SD Nat’l Guard hosts Golden Coyote training exercise in the Black Hills

RAPID CITY, S.D. — The South Dakota National Guard will host its 37th annual Golden Coyote training exercise in the Black Hills from June 12 – 26.

The exercise, created in 1984 with the cooperation of the National Park Service and Custer State Park, is designed to provide units with relevant training to support overseas contingency operations and homeland defense.

2021’s exercise will allow more than 2,000 members from the National Guard, Army Reserves, and Navy Reserve to conduct combat support and service support missions. 35 military units from nine states and a U.S. Territory will participate.

This year’s exercise includes engineer, medical, logistics, aviation, transportation, maintenance and public affairs units, and offers units opportunities to train on individual and collective tasks and battle drills, combat patrols, urban combat operations, medical first aid, casualty evacuation and convoy operations.

Several units will complete humanitarian missions to transport timber to Native American communities, as well as engineer projects to improve forest infrastructure, trails, and roads.

Residents should be prepared for an increase in military traffic throughout the region and in Rapid City, Hill City, and Custer. An increase in noise levels should be expected. Aircraft will operate around the area. The public is asked to remain at a safe distance from all moving military vehicles and aircraft to prevent injury to personnel or damage to property.