On June 7 soldiers of the US Pennsylvania Army National Guard on an exercise in Lithuania and their colleagues from the National Defence Volunteer Force will perform parachute jumps together in Gaižiūnai Training Area.
The joint jump will start the events in Lithuania celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Lithuanian Armed Forces and the Pennsylvania Army National Guard cooperation.
Roughly 50 US and Lithuanian troops, including Chief of Staff of the National Defence Volunteer Force Lt Col Linas Kubilius and Col Kenneth Weiland with the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, will jump out of US Air Force C130.
After the successful completion of the jump the troops will line up on Sunday in Lukiškių Square to be awarded the "paratrooper's wings" badges.
The PANG soldiers deployed in Lithuania on June 4 to train in international Exercise Saber Strike 2018.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of intense military cooperation between the Lithuanian Armed Forces and the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. The first group of the US Mil-to-Mil program troops began their activity in Lithuania in April 1993. Lithuania's representatives would visit US military bases to learn about US military units and activities. US military experts would arrive in Lithuania and deliver seminars and courses. PANG units used to and still are actively taking part in exercise sand international training of the Lithuanian Land Force.
POC: PAO for the Lithuanian Land Force Donatas Suchockis, +370 5 278 5094, +370 640 45380, donatas.suchockis@mil.lt
Photo: Lithuanian Armed Forces archive
