Two Duluth airmen earn Minnesota National Guard honors for 2026

Two Duluth airmen earned Minnesota National Guard honors that reach far beyond a ceremony in St. Paul. Capt. Kaitlyn Brenner and Master Sgt. Sarah Fleissner were named Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2026, a recognition that underscores how Twin Ports service members are shaping both local readiness and the wider Air National Guard.

The award went to Airmen whose records showed more than a single strong performance. The review process weighed professionalism, job performance, physical fitness, self-deployment, community service and Air Force core values, making the honor a measure of sustained service and discipline as much as individual accomplishment.

Fleissner’s selection carried a particular operational impact. Over 15 years of service, she created a recruiting tool that pulled fragmented information into one place so recruiters, commanders and leaders could see what their organizations needed. The tool improved readiness, and other wings around the country are now using it as a model.

That kind of work shows why a local honor matters to St. Louis County. Duluth is not just producing service members who fill roles inside one unit; it is producing people who build systems that help the entire force function better. State Command Chief Master Sergeant Richard Schumacher highlighted Fleissner’s initiative as the kind of problem-solving that strengthens the organization, while Command Sergeant Jason Rost described the honorees as exceptional among their peers.

Brenner’s service carries its own practical weight. A National Guard photo caption identifies her as a physician assistant assigned to the 148th Fighter Wing, Minnesota Air National Guard, and shows her taking part in an Innovative Readiness Training mission at Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, Montana, on Aug. 9, 2024. The Department of Defense program provides free health care in underserved communities while also building military readiness, linking Brenner’s work to both public service and training value.

The broader picture helps explain the significance for Duluth and the Northland. The National Guard says its force includes about 435,000 Soldiers and Airmen serving communities, states and the nation. The Air National Guard said it added nearly 12,000 new members in fiscal year 2025, its strongest recruiting year, which puts added importance on tools that help commanders see staffing needs clearly.

The 148th Fighter Wing has also supported domestic training missions and a Pacific deployment, showing that Duluth-area Airmen serve in a unit with both local roots and national responsibilities. For St. Louis County, these awards reflect more than personal excellence: they mark a military footprint that still reaches into community health, recruiting, readiness and deployment work well beyond the Twin Ports.