US Forces, Georgia National Guard conduct joint CBRN medical readiness exercise
US soldiers and airmen, together with the Georgia National Guard, conducted a joint medical readiness exercise at Fort Stewart, on 9-10 August 2026.
According to information published by DVIDS, the exercise was a collective training event between elements of the Georgia Army National Guard’s 201st Regional Support Group and the Georgia Air National Guard’s 116th Medical Group, Detachment 1 and the 165th Airlift Wing.
The exercise was spearheaded by the 201st Regional Support Group, with the Georgia Air National Guard units providing triage, communications and medical support. The field training simulated a radiological bomb attack in a downtown portion of a city, with the participating units practicing their capabilities as part of an annual training exercise.
According to Lt. Col. Christopher Goddard, commander of the 265th CBRN Task Force and exercise commander, the exercise was "really important for interoperability between the Army Guard and the Air Guard and our civil support authority partners", adding that the National Guard "has the capability to set up a staging area, triage and decontaminate casualties within 24 to 48 hours should a detonation like this occur in the real world".
"Since each branch has different operational methods, practice makes perfect when operating in a joint capability," he said.
One of the 201st RSG’s missions is to man, train and equip a homeland response force to provide assistance to civil authorities in saving lives and mitigating human suffering in response to CBRN incidents.
The Georgia National Guard is composed of nearly 14,000 personnel supporting overseas and domestic missions from nearly 70 readiness centres based in nearly 50 of Georgia counties.
