FORT BENNING, Ga. - A four-man North Carolina Army National Guard tank crew from Charlie Company, 1-252nd Combined Arms Battalion, 30th Armored Brigade Combat Team participated in the 2014 Sullivan Cup Precision Gunnery Competition here May 12-15.
Seventeen tank crews from active duty Army and Marine Corps, the National Guard and Canada competed in the Sullivan Cup to determine who would be crowned "best tank crew in the military."
Pennsylvania Army National Guard's tank crew from the 55th Armored Brigade Combat Team placed as one of the top four crews in the competition proving that National Guard combat units are as skilled, capable and ready as their active duty counterparts.
North Carolina and Washington State's crews did not make the top four, but had respectable scores and enjoyed the chance to compete with fellow tankers.
North Carolina National Guard's team's tank commander, Staff Sgt. Scott Bang, from Hope Mills, North Carolina, described his team's preparation to get to this year's Sullivan Cup.
"We have been together for a long time and won the 30th Brigade's Hickory Cup in 2013. We are the best tank crew out of 56 NCNG crews and have been training hard for months to get to this competition. Every weekend drill period and training exercise my guys worked on getting better at our crew member proficiencies such as the ability to replace an eight-link-long piece of track, vehicle identification and communication procedures. The crews here have all come with their A game."
NCNG's Team Thunderbolt came in first in the vehicle identification lane, the M240B machine gun lane and the tank track assembly lane.
"This has been a great experience," said Spc. Brandon Sinor, a native of Greenville, North Carolina. "I have learned a lot while here."
The event is named for retired Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan and is a physically and mentally demanding world-class event that rigorously tests U.S. Army Soldiers, U.S. Marines, and international partners in tank crew maneuver, sustainment, and gunnery skills.
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