New York Army and Air Guard Marksmen Compete at Camp Smith June 4-5

CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, CORTLANDT MANOR, NY (06/02/2016)(readMedia)-- New York Army and Air National Guard Soldiers and Airmen from across the state will gather here Friday, Saturday and Sunday, June 3-5 for the annual Adjutant's General shooting match.

Individual shooters and teams will fire the M-4 carbine and the M-9 pistol in rifle and pistol marksmanship events testing combat shooting skills. These are the weapons carried by New York Army and Air National Guard members in Iraq and Afghanistan.

WHO: New York National Guard Soldiers and Airmen from around New York.

WHAT: Annual Adjutant's General's Match.

WHEN: Media opportunity after 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 4.

WHERE: Camp Smith Training Site, Cortlandt Manor, NY

Coverage Opportunities:

There will be opportunities to get video and still imagery of the rifle and pistol shooting and reporters can interview participants and event organizers.

Contact Sgt. Mike Davis, 845-656-8702, for access to this secure military facility.

BACKGROUND

Shooters will check-in and zero their weapons on Friday, June 3.

Individual rifle and pistol competition will be conducted on Saturday, June 4.

The Sgt. Henry Johnson Individual Combat Rifle Match takes its name from World War I National Guard Soldier Sgt. Henry Johnson, a member of the 369th "Harlem Hell Fighters" Infantry Regiment who earned the Croix De Guerre from the French Army for his World War I heroism and was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama in 2015.

The Sgt. Thomas Baker Individual Combat Pistol Match takes its name from World War II National Guard Soldier Sgt. Thomas Baker who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for his gallantry on the island of Saipan as a member of the 105th Infantry Regiment.

Team pistol and rifle match shooting takes place on Sunday, June 5.

The Sgt. Reidar Waaler Team Combat Rifle Match, takes its name from a World War 1 National Guard Soldier who served in the 27th Infantry Division of the New York National Guard and received the Medal of Honor for rescuing British Soldiers from a burning tank in 1918.

The LTC William Donovan Combat Team Pistol Match takes its name from a commander of the New York National Guard's 69th Infantry Regiment who earned the Medal of Honor during World War I and went on to create the Office of Strategic Services, the predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency, during World War II.

Marksmanship training and competition has long been a key component of National Guard training.

During the 1800s Annual New York National Guard shooting competitions in New York City and at Camp Smith, then known as Peekskill Camp, were reported by the New York Times and other newspapers.

The state's armories are filled with marksmanship trophies won in local, state, and national competitions and proudly displayed.

Today the tradition continues with this 3-day event which allows units and individual Soldiers the opportunity to improve their level of marksmanship training, engage in healthy competition, and pick top contenders to represent the state in national competitions.

The modern Annual Combat Sustainment Training Exercise requires participants to employ the weapon used on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan. Participants in the Combat Sustainment Training Exercise learn to improve their shooting skills and take those lessons back to the other soldiers in their units as a trainer.

Range Support personnel are provided to allow all competitors the opportunity to focus on their shooting skills in a very competitive environment. The 369th Sustainment Brigade provided the range support for the matches. Military Police support is provided by the Soldiers of the 107th MP Company.