA soldiers to deploy in Operation Joint Guardian-- Storm Artillery Leads the Way!

1-120 FA Red Fox (WIARNG), DS to the 32d Brigade, trained with the 34th Div Arty in AT at Camp Ripley, Minnesota. 1-120 FA conducted lane training, culminating with a Table VIII qualification and an FA raid. The battalion was the first to fire Copperhead at Camp Ripley, one round per battery. The battalion also hosted 20 engineers from the Crusader design team, giving the architects of our future howitzer firsthand FA experience.

TY00 was exciting for the 1-125 FA(MNARNG), DS to the 1st Brigade. As members of the NATO Composite Force, the staff conducted a tactical CPX in Norway in Joint Winter 2000. During JuneAT, 1-125 FA successfully executed FATable VIII lanes while also participating in the 1st Brigade Warfighter.

1-151 FA (MNARNG), a corps battalion, went through a challenging firebase lane at AT 2000. Each battery maintained continuous 6,400-mils and crosstrained with the 682d Engineers to fortify positions with six-foot perimeter berms. 1-151 FA also conducted FA table tasks and a LFX from the hardened positions.

Our air assault 1-194 FA (IARNG), DS to the 2d Brigade, executed achallenging AT period at Camp Guernsey, Wyoming, in June. After completing the Div Arty firing battery lanes qualification, 1-194 FA swiftly moved into a battalion-level air assault--the unit's first-- and a continuous 72-hour lane training. The When Ready battalion lived up to the challenge.

F/151 FA (MNARNG), our GS firing battery, culminated TY00 with a successful Table VIII lane qualification at Camp Ripley. Fox Battery achieved the highest percentage of "GOs' in the 34th Div Arty on the TSBn-evaluated lanes. The units, soldiers and families of the 34th Div Arty are and always will be committed to excellence. The Div Arty is a relevant partner in America's Army-Attack! Attack! Attack!