Battle Creek Airman Honored by Air Force, Air National Guard Published Oct. 9, 2015 By Master Sgt. Alec Lloyd 217th Air Operations Group April 1, 2015 -- The 110th Attack Wing's Senior Master Sgt. Steven Brown recently received multiple honors in recognition of his service in the Air National Guard. He was selected as the 2014 ANG Outstanding Command and Control Battle Management Operator of the Year as well as the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance (MDAA) European Missile Defender of the Year. "The awards are a great honor and surprise, but it takes a large dedicated team to make this come together" remarked Sergeant Brown. Sergeant Brown is a member of the 217th Air Operations Group, based at Battle Creek Air National Guard Base in Michigan. He served with the 603rd Air Operations Center, 3rd Air Force, located at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. During his deployment he helped integrate the efforts of 10 agencies across the globe to successfully execute 213 ballistic missile exercises while providing valuable training to six United States Navy Aegis ships, 38 United States Army missile defense operators and an Air Operations Center. He is also the first member of an ANG Air Operations Group to receive the MDAA European Missile Defender award, which is typically conferred on active-duty Airmen, civilian employees and contractors. While deployed in 2014, Sergeant Brown served as the ballistic missile defense advocate for the Area Air Defense Commander in both the European theater and the Levant. He was an integral part of a highly skilled team that shaped and evaluated the execution of ballistic missile defense across two distinct theaters of operations. He validated NATO and coalition early warning operations Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures while training integrated partner nation agencies in ballistic missile defense. The 217th Air Operations Group is part of the 110th Attack Wing and provides direct, integrated planning and command and control support to U.S. Air Forces in Europe well as assisting the State of Michigan with emergency response at a moment's notice.