174th Attack Wing Honors Airmen as 'Hometown Heroes'

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Members of the 174th Attack Wing receive honors during the February 2014 Hometown Heroes ceremony in Syracuse.

HANCOCK AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, SYRACUSE, N.Y. (01/09/2015)(readMedia)-- Members of the New York Air National Guard's 174th Attack Wing will be recognized for their federal service overseas or supporting operations in a combat zone this weekend during the wing's Hometown Heroes Salute ceremony for all units stationed at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base.

WHO: Maj. Gen. Verle Johnston, Commander of New York Air National Guard and Colonel Greg Semmel, 174th Attack Wing Commander

WHAT: Hometown Hero Awards presentation for some 80 members of the 174th Attack Wing

WHEN: Saturday, January 10th at 10:00 a.m.

WHERE: Main Hangar, Hancock Field Air National Guard Base, 6001 Molloy Road, Syracuse, NY 13211. Entry through Thompson Road gate.

Members of the Media must contact the Major Sandra Stoquert, the wing Public Affairs Officer NLT 8:30 a.m. at (315) 233-2651/2408 for access to this secure military facility.

Coverage Opportunities

Maj. Gen. Verle Johnston & Colonel Greg Semmel will speak and awards will be presented to service members and their families.

Additional Information:

The Hometown Heroes program recognizes Airmen who mobilized and supported contingency operations for 31 or more consecutive days either serving overseas or here in the U.S. since Sept. 11, 2001.

"We recognize the tremendous service and sacrifice of our Airmen and their families supporting the wide variety of missions here in the wing," said Col. Greg Semmel, 174th Attack Wing commander. "Our Hometown Heroes salute is a great opportunity to thank them for that service."

Airmen will receive a framed letter from the Chief of the National Guard Bureau containing a Hometown Heroes salute challenge coin. Children of the deployed Airmen will also receive unique Hometown Heroes Salute dog tags.

The Air National Guard initiated the program in August 2008 to celebrate and honor our Airmen, families, communities and those special supporters who have significantly contributed to supporting our Airmen and the Air National Guard mission.

The 174th Attack Wing was established in 1947 as the first Air National Guard flying unit in New York State. The wing currently flies MQ-9 Remotely Piloted Aircraft. They conduct combat missions as well as multiple training missions, including operating the Field Training Detachment (FTD) which trains all Air Force personnel on MQ-9 maintenance procedures, and the Formal Training Unit (FTU) which provides initial qualification training to MQ-9 aircrews.