Nighthawk News

As Indiana Guardsmen prepare to deploy on a scheduled 12-month deployment to Iraq, the need for the latest and most reliable equipment is crucial to a safe return.

As service members throughout the country get ready to ship out to dangerous locations, it’s important for friends and families at home to know that their loved ones are receiving quality logistics that will keep them alive.

This concern is hitting close to home throughout Indiana, as more than 3,400 Hoosiers are being called to serve in Iraq.

Spc. Harvie Polkrd and Sgt Chris Kindred draw cold weather gear during the Mobilization process that started at Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center in Edinburgh, Ind.for more then 3,400 members of the 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Indiana Army National Guard as part of one of the stateÕs largest deployment efforts to Iraq in history. The Brigade is scheduled to ship out from Fort Stewart,Ga.,in January as part of their scheduled deployment. (Released)

The 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is currently mobilizing at Camp Atterbury for a deployment scheduled next month; one large part of the overall process the Soldiers go through prior to leaving includes an equipment issue that will prepare them for the coming year.

During the next few weeks, 76th Soldiers will be issued a wide range of new equipment. From fresh uniforms and t-shirts to socks and boots, Soldiers are on the fast track to readiness, said Sgt. 1st Class Glenda Pappas with Camp Atterbury’s central issuing facility.

“The Soldiers are being issued cold weather and wet weather gear, as well as a rapid fielding issue – some of the newer ‘Hooah’ stuff,” Pappas said.

Holding up an issue manifest, Pappas listed some of the equipment the Soldiers will be receiving through the Army’s Program Executive Office Soldier: combat knives, ballistic eye protection, rucksacks, body armor and Kevlar helmets.

In addition to the new equipment, Pappas said that the Soldiers have also been issued equipment initially from the brigade, including body armor and chemical protective gear.

The Soldiers will also be issued addition body armor when they arrive to Fort Stewart, Ga., the brigade’s final training site before they deploy.

Pappas said that since the issuing process is taken care of here, the Soldiers can concentrate more on training once they get to Fort Stewart. So far, the process has been overwhelmingly successful, equipping 714 Soldiers alone on the brigades first day of their mobilization tour.

“When we first mobilized, some Soldiers would show up with little or no equipment,” she said. “Now, almost everyone has their basic issue when they come here. This tells me that more money is being spent on Soldiers, which allows them to get their equipment faster and with less shortages.”

Some Soldiers with prior overseas deployment experience noticed the difference.

“Before, you’d get what someone else was issued and later turned in, like a hand-me-down,” said Spc. Robert Armpriester with C Company, 1st Battalion, 151st Infantry Regiment. This will be Armpriester’s second deployment following a 2004 tour in Bosnia.

“As long as you don’t have ratty equipment, you don’t have to worry about a break-down,” he said. “It gives you some peace of mind.”

That sentiment is echoed by Soldiers about to experience their first deployment. 2nd Lt. Gary Love with B Company, 1-151st, said that he feels confident in the mission ahead knowing that he and his Soldiers are well-equipped.

“My big thing is that I’ve been in for 20 years, and it’s amazing how we are receiving some of the best equipment I’ve ever been issued,” he said. “The process is so smooth; they’re literally handing us this equipment, and it let’s me know that this is going to be a successful deployment.”