213th Area Support Group (United States)

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name=213th Area Support Group


caption=
dates=August 6, 1849 - Present
country=USA
allegiance=Pennsylvania
branch=Army National Guard
type=Area Support Group
role=
size=
command_structure=
current_commander=
garrison=Allentown, Pennsylvania;
ceremonial_chief=
colonel_of_the_regiment=
nickname=
patron=
motto=
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battles=Civil War
Spanish-American War
World War I
World War II
Operation against Terrorism
notable_commanders=
anniversaries=The 213th Area Support Group (ASG) is a unit of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. The 213th ASG has the mission to provide all types of logistical support, except for medical supplies and ammunition, for up to 30,000 troops. Consisting of more than 1,000 soldiers from the eastern and central parts of the state, the 213th ASG is one of the two major commands in the Pennsylvania Army Guard, the other being the 28th Infantry Division.

History

The units of the Group continually provide support to units and organizations throughout the United States and the world. In 1997 the Group sent 50 members of its "headquarters company" to Hungary in support of NATO peacekeeping operations in Bosnia. One year earlier it had proved its mettle in providing combat service support to an active duty brigade during a field training exercise in Louisiana at the Joint Readiness Training Center. The 109th MPAD served in Bosnia itself from September 1999 to May 2000, producing command information material and providing support to civilian news media. The 28th Finance Battalion supports active Army missions in Korea, Italy, Germany, and Southwest Asia on a continuing basis. Currently, helicopters and crews from G Company, 104th Aviation are supporting an engineer task force building schools and clinics in Nicaragua. During blizzards, floods and civil emergencies, all the units of the Group stand ready to assist the communities and people of the Commonwealth.

The world's largest joint theatre air and missile defense training exercise was conducted June 14-24, 2001. It involved more than 15,000 troops from the Army, Air Force, Marines and Navy as well as soldiers and airmen from Germany, the Netherlands, Great Britain and Canada. Members of the 213th Area Support Group and subordinate units deployed to the warring desert countries located in Texas and New Mexico, to provide command and control assets at a series of logistics bases they established throughout the expansive Roving Sands 2001 operation. For the 213th, which provides command and control assets for all support units, weapon systems and strategies are not paramount; logistics bases are more important. Roving Sands permitted Guardsmen of the 213th ASG to experience all elements of deploying into a theatre and performing their mission. The reception and staging portions involved an orientation briefing that touched on safety and security issues and was followed by the offloading of equipment. In this case their equipment was shipped by rail; however, in a wartime situation items may be shipped by air or by boat. Once equipment was offloaded, soldiers move onward in support of logistics bases. The "logbases" allowed the 213th to command and control various support functions. Once logistics were in place to support a force, maneuver commanders came onto the battlefield and the Group took care of everything but the battle.

Missions

Federal Mission

The wartime mission of the 213th is to deploy to Southwest Asia and provide area logistics support for maneuver forces. In times of mobilization, the 213th Area Support Group would command and control from 10 to 15 units, which could be active, reserve or National Guard. The group would conduct Reception; Staging; Onward Movement and Integration Operations; Coordinate Host Nation Support in Area Of Responsibility; Provide Direct Support and General Support Maintenance/Supply Support and Field Services to units in or passing through Area Of Responsibility; and Control and Coordinate physical security and Rear area Operations within the Area Of Operations.

tate Mission

Support State Emergency Operations as required, and operate Logistics Base Operations at multiple Locations.

Units

The peacetime structure of the 213th Area Support Group includes:

Headquarters and Headquarters Company; Allentown, Pennsylvania

:28th Personnel Services Battalion; Fort Indiantown Gap

:28th Finance Battalion; Lebanon, Pennsylvania

:154th Quartermaster Battalion; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

:131st Transportation Company; Williamstown, Pennsylvania

:1067th Transportation Company; Phoenixville, Pennsylvania

:228th Transportation Detachment; Allentown, Pennsylvania

:276th Army Band; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:3622nd Maintenance Company; Fort Indiantown Gap

:Company G, 104th Aviation; Fort Indiantown Gap

:Detachment 1, Company F, 192nd Aviation; Fort Indiantown Gap

:109th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment (MPAD); Fort Indiantown Gap

Lineage

*HHC/ 213th Area Support Group

*Organized 6 August 1849 in the Pennsylvania militia at Allentown as the Lehigh Fencibles. Re-designated 10 July 1850 as the Allen rifles. Consolidated 18 April 1861 with the Jordan Artillerists and consolidated unit reorganized and re-designated as the Union Rifles.
*Mustered into Federal service April 20, 1861 at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania as Company I, 1st Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment; mustered out of Federal service 27 July 1861 at Harrisburg.
*Former Allen Rifles reorganized and mustered into Federal service 30 August 1861 at Harrisburg as Company B, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment; mustered out of Federal service 25 December 1865
*Reorganized 3 June 1870 in the Pennsylvania National Guard at Allentown as the Allen Rifles. Re-designated 30 June 1874 as Company D, 4th Infantry Regiment.
*Mustered into Federal service 8 July 1899 at Allentown as Company D, 4th Infantry Regiment *Mustered into Federal service 27 July 1916 at Mount Gretna; mustered out of Federal service 5 August 1917. Reorganized and re-designated 11 October 1917 as Company, 109th Machine Gun Battalion, an element of the 28th Division. Demobilized 4 May 1919 at Camp Dix, New Jersey.
*Reorganized 24 March 1921 in the Pennsylvania National Guard at Allentown as Company D, 3rd Separate Battalion of Infantry; federally recognized 8 April 1921. Converted and re-designated 1 May 1922 as Headquarters Detachment and Combat Train, 1st Battalion, 213th Artillery (Antiaircraft). Re-designated 1 August 1924 as headquarters Detachment and Combat Train, 1st Battalion, 213th Coast Artillery. Reorganized and re-designated 1 April 1939 as Headquarters Battery, 213th Coast Artillery.
*Inducted into Federal service 16 September 1940 at Allentown. Reorganized and Federally recognized 9 October 1946 at Allentown.
*Consolidated 1 June 1959 with the 151st Antiaircraft Artillery Detachment and consolidated unit re-designated as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 213th Artillery Group. Converted and re-designated 1 December 1971 as Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 213th Military Police Group Converted and re-designated 1 April 1975 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 213th Support Group.
*HHC (-Det 1), 213th Area Support Group ordered into active Federal service on 7 January 1997 in support of Operation Joint Endeavor/Guard HHC (-Det 1), 213th Area Support Group released from active Federal service on 2 October 1997
*Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 213th Area Support Group Mobilized and ordered into active Federal Service on 15 March 2003 at Allentown in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Trained at Fort Dix, New Jersey and then deployed, serving in Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. Released from active Federal Service and returned to Fort Dix on 18 April 2004

Honors

Campaign Participation Credit

*Civil War
#Shenandoah
#Florida 1862
#South Carolina 1862
#Louisiana 1864
*War with Spain
#Puerto Rico
*World War I
#Champagne-Marne
#Aisne-Marne
#Oise-Aisne
#Meuse-Argonne
#Champagne 1918
#Lorraine 1918
*World War II
#Tunisia
#Naples-Foggia
#Rome-Arno
#Normandy
#Northern France
#Southern France
#Rhineland
#Central Europe
*War on Terrorism
#Operation Enduring Freedom

Decorations

External links

* [http://www.dmva.state.pa.us/paarng/cwp/view.asp?a=3&q=440996#JobOpportunities|Official Web page]