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NEWS | Nov. 17, 2022

Fort Indiantown Gap among busiest National Guard training centers in FY22

By Brad Rhen

Fort Indiantown Gap was once again among the busiest National Guard training centers in the country in fiscal year 2022.

During the fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30, 129,885 personnel trained FTIG for a total of 688,833 man-days of training. Man-days are a computation of the number of personnel multiplied by the number of days they trained on post.

Only Fort Pickett, Virginia, had more man-days, with 1,051,377. However, 638,721 of those days are classified as “Non-DOD/Non-Government” man-days due primarily to Fort Pickett’s mission of housing Afghan refugees.

Fort Stewart, Georgia, was third, with 599,318 man-days.

Fort Indiantown Gap was the busiest overall training center in 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020 and 2021 and has been in the top three every year since 2013.

In terms of military training, Fort Indiantown Gap led the way in FY22 with 655,336 man-days. The installation was tops in Army National Guard, Army Reserve and Air National Guard man-days among all training centers.

Fort Stewart was second in military training, with 526,397 man-days, and Camp Ripley, Minnesota, was third, with 479,026 man-days.

“I’m extremely proud of the Soldiers and Airmen of the Pennsylvania National Guard and the employees of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs for their steadfast commitment, service and support to Fort Indiantown Gap,” said Pennsylvania Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler. “That commitment is especially apparent as it’s once again among the busiest National Guard training centers in the country. Together, we serve to ensure that Fort Indiantown Gap provides not only the Pennsylvania National Guard, but also our state and federal partners with a premier, state-of-the-art training environment that meets their operational needs.”

Fort Indiantown Gap, often referred to as “The Gap,” encompasses more than 17,000 acres in northern Lebanon and Dauphin counties. It is home to numerous ranges, training facilities and simulators and regularly hosts personnel from all branches of the military, both active-duty and reserve-component, as well as foreign militaries, first responders, law enforcement and state and federal agencies.

Fort Indiantown Gap is the only Level II National Guard training center in the northeast United States, meaning it has billeting for a brigade, maneuver acreage for a company-plus, individual and crew-served weapons ranges, and squad and team collective ranges.

It is also home to several schools, including the Eastern Army National Guard Aviation Training Site, the 166th Regiment Regional Training Institute, the Regional Equipment Operators Training Site, the Lightning Force Academy and the Northeast Counter Drug Training Center.

"It's not surprising that Fort Indiantown Gap was once again one of the busiest National Guard training centers in the country,” said Lt. Col. Kevin Potts, Fort Indiantown Gap’s garrison commander. “The variety of ranges, facilities and simulators we offer here provide invaluable training to not only the Pennsylvania National Guard, but to all branches of the military as well as our federal, state and local partners."

Potts said Fort Indiantown Gap’s location within a two-day convoy of 50% of the U.S. population and the installation’s customer service play a key role in its popularity among units and agencies that come here for training.

“We constantly hear that our customer service is among the best,” Potts said. “The men and women on our team work tirelessly to ensure every unit that trains here has the support and resources they need to successfully meet all their objectives.”