The National Guard is a reserve component of the United States Armed Forces, composed of part-time citizen soldiers who respond to both local and national needs. As part of their training, members of the National Guard must attend boot camp. But where exactly do they go for boot camp?
The answer to this question depends on which branch of the National Guard a soldier is joining.
The Army National Guard recruits attend basic combat training at one of four basic training locations: Fort Benning in Georgia, Fort Jackson in South Carolina, Fort Sill in Oklahoma, and Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. Air Force National Guard personnel attend basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.
The boot camps for the Army and Air Force National Guards differ from those conducted by their active-duty counterparts. For example, the Army National Guard’s basic combat training is shorter (10 weeks versus 14 weeks), and focuses more heavily on skills related to local response operations—such as responding to natural disasters or civil unrest—in addition to core combat skills like marksmanship and land navigation. Similarly, the Air Force National Guard’s basic military training is designed to provide personnel with skills that are applicable when responding to local disaster relief efforts or assisting with airlift operations.
Ultimately, the answer to where the National Guard does boot camp is simple: it depends on which branch they are joining and what their specialty is. The Army and Air Force National Guards conduct boot camps tailored specifically for their respective forces that focus not only on core combat skills but also on those needed for local response operations.
Conclusion:
At its core, where does the National Guard do boot camp? Depending on which branch they are joining – Army or Airforce – recruits will attend either basic combat training at one of four locations or basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base respectively; while these camps differ from active-duty counterparts due to their focus on skill related to local response operations as well as core combat skills.
