The U.S. Army confirmed it will stand up the new battalion in Guam, equipped with the Patriot surface to air missile system in October.
According to TWZ, which reported on progress, the battalion will also have Enduring Shield, a lower-tier air defense system.
The new battalion will be the 3rd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, and will be partly under the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickham in Hawaii.
TWZ quoted Army Col. Matt Dalton, deputy commander of the 94th, who spoke at the annual Space & Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama. He said preparation entailed “construction, planning, housing, defense design, coordinating with the local authorities in the joint community, the governor’s office, the [Federal Aviation Administration,] so many, many things over the last couple of years. … I think right now what we’re seeing is, we’re starting to see the fruits of all that labor.”
Dalton said about 120 soldiers for the battalion were already in Guam, as well as soldiers already present for the THAAD or Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system.
The 3rd Battalion took over from the Guam Army National Guard’s Task Force Talon in July, under the command of Lt. Col. Joshua Urness.
According to Journal files, the number of active-duty Army personnel in Guam as of March 31 was 249. A military battalion can average 500 to 600 troops.
Brig. Gen. Patrick M. Costello, commanding general of the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, said at a media conference in November 2024, “First and foremost,” the siting of a missile defense system in Guam “is about defense of the homeland.”
However, he told the Journal the defense system could also be used for other nearby islands. “There is some capacity that extends to the Northern Mariana Islands,” he said. If necessary, the commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command would make that decision, Costello said. “Right now, we have 100 soldiers here,” Costello said.
Approximately 700 soldiers were expected to be stationed in Guam, he said. “Mostly the operation systems would be run by soldiers,” he said, with one or two contractors supplementing that workforce.
As to where incoming soldiers would be housed, Rear Adm. Brent DeVore, commander of Joint Region Marianas at the time, said at the press conference that issues such as housing are discussed with the Government of Guam at meetings of the Civil-Military Coordination Council. “We’ve continued to expand how we’re addressing those issues,” he said.
An RFP for a military housing complex in Guam was expected to see progress in June with Phase 2 awards, but to date there has been no announcement. mbj
