Columbia, SC (WLTX) - Have you been hearing and seeing more air traffic over McEntire National Guard base?  Does it seem like it's all happening at night? Don't worry.  It's night manuever training. 

The South Carolina Air National Guard base is hosting members of 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment from Hunter Army Airfield in Georgia for overnight military exercises.  

The exercises will be held from October 16-19th. 

To make the late-night and pre-dawn combat scenarios as realistic as possible, participants will use training ammunititon and a number of low-flying rotary and fixed-wing aircraft. 

This is a routine exercise, conducted to help maintain high levels of readiness for the military personnel involved.  Thorough safety surveys and risk assessments have been and will be conducted before and during exercises of this nature. 

Colonel Mike Hudson, commander of McEntire's 169th Fighter Wing said, "We are proud to be one of the few military installations with the ability to host such important training for our Army and active-duty Air Force colleagues.  We are extremely sensitive to the concerns of our neighbors and have taken every measure to reduce the amount of noise generated overnight.  We appreciate the understanding and support of the surrounding community during the exercise." 

The 75th Ranger Regiment is a lethal, agile, and versatile special operations force that conducts forcible entry operations, raids across the entire spectrum of combat.