Join the Alliance

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Echoing in Guam

November 27, 2019
Riki Ellison honoring CW2 Eric Baker with his commander, Captain Aaron, at the 2019 Guam Missile Defender of the Year Award Ceremony.

Task Force Talon was created to command and deploy a temporary operational capability of a THAAD battery into Guam in 2013 to defend the American Territory from North Korea Ballistic Missiles and the intent of Kim Jong Un “seriously examining the plan for an enveloping strike at Guam through simultaneous fire of four Hwasong-12 intermediate-range strategic ballistic rockets in order to interdict the enemy forces on major military bases on Guam and to signal a crucial warning to the US,” on August 3, 2017.  The creation of the 38th Army Air Defense Brigade last year in Sagmi Depot, Japan on October 16, 2018 has relieved the 94th AAMDC in Hawaii in direct support of Task Force Talon. The Task Force Talon is being dismantled and the Echo 3 THAAD Battery commanded by Captain Aaron and 1st Sergeant Smith stands on its own in Guam deployed and operational in the ballistic missile defense of Guam.

We have taken the time and effort to ensure the recognition of Task Force Talon and now Echo 3 THAAD Battery be recognized for its excellence in leadership by its Soldiers and critical mission of defending United States Territory every year since THAAD was first deployed on island in April 2013.

Here are the 2019 Guam Missile Defenders of the Year

Awardees of the 2019 Guam Missile Defender of the Year Award Ceremony at THAAD Site Armadillo, Guam on November 25, 2019.

1LT Cole Davis
1LT April Dilidili
CW3 Daniel Castro
CW2 Eric Baker
SFC Daniel Beck
SSG Gary Kearns
SGT John Rigsbee
SPC Jared Glenzer
SPC Rafael Estrada
PFC Cruz Martinez

Echo 3 remains critical in the stability of the Pacific.

Recent Alerts

Mission Statement

MDAA’s mission is to make the world safer by advocating for the development and deployment of missile defense systems to defend the United States, its armed forces and its allies against missile threats.

MDAA is the only organization in existence whose primary mission is to educate the American public about missile defense issues and to recruit, organize, and mobilize proponents to advocate for the critical need of missile defense. We are a non-partisan membership-based and membership-funded organization that does not advocate on behalf of any specific system, technology, architecture or entity.

How You Can Help

International Cooperation