82nd Airborne Soldiers Begin Haiti Deployment

[tekisui]

Source: US Department of Defense

WASHINGTON, Jan. 14, 2010 – An initial contingent of 100 82nd Airborne Division troops deployed to Haiti around noon today, and another 800 soldiers will follow tomorrow to support disaster relief and humanitarian support.

A lead element from Bravo Troop, 1st Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, left Fort Bragg today, and the entire battalion, along with a command and control element from the division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team, will join them tomorrow, said Army Col. Billy Buckner, 18th Airborne Corps public affairs officer.

Meanwhile, the 82nd Airborne Division’s entire 2nd Brigade Combat Team – on tap as the U.S. global response force – “has been told to be prepared to deploy as needed or required,” Buckner said.

“So they are prepped and ready to deploy. They have done all the things they need to do to get ready,” Buckner said. “And should they be directed to deploy, based on the situation on the ground and additional resources, they are ready to do so.”

As the global response force, the 2nd BCT is on 24/7 standby, ready to deploy anywhere in the world within 18 hours. In that capacity, it trains for the full spectrum of missions – from forcible entry scenarios and follow-on stability operations to humanitarian aid and disaster response, Buckner said.

So when the first verbal order to prepare a brigade to deploy came at 4 a.m. yesterday, he added, most of the groundwork already was laid.

more: http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=57522

[C_Lawyer09]

1. Par for the course

I hope your post serves as a reminder to those several on du who are constantly maligning service members vis a vis their participation in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other places, that the role of todays military is much broader than anytime in history, and consider why DOD is increasingly tasked with such a diverse role in all manner of world events. To be able to send a 4-6 thousand person relief contingent in a few days is truly remarkable. Maybe a one day sabbatical of fairly constant criticism is in order, that we pay tribute to those that volunteer to do so much in so many places, often at great cost to themselves and their family members. "On the 8th day god created Paratroopers, and the devil stood at attention!"

[KittyWampus]

2. they know how to get things done!