DENG-TTDF-ENG

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Delaware National Guard (DENG) and Trinidad and Tobago Partnership under the U.S. Department of Defense’s State Partnership Program (SPP), which links U.S. states with foreign nations, promoting military cooperation, readiness, and mutual development — today there are 105 such partnerships. In 2022, the DENG-Trinidad and Tobago partnership was recognized globally, winning Partnership of the Year as the top collaboration in the world. The following photos highlight a handful, among the hundreds of engagements, that the DENG and the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force (TTDF) conducted along the years.Pictured: Members of the DENG and TTDF participate in a simulated room clearance training demonstration, in Chaguaramas, Trinidad and Tobago, August 10, 2016. (Photo: Delaware Air National Guard Technical Sergeant Gwendolyn Blakey)

Some 40 DENG members take part in a seven-day mission to Trinidad and Tobago for a Security Cooperation Opportunity Unit Training and Subject Matter Expert Exchange. The visit marks the first time that a mission including a Delaware Air National Guard C-130-H aircraft landed in Trinidad and Tobago as part of the SPP, August 7-13, 2016. (Photo: Delaware Air National Guard Technical Sergeant Gwendolyn Blakey)

Soldiers from Delaware’s Army Aviation units and the Trinidad and Tobago Air Guard train side by side, sharing expertise in planning and executing air operations, while also enhancing maintenance practices, in Trinidad and Tobago, April 28-May 15, 2024. The DENG’s Army Aviation units conducted joint training with the TTDF as part of the long-standing SPP. This training involved the use of three UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters and approximately 20 aircrew and support personnel. (Photo: Delaware National Guard)

The April 28-May 15, 2024, training provided participants with the opportunity to fly together on Blackhawk helicopters across urban and rural regions of Trinidad and Tobago. These joint exercises are designed to improve aviation interoperability and further strengthen the bond between the Delaware National Guard and the TTDF, marking another successful collaboration in their 20-year partnership. (Photo: Delaware National Guard)

Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force Commander Kele-Ann Bourne Jenssen, Defense Attaché at the Trinidad and Tobago Embassy in Washington, D.C., visited the 31st Civil Support Team of the Delaware Army National Guard in Smyrna Delaware, her first visit to the unit, and addressed future mission sets with the State Partnership Program, June 24, 2024. (Photo: U.S. Army Sergeant Laura Bradley)

A DENG delegation poses with TTDF recruits as part of a visit to the island nation to plan for future engagements and celebrate the 50th anniversary of Independence of Trinidad and Tobago, August 31, 2012. (Photo: Delaware National Guard)

Trinidad and Tobago Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds receives the SPP Partnership of the Year Award from Adjutant General of the DENG Major General Michael Berry, in Trinidad and Tobago, April 27, 2023. (Photo: U.S. Embassy in Trinidad and Tobago)