600 in state to begin training for Iraq
By William Cole
Advertiser Military Writer
Nearly 400 Hawai'i Army reservists and about 200 Army National Guard soldiers will be mobilized and report to Schofield Barracks this week for deployment to Iraq.
For reservists with the 411th Engineer Battalion, the activation likely will mean living on base and very little opportunity to see families as the "citizen soldiers" gear up for an expected 18 months of active duty.
The soldiers will get intensive training that could last for several months on weapons, ambushes and cultural practices before they head to undisclosed locations in Iraq.
"They really need time to focus and get to know each other because this is the first time they'll come together and work together as a battalion," said Lt. Col. Howard Sugai, a spokesman for the Army Reserve's 9th Regional Support Command at Fort Shafter Flats.
The battalion's 540 soldiers will report to Schofield from Hawai'i, Alaska and Guam.
Spc. Tevita Tuikolongahau, 25, who joined the Army Reserve in March and got out of basic training in August, said he's "pretty excited" about the deployment.
"I want to go — I know it's pretty crazy, but that's part of my nature," the 1996 Waipahu High School graduate said.
Tuikolongahau, a mechanic, has been on active duty since Oct. 15, but this week will begin a ramp up in training that will mean little time with his wife, Maile, and their 13-month-old son Kala.
The couple married on Nov. 13 with the Iraq deployment in mind.
"When I first heard about (the deployment) I was kinda scared. I still am kinda scared. But we found out a couple of months ago, so we've been preparing," Maile Tuikolongahau said. "I'm just happy (reservists) got to spend the holidays at home."
About 200 Hawai'i Army National Guard soldiers, meanwhile, will be activated tomorrow and report to Schofield on Wednesday for a similar deployment: 18 months of active duty with a year in Iraq.
Flight crews, administrative personnel and fuel loaders with Charlie Company, 193rd Aviation, are expected to eventually make the trip to the Middle East with all 14 of the Guard's twin-rotor CH-47 Chinook helicopters. Another 62 Guard personnel from Company B are in Kandahar, Afghanistan.
Schofield Barracks has been a busy place with 4,800 soldiers with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team preparing for a yearlong deployment to Kirkuk in northern Iraq starting about mid-month.
Another 3,500 Schofield soldiers are deploying to Afghanistan in March and April.
Maj. Chuck Anthony, a Guard spokesman, said the 193rd soldiers likely would see a couple of months of training before they are deployed.
"I've seen the training schedule, and it's full," he said. Time will be spent at the firing range and practicing convoy operations.
"It will definitely run the gamut," Anthony said, "and some of it will be field training and other training will be classroom in nature because it will deal with different rules of engagement, different things in terms of intelligence, different things in terms of customs and courtesies."
Typical Reserve mobilizations for Iraq include several months of full-time training, 12 months of "boots on the ground," and up to three months for re-deployment back to home station.
Anthony previously said the latest countermeasures for helicopter protection, including chaff and flare devices to confuse missiles, were being installed on the Chinooks.
Before they leave, the soldiers will be outfitted with the latest Interceptor Body Armor with ceramic plates that can stop a 7.62 mm rifle slug, Anthony said. Not all soldiers in Iraq had the added protection.
The Army Reserve's Tuikolongahau joined up after moving back to Hawai'i and not being able to find a job. Because of the lengthy deployment coming up, he has been spending as much time as possible with his young son.
"Way more time, yeah, because I'll be gone for a long time," Tuikolongahau said. "I've just been taking him around, for walks on the beach. I'm going to miss the guy."
Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-5459.
