One of the Army’s signature modernization efforts is facing headwinds across the Army National Guard as outdated infrastructure and operational demands make it harder to field the service’s newest equipment.

Aging Army Guard facilities are struggling to accommodate the new gear the Army says it needs to win future wars, slowing adoption, Guard officials told Federal News Network. Meanwhile, the added requirements of Transformation in Contact, the service’s two-year-old battlefield innovation initiative, are raising burnout concerns in Guard units already stretched thin by daily operations, training and maintaining older equipment.

The clash illustrates a broader tension across the U.S. military as each service tries to field new technologies while still meeting the demands of daily operations. That challenge is particularly acute for the Army Guard, which says it accounts for roughly half of the Army’s combat power but receives a fraction of the active-duty force’s funding. 

Even as Congress considers a $1.5 trillion defense budget that supporters say would fuel a once-in-a-generation overhaul of military capabilities, the Army is warning lawmakers that vision is at risk without billions more dollars for infrastructure.

“As the Army Transformation in Contact initiatives exert further strain on these facilities … infrastructure will continue to age and degrade, perpetuating a cycle of escalating risk and increased costs that jeopardizes national security and operational effectiveness,” the Army told Congress in a recent report viewed by Federal News Network.

Transformation in Contact looks to rapidly adapt the Army for the future by reorganizing formations over roughly two years using lessons learned from modern conflicts. 

That means turning the Army’s traditional infantry brigade combat teams into mobile brigade combat teams that are about half their previous size and equipped with lighter hardware like small drones, loitering munitions and Infantry Squad Vehicles. The service hopes key combat units will complete the transition by 2030.

After launching TiC with three active-duty infantry brigades in 2024, Army leaders last year expanded the initiative to a handful of Guard units: Indiana’s 38th ID and its 76th Mobile Brigade Combat Team; Virginia’s 116th Mobile Brigade Combat Team; and Kentucky’s 138th Field Artillery Brigade.

The initiative has begun reshaping the Army Guard’s force structure from state to state. For instance, the Indiana Army National Guard lost engineer and cavalry battalions, but added an intelligence and electronic battalion and other support units. All but two of the Army National Guard’s 27 infantry brigade combat teams will eventually be redesigned, according to the Virginia National Guard.

But while the Army National Guard says it welcomes a new approach, it argues TiC doesn’t provide enough manpower, money or facility upgrades to support the transition.

As new equipment arrives, repair shops, storage buildings and parking areas are growing clogged with older systems waiting to be turned in. That backlog has created “significant logistical hurdles” that keep soldiers from bringing on fresh inventory at the heart of Transformation in Contact, the Army Guard said.

One example is the Humvee. As Infantry Squad Vehicles arrive, older High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles must be redistributed to other Guard units. But that process takes time, personnel and space.

Heavy units face similar issues: Stryker and armored brigade combat teams are still keeping Abrams tanks and Bradley Fighting Vehicles in “limited secure storage” while they await shipping instructions, the Army Guard said.

Supporting old and new vehicles with limited personnel “will continue to be a challenge until all the older variants are removed from the units,” the Guard said. Then, maintainers can devote their time to the new equipment instead.

Space is only one part of the problem. Modern equipment often requires facilities with greater electrical capacity and climate control, but those updates haven’t been funded or scheduled, the Guard added.

The Army Guard’s armories and training facilities are nearly 50 years old on average, and almost half require improvements, expansion or replacement, the service told Congress. At its current rate of construction, the Army wrote, fully updating its readiness centers, runways and aviation facilities, and barracks could cost nearly $65 billion over 137 years.

The Guard also recognizes the strain that implementing Transformation in Contact is putting on soldiers, who have just a month or two of training time each year to try out the changes alongside their existing training schedule and mobilization at home and abroad. 

The Virginia Guard noted its 116th Mobile Brigade Combat Team has fielded about 35 new capabilities over the past 18 months while supporting domestic missions, holding major training events and spending a few weeks at the Joint Readiness Training Center in Louisiana.

“During JRTC, we fielded approximately 21 short-range Teal reconnaissance drones,” 1st Lt. Adam Mayers, the 116th’s assistant operations officer, said in the release. “For the first time, we were able to use those systems to identify targets and then adjust mortar fire onto them. That was a significant capability increase.”

The Army Guard told Federal News Network it’s trying to minimize burnout by prioritizing downtime where possible, fielding new tools on time to avoid scheduling chaos, and following a strategic training plan.

State Guard officials described the transition somewhat differently.

Lt. Col. Amy Hoover, head of public affairs for the Indiana National Guard, said in an emailed statement that while Hoosiers have encountered storage and parking problems for their new vehicles, they don’t pose major problems.

“Transformation in Contact is a challenge for the Indiana National Guard and its soldiers. Yet our soldiers are flexible and adaptable,” Hoover said. “We are rising to meet our nation’s requirements.”

Likewise, the Virginia National Guard doesn’t expect significant facilities challenges as it matures the 116th Mobile Brigade Combat Team, spokesman Michael Vrabel said in an email. The Kentucky National Guard did not respond to a request for comment.

The Army National Guard said it’s navigating the problem by updating guidance on divesting old equipment and dispatching support teams to spread excess equipment to units that need it. Officials are using existing facilities funding to patch minor construction and upgrade projects, while continuing to advocate for more long-term investment in Guard installations.

“Our installation planners continue to work with states, territories, and the District of Columbia to ensure they have adequate infrastructure [that] meets the demands of TIC,” the Army Guard said.

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