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Showing content from http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/03/03/florida.guard.facts/ below:

CNN.com - Military units involved in the C-23 Sherpa crash

Military units involved in the C-23 Sherpa crash

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Members of two National Guard units were involved in the Saturday crash in Georgia. The following is a closer look at those units and the role of the National Guard.

National Guard

The airplane in Saturday's crash belonged to the Florida National Guard, which comprises 9,000 members of the Army National Guard and another 1,300 members of the Air National Guard.

The Guard has both federal and state responsibilities. During peacetime, Guard forces are commanded by the state governor, who can call the Guard into service during local or statewide emergencies such as natural disasters or civil disturbances.

The National Guard also can be activated by the U.S. president to participate in federal missions. The Florida National Guard has had members participate in enforcing the no-fly zones in Iraq.

Typical duties for the Florida National Guard include aiding state officials during natural disasters such as hurricanes and wildfires. "We've got close to 100 people on wildfires right now," said Guard spokesman Jon Myatt.

Men and women serving in the Guard are required to attend one weekend each month for training, as well as one annual training period each year.

Detachment 1, 171st Aviation Battalion

The crew involved in Saturday's crash is based in Lakeland, Florida, as a part of Detachment 1, 171st Aviation Battalion of the Florida Army National Guard.

Detachment 1 performs flights for a variety of missions, including transporting people and supplies and supplementing other military operations. The unit provides mission support to all branches of the military.

The detachment provided support during the 1998 and 1999 Florida wildfires and during Hurricane Floyd and Hurricane Georges. The battalion also provided airlift support in 1998 for Operation New Horizons, a U.S. military training and humanitarian exercise in Honduras.

The detachment also provides passenger and cargo transport for all branches of U.S. active-duty and reserve forces.

The battalion, part of the 83d Troop Command, has a Web site at http://216.79.119.5/83rdtc/Det1avn/index.htm

203rd Red Horse Flight unit

203rd Red Horse Civil Engineering Unit of the Virginia Air National Guard

The 18 passengers aboard the flight were from the 203rd Red Horse Civil Engineering Flight, a rapid construction and repair unit. The unit's mission is to quickly build living quarters, outbuildings and even runways. About 10,000 men and women serve in the Virginia National Guard.

The unit is based at Camp Pendleton State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The unit has a Web site at http://va.ang.af.mil/redhorse/203rd.htm

Compiled by CNN.com writer Douglas S. Wood