A History of the 202nd Ordnance Company

 

Soldiers of the 202nd Ordnance Company Supported Operation Spartan Shield in the Central Command area of operations from October 2021
to August 2022. Photo courtesy of the 202nd Ordnance Co. 

By Major William Carraway

Historian, Georgia Army National Guard

 

The 202^nd Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) was organized June 1, 1987,[1] and federally recognized September 15, 1987, in Decatur, Ga.[2] Upon organization, the unit was assigned to the 78^th Troop Command. The 202nd relocated to Forest Park, Ga. March 1, 1990, and on September 1, 1998, the unit was redesignated the 202^nd Ordnance Company.[3]

 

The Soldiers of the 202nd are capable of eliminating explosive hazards such as improvised explosive devices. To become an explosives ordnance disposal specialist, Soldiers must complete nearly one year of specialized training covering chemistry, robotics and methods used to detect and neutralize explosive threats. 

 

A 202nd Soldier prepares to X-Ray an IED
during team leader certification in April 2014.
Photo Courtesy of the 202nd Ordnance Co.

As part of troop movements for Operation Desert Shield, personnel of the 202nd were placed on alert and mobilized to Fort Drum, New York, December 7, 1990. The unit replaced an active Army unit that was mobilized to Saudi Arabia. While at Fort Drum, the 202^nd provided explosive ordnance disposal services for counties in New York, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The unit served on active duty at Fort Drum until May 20, 1991, and returned to state service May 24, 1991.[4]

 

In March 1999, the 202nd conducted a two-week overseas mission in Panama where it helped clear unexploded ammunition from small-arms and artillery ranges.[5] In December 2002, the 202nd entered federal service for Operation Noble Eagle and served on active duty through June 15, 2004, in support of security operations in the United States.[6] Upon its demobilization at Fort Bragg and subsequent return to Georgia, the 202nd relocated from Forest Park to Marietta.[7]

 

When the 78th TC received the Region IV Homeland Response Force mission assignment in 2010, the 202nd capabilities augmented the mission of saving lives in the event of a domestic terrorist or natural emergency. The 202nd participated in a series of exercises beginning with a joint exercise at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida, in February 2010.

 

On July 21, 2011, the 202nd mobilized to Afghanistan, where its skillset helped protect coalition forces and Afghan civilians from the threat of unexploded IEDs and mines. The unit returned to Georgia August 24, 2012.[8]

 

An October 2013 reorganization of the Georgia National Guard resulted in the transfer of the 202nd from the 78th TC to the newly established 201st Regional Support Group. Assigned to the Marietta-based Joint Task Force 781^st Chemical, Biological, Radiological/Nuclear, and Explosive Enhanced Response Force-Package (CERFP), the 202^nd supported Exercise Vigilant Guard from March 27-April 2, 2017. In September 2017 Soldiers of the 202^nd mobilized with JTF 781 to Florida in response to Hurricane Irma. In March 2019, the 202nd was assigned to the 265th Chemical Battalion, part of the 201st RSG. Later that year, a team of marksmen from the 202^nd placed first in the Andrew Sullens Marksmanship Competition.[9]

 

The 202nd supported the 2nd Brigade 3rd Infantry Division at the Joint Readiness Training Center, Fort Polk, La. in September 2015. 
Photo courtesy of the 202nd Ordnance Co.

On March 27, 2020, the 202nd moved to its current armory in Waynesboro, Georgia.[10] Since that time, personnel of the 202nd supported the state’s coordinated response to the COVID-19 pandemic, augmented law enforcement in response to civil unrest and mobilized to Washington D.C. to support security operations for the presidential inauguration. On October 16, 2021, the 202^nd mobilized in support of Operation Spartan Shield. The unit returned from operations in the Central Command area of operations August 15, 2022.[11]

 

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[1] National Guard Bureau, “Organizational Authority 79-87," June 1, 1987, effective September 1, 1987, amended December 31, 1987.

 

[2] National Guard Bureau, “Organizational Authority 233-87,” September 30, 1987.

 

[3] National Guard Bureau, “Organizational Authority 41-90,” February 20, 1990, effective March 1, 1990.

 

[4] Kenneth Davis, “After the Storm,” Georgia Guardsman Magazine, Fall 1991, 7.

 

[5] “EOD is an Explosive Business, Georgia National Guard Magazine, Summer, 1999, 8-9.

 

[6] Georgia Department of Defense, The Georgia Department of Defense Annual Report, 2004,  Atlanta: 2004, 11.

 

[7] National Guard Bureau, “Organizational Authority 181-04," September 24, 2004, effective December 1, 2004.

 

[8] U.S. Army Center for Military History, “Lineage and Honors of the 202^nd Ordnance Company,” December 21, 2012.

 

[9] Tori Miller, “Andrew Sullens Marksmanship Competition, 2019,” Georgia Guardsman Magazine, Q1 2019, 6-7.

 

[10] National Guard Bureau, “Organizational Authority 134-20,” July 4, 2020, effective July 1, 2020.

 

[11] William Carraway, “Citizen Soldiers of the 202^nd Ordnance Company embark on overseas deployment,” DVIDS, October 16, 2021, https://www.dvidshub.net/news/407409/citizen-soldiers-202nd-ordnance-company-embark-overseas-deployment