Two brigades from the 25th Infantry Division (Light) had planned since July for deployments next year to Afghanistan, but today’s orders mean a larger contingent will go to Iraq first and that the second contingent will leave for Afghanistan about four months sooner than planned.

The Schofield soldiers will augment the 1st Marine Division in Iraq, the Pentagon announced today. The division will serve in the area now patrolled by the 82nd Airborne Division in the western part of the country. Most of the U.S. casualties in Iraq have occurred in the central part of the country, according to the military.

The February deployment of Schofield personnel will include about 4,500 soldiers from the 2nd Brigade, the Aviation Brigade and the 45th Corps Support Group (Forward). They will deploy to Operation Iraqi Freedom with helicopters, engineers, watercraft operations personnel, logistics personnel and artillery, said Maj. Stacy Bathrick, a spoksewoman for the division. The contingent includes 1,000 more soldiers than originally planned.

Another 3,500 soldiers with the 3rd Brigade, Division Support Command, the Aviation Brigade and the Division Headquarters will deploy as early as April, Bathrick said. They were originally to deploy in August.

The new orders will not be a problem for the Schofield soldiers and should give them and their families “some predictability to plan for this long deployment,” Bathrick said.

“Our soldiers have been training for a very long time for when we would get the call,” she said. “Our soldiers are really excited to answer the call of our nation.”

Maj. Gen. Eric T. Olson, commander of the division and U.S. Army, Hawai‘i, today said his troops are proud to have been selected for “these challenging and diverse missions.”

The 12-month deployment is needed to provide the Pentagon with cohesive and stable units. But they will be a challenge for families used to being apart for six months.

“Taking care of our family members while our soldiers are deployed will remain a top priority,” Olson said.

Division officials plan to reach out to families through Army support groups, Bathrick said.

“We’re going to work with our family readiness groups and our chaplains to make sure we provide them with the information about the soldiers while they are deployed,” Bathrick said.

The Iraq deployment is part of an 85,000-member troop rotation announced today by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld. They are being sent to Iraq to relieve forces who have been there for up to a year.

In addition, nearly 47,000 National Guard and Reserve forces are in the process of being notified that they will be activated to serve in Iraq or Afghanistan, Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon news conference. Even more Army soldiers could be alerted soon to add to those deployments, Rumsfeld said. Some of the troops rotating into Iraq will be returning for their second tour of duty there — and some only a short time after they were sent home, Rumsfeld said.

Reservists will be called up for a maximum of 18 months, with a year in Iraq, Rumsfeld said. The Marines will be activated for a year, with seven months in Iraq.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. Reach Mike Gordon at mgordon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8012.