Idaho National Guard prepares for mission

BOISE (AP) - Wind whipped across sand-colored tents, diesel fuel fumes filled nostrils and camouflage-covered bodies bowed over battlefield keyboards Wednesday at Boise's Gowen Field.

Members of the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team were in the thick of a week of simulated battle training as part of massive preparations for its second deployment to Iraq.

But unlike 2004, when the 116th had only 90 days to prepare for deployment, soldiers aren't scrambling to get ready this time. The Department of Defense gave the brigade 150 days between its September 2009 alert and April 2010 mobilization order.

That extra time means Idaho soldiers should be better prepared when they hit the ground in Iraq, Col. Guy Thomas, commander of the 116th, said.

The Army and the 116th are better organized, Thomas said, and as a result, training, medical work and certifications are well under way.

On Sept. 17, Idaho Gov. Butch Otter will hand over control of the 116th to the Army. The next day, soldiers will head to their home armories in Idaho, Oregon and Montana, and then begin leaving in waves for two months of training in Mississippi. Then they'll spend about 10 months in Iraq.

"All of our soldiers have to meet medical criteria," Thomas said. "Their teeth have to be in good shape and they have to be in (physically) good shape."

Getting their bodies in shape now will give soldiers "more time to focus on the training they have to do at the mobilization site," Thomas said.

In 2004, many soldiers were still getting fillings and resolving medical problems while trying to train in the Texas desert. Some actually had to be pulled away from group training to take care of medical issues.

"That can take away from the unit cohesiveness," said Idaho Guard spokesman Tim Marsano.

Soldiers will get twice the amount of annual training, Thomas said. Weapon certifications and other work will be completed according to Army standards before the brigade heads to Mississippi.

Idaho soldiers also are receiving all essential combat equipment - like body armor and thermal imaging cameras - before they leave, Thomas said.

"Last time there was not a system in place for anything that we did. ... We had to redo a lot of training at the (mobilization) site."

That meant soldiers simultaneously completed individual and group training and got part of their equipment here and part at the mobilization site, Thomas said.

Guardsmen are busy going through a mandatory "Yellow Ribbon" family support program. It's a collection of outside and internal resources designed to help families while soldiers are away.

"They have folks there to help you with your budget, legal questions and people explain how insurance works," Thomas said. "If soldiers have family-care plans, they make sure ... they have someone to take care of children."

Plans to take care of children must be in place before soldiers can deploy, Marsano said. That ensures a spouse will be able to pay the mortgage and buy groceries, he said.

The Army also is taking a more proactive approach to saving marriages by making chaplains and counselors available to couples and offers special sessions called "Strong Bonds," Marsano said.