Air National Guard Director, Lt. Gen. Scott Rice, speaks with Col. Larry Christensen 185th Air Refueling Wing Commander in Sioux City.

Air National Guard Director, Lt. Gen. Scott Rice, speaks with Col. Larry Christensen 185th Air Refueling Wing Commander in Sioux City.

It was a historic weekend at Sioux City’s 185th Air National Guard Refueling Wing. Lieutenant General Scott Rice, director of the Air National Guard visited the base Saturday, marking the first time in the history of the unit that a sitting director of the Air Guard had visited.

He says there are 90 wings in the Air National Guard from Guam to California and he is trying to see two units each month in the four years he holds his position to see how they operate. General Rice says the 185th is one of our premiere tanker wings in the country.

He says this visit helps energize him to carry the fight to Washington to keep the nation’s military funded at the level needed to support units like the 185th.

During the visit to Sioux City, General Rice met with members of 185th, toured the base and also visited the Air National Guard’s only aircraft paint facility that is located with the Air Refueling Wing.

(Reporting by Woody Gottburg, KSCJ, Sioux City/Photo courtesy of the 185th Air National Guard)