Fort Lewis brigade to go to Iraq in April, instead of this summer

[uppityperson]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003520654_webftlewis11.html

The 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division at Fort Lewis will deploy to Iraq in April, the Department of Defense announced today. The deployment is the result of President Bush's order to send an additional 21,500 U.S. troops to Iraq. The brigade had been scheduled to leave later this summer.

As part of the call-up, the USS Stennis Carrier Strike Group would also be sent to the Gulf region to bolster security, the department said in a news release. The USS John C. Stennis, an aircraft carrier based in Bremerton, previously had been in line to deploy to the Pacific. Fort Lewis officials would not immediately comment on the order. Maj. James Brown, executive officer for 4th Brigade, planned to discuss the unit's departure at a news conference this afternoon.

The brigade is relatively new to Fort Lewis, having transferred to the post in 2004 from Fort Polk, La., where it was identified as the 2nd Cavalry Regiment. The unit's 4,000 soldiers completed field training exercises in early December and were scheduled to go to the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, Calif., in February or March.

Already in Iraq is Fort Lewis' 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, another Stryker brigade serving in Mosul and Baghdad. That brigade is supposed to return from a yearlong tour this summer.

From earlier today:http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003519477_troops11m0.html

Ft. Lewis troops to deploy sooner, might stay longer

President Bush's new war plan is expected to affect thousands of Washington-based military personnel, stepping up the timetable for deployment for some Army soldiers and raising the possibility that others will face longer tours of duty. The plan places a premium on combat troops, including the Fort Lewis-based soldiers who patrol in eight-wheeled Stryker vehicles in Baghdad.

One Fort Lewis Stryker brigade of 3,800 soldiers now scheduled for an Iraq deployment this summer will be sent there ahead of schedule, according to military officials, who provided no dates. That unit, the 4th Brigade 2nd Infantry Division, would be on its first tour of duty in Iraq.

Another Fort Lewis Stryker brigade already is based in Baghdad, with infantry troops this week involved in a major battle in a Sunni area.

That unit — the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry division — is scheduled for a 12-month stay that would end in June. The deployment could extend if commanders think more combat force is necessary to try to quell violence through summer. Last summer, an Alaska-based Stryker brigade's tour of duty was extended four months as part of an effort to increase troop strength in Baghdad...(more@link)