Wyoming Army National Guard Unit To Be Deployed To Afghanistan
The Wyoming Army National Guard's A Battery, 2nd Battalion, 300th Field Artillery is preparing for a mobilization to assist security efforts in Afghanistan beginning in August.
The High Mobility Artillery Rocket System unit, based in the Gillette, Wyoming, armory, will report to Fort Bliss, Texas, for pre-mobilization training prior to deployment.
Lt. Col. Henry Cudney, 2-300th commander, said, "the order calls for 33 soldiers to deploy for up to 400 days of federal active duty, depending on the U.S. Army's requirements. Even though this battalion has deployed three times since 2003, this is the first time since the Korean War they will provide forces for an artillery mission."
The 2-300th previously deployed in 2003, 2005 and 2009 for security missions in Iraq and Kuwait as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
This deployment falls under Operation Enduring Freedom's follow-on efforts known as Operation Freedom's Sentinel.
Wyoming's soldiers will assist in the counter-terrorism mission against the remnants of Al-Qaeda.
The deploying soldiers are from the Wyoming communities of Buffalo, Casper, Cheyenne, Dayton, Gillette, Hulett, Laramie, Newcastle, Powell, Recluse, Rock Springs, Rozet, Sheridan, Wheatland, Worland, and Wright; Missoula, Montana; and Eaton and Thornton, Colorado.
Information Courtesy: The Wyoming Military Department