Alaska Air National Guard celebrates new recruitment office location

The Alaska Air National Guard celebrated the grand opening of its new recruitment location at the Dimond Center on Friday.

The new area is meant to offer a more protected, private environment where those interested can learn more about job opportunities.

Recruiters are currently looking to fill 300 vacancies from aircraft maintenance to civil engineering.

Jobs were added at the Air Guard's 176th wing last year due to the C-17 Globemaster III Aircraft unit transferring from the active duty air force to the 176th wing.

The transition created more than 180 transitional positions and 50 full- time jobs.

The Guard said it has a strong recruitment statistic at nearly 90 percent and a retention rate of 98 percent.

Tech. Sgt. Melissa Sullivan, a production recruiter for the Alaska Air National Guard, said despite unique challenges, recruitment in the state is on par with other states.

"Recruiting in Alaska has some unique challenges because most of our state isn't accessible by road system so then you have travel costs that can get very expensive for a wing," Sullivan said. "We're also one of the largest, busiest wings in the nation with all our different mission sets so we have to recruit a high level of individuals to meet our goals."

Brigadier General Karen Mansfield, Commander of the Alaska Air National Guard, said she's proud of what recruiters have accomplished.

"We've got a good thing going and I'll tell you right now the recruiters are the foundation for that and the fact that we're at that 89.3 percent is indicative of the foundation they are building as we move forward in the mission," Mansfield said.

Anyone interested in finding out more about employment opportunities can visit the Guard's new location on the 3rd floor of the Dimond Center near the ice rink.