News of the 1st Division of Foot.

From the War Is Hell file...

COWGIRLS VISIT FALCON
Photo by Pfc. Nathaniel Smith, 4th IBCT, 1st ID

First Lt. Travis Myers, a platoon leader with Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, gets the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders' autographs during a signing session Sept. 15 at Forward
Operating Base Falcon in southern Baghdad.

I'm guessing Lieutenant Myers is getting more backslaps for that pic than I got for my pic with the President...

Sergeant Hook - not posting much, because he's been busy. Busy deploying his Combat Aviation Brigade to Kuwait, preparatory to them moving into Iraq.

HELICOPTER IN COUNTRY Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Jefferey Troth, CAB PAO

A UH-60 Black Hawk crew with 3rd Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, heads out for an environmental flight in Kuwait. All of the Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division crews took their aircraft for flights in Kuwait to familiarize themselves with the unique flying conditions in the desert, to include flying dust.

IN COUNTRY: CAB ARRIVES, TAKES FLIGHT OVER KUWAIT

By Spc. Michael Howard
CAB PAO

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait - For two weeks, Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division Families tearfully bid farewell to their Soldiers.

Hours later, those same troops bid hello to Kuwait.

CAB Soldiers benefited from a shipping out procedure the Army has refined over several years. "It was long, but it was pretty well organized. If you've been deployed, it went pretty smoothly compared to previous deployments," said Spc. Brandon Graham, an Apache crew chief with Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment.

The CAB Soldiers hit the ground running in Kuwait. With no time to lose before assuming their mission in Iraq, Soldiers began training within 24 hours of boots on ground. Soldiers rolled out of their cots as early as 3:15 a.m. each morning to attend a variety of ranges, including a crew-served weapons range, and a number of briefings and classes.

"We had some (improvised explosive device) training, some crew served weapons training, mass casualty training, we got a rules of engagement brief, among other things," Graham said. "We've been busy. The training has been pretty good. They go into detail and elaborate on the things they told us stateside, so when you take in both pieces and put them together, it works."

The aviators of the CAB also stayed busy, undergoing environmental flights to familiarize themselves with the area and gunneries where they tested their weapons systems before heading into Iraq. Their ground crews then got a taste of maintaining the aircraft beneath the hot
Kuwaiti sun.

Some CAB Soldiers were surprised at the quality of living at Camp Buehring. "I was in OIF III," Graham said. "There have been a lot more accommodations added since I was here then." Spc. Michael Wagner, a network switching systems operator with Company C, 601st Aviation Support Battalion also said the standard of living was better than he expected. "If you don't like what the (dining facility) serves, you can eat where you like," he said.

Soldiers at Camp Buehring enjoy choices between a number of restaurants including Taco Bell, Pizza Inn, Panda Oriental and Kentucky Fried Chicken. Soldiers also are able to use their down time to visit a full-sized movie theater that plays several movies per day and three Morale, Welfare and Recreation tents with table games, books and console games such as the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Nintendo Wii.

While the Soldiers come together as a team, there is always the thought of the loved ones they left behind. "The separation is always the toughest part of it," said Graham, who has a wife and two children. "I love the Army, but being away from your Family is tough. You've got to be strong mentally and talk to them when you can." To help with this, there are MWR phones, AT&T phone centers and Internet cafes for the Soldiers.

Single Soldiers have their share of hardship as well. "I have a boyfriend, and it's hard being away from him," said Pfc. Nikki Waggoner, of Headquarters Company, 601st ASB, "It might not be as hard as being separated from someone you've been married to for years, but it's still hard." However, Wagner added, it is still easier to deploy as a single Soldier than to deploy in the midst of a marriage, because the ties between mothers and fathers are already broken somewhat when a Soldier leaves home to join the military.

Despite the hardship involved in being separated from loved ones, the CAB Soldiers are prepared to move forward, reach their final destination in Iraq and tackle the mission that awaits them there. "We're just ready to get in country and take care of our mission," Graham said. "The camaraderie of this team is excellent. Our company leads the way. We support everybody. We've been working together, doing our tasks back at Riley, and we're ready to go."