Counter drug program celebrates 25 years at NAS Meridian

Published 3:52 pm Friday, July 21, 2017

The Regional Counterdrug Training Academy at Naval Air Station Meridian held a reception Friday to celebrate 25 years of service, highlighting its myriad accomplishments since opening its doors.

More than 130,000 officers have completed programs taught at the RCTA, which according to a press release from the NAS Meridian public affairs office “is the longest running counterdrug training centers of the five that exist” in the United States.

Special guests at the event included Maj. Gen. Jansen Boyles and Gen. Mike Nabors of the Mississippi National Guard, Clarke County Sheriff Todd Kemp and U.S. Rep. Gregg Harper (R-MS). 

 “I can’t think of anything we’ve worked on more than we have RCTA,” Harper said. “The work and the effort … here has an incredible impact on the safety of our country. I want to congratulate everybody. Twenty-five years — this is quite an accomplishment to get to this point.”

“RCTA is a congressionally funded training facility operated by the Mississippi National Guard Counterdrug Program,” according to teh news release. It was established to “provide counterdrug training to members of federal, state, tribal or local law enforcement agencies, community-based organizations and military members with tuition-free instruction on drug interdiction and counterdrug activities, and drug demand supply, reduction and prevention techniques.” 

When the RTCA first opened, it operated under the Gulf States Counterdrug Initiative. Its purpose was “to identify resources, services, and support that can be legitimately provided by Department of Defense components and agencies to support counterdrug activities along the U.S. southern coastal region,” the release said.

The facility was first sponsored by law enforcement, with six U.S. senators, 19 congressmen and three state governors heavily endorsing the GSCI proposal. 

“One of the provisions of the GSCI document was a request by the Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi senior drug law enforcement agencies to establish a counterdrug training academy with the mission of training law enforcement officers in counterdrug skills,” the release said. “The mission was initially focused on the three requesting states, but in 1996, the state of Georgia became an official member of the GSCI. In 2000, the state of Tennessee was also admitted.”

Current RCTA Commandant, Lt. Col. Gary L. Crist was selected in March 2015 and also serves as the counterdrug coordinator over the Mississippi National Guard’s Counterdrug Task Force. 

Reporter Jim Brock contributed to this report.