ATLANTA - Georgia National Guard members - including about 150 from a Gainesville-based unit - have begun the final weeks of training before deployment to Iraq next month.
Lt. Col. Ken Baldowski says the desert warfare training at Ft. Irwin, California, is as realistic as possible - complete with mock insurgents.
"They will be going against an operational force in an environment that would be very similar to Iraq," Colonel Baldowski said.
He added that in an area called "the box" in the Mojave Desert near Fort Irwin, the terrain is very much like it is in Iraq. In addition, the Army has constructed mock Iraqi villages and the guardsmen are learning the basics of patrolling in such an environment - all the while subject to attack by "insurgents" who try to mimic the tactics used by the enemy in Iraq.
Col. Baldowski says the guardsmen will get about a week's leave between the end of their training and their deployment. He says they should be home sometime the first week in May for about eight days.
Two two send-off ceremonies are planned at Ft. Stewart, near Savannah for the members of the 48th Brigade. Baldowski said one will be held May 13 and will be the more "formal" of the two. The next day, a family-friendly send off, complete with music and food, is planned for the soldiers and their families.
The Gainesville unit is the 121st Infantry. It along with other units in the 48th Brigade were called to active duty about four months ago.
Thursday
October 10th, 2024
6:31PM
