Can I switch from guard to active more easily given the conflict in Afghanistan?

2021-08-27T15:41:38-04:00

I’m currently in the guard and after seeing the conflict in Afghanistan I want to go active and deploy. Would it be easier to make the switch assuming they need bodies?

Response by Sgt Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 27 at 2021 3:59 PM

2021-08-27T15:59:48-04:00

The conflict in Afghanistan is going to be over very soon along with deployments there.

An excerpt from Stars & Stripes:

President Joe Biden on Wednesday said the U.S. military may stay in Afghanistan beyond the Aug. 31 withdrawal deadline to ensure every American citizen is able to leave the country.

In an interview with George Stephanopoulos of ABC News, Biden said he expected the mission to end by the original deadline. But, pressed by Stephanopoulos the president said, “If there’s American citizens left, we’re gonna stay to get them all out.”

“Americans should understand that we’re going to try to get it done before Aug. 31.” he explained. “If we don’t, we’ll determine at the time who’s left.”

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 27 at 2021 4:50 PM

2021-08-27T16:50:01-04:00

Can you switch from NG to Active? Only your CG can answer that. Active Duty Soldiers aren't deploying in droves, only the GRF Soldiers are going. Unless you're joining and going Airborne you have a better chance of deployment by doing an IST with a state that has a deployment scheduled.

The Regular Army doesn't need bodies, we have the bodies we need on standby, divisions worth of Soldiers just itching to go

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 27 at 2021 6:55 PM

2021-08-27T18:55:52-04:00

My answer is YES, With our current climate, it will be way easier to do it now than any other time. My question would be, are you sure?

Response by SSgt Christophe Murphy made Aug 27 at 2021 7:27 PM

2021-08-27T19:27:18-04:00

Have you gone through entry level training yet? What makes you think that the situation in Afghanistan has the potential to last long enough for you to justify moving to AD?

If you want to transfer to AD do it because you want to be on AD. Not because you might deploy to a situation that might not be ongoing by the time you get through the training pipeline.regardless, you would need to be released from your current commitment to transfer.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 27 at 2021 8:42 PM

2021-08-27T20:42:53-04:00

SFC Boyd gave you the best answer, but to add to it, why do you think you wouldn’t deploy in the Guard? On active duty you are married to the unit and it’s mission, so if you get sent to a non deployable unit, you can get stuck there for years. In the Guard you can volunteer for missions going on all over the world regardless of what your unit is doing.

But to answer your question, yes you can go Guard to active. It requires a conditional release, and depending on the state, the Guard is the easiest component to get those approved from. If you enlisted to fill a high need vacancy or for a bonus, it may not get approved. If you enlisted for a bonus and it DOES get approved, you will definitely have to pay back the bonus. If you haven’t gone to training yet, you can’t do anything until you go and come back.