FROM BRAVO COMPANY 209 TH AVIATION SUPPORT BATTALION COB SPEICHER, IRAQ SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO THE STUDENTS OF ROBERT E. LEE SCHOOL

ABOUT BRAVO COMPANY Bravo Company, 209th Aviation Regiment (AVIM) provides direct and general Aviation Intermediate Maintenance support to the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade located in Wheeler Army Airfield, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. Bravo Company was prepared and capable of deploying anywhere in the world in support of 25 th Infantry Division aviation operations. Currently, the Company is forward deployed to COB Speicher, Iraq and is responsible for all intermediate maintenance of approximately 100 aircraft consisting of UH- 60A/L Blackhawks, OH-58D Kiowa Warriors, and CH-47D Chinook helicopters. The company as a whole is comprised of over 255 soldiers in 36 different skill identifiers.

WHAT HAPPENS TO THE SOCKS AFTER THEY ARE SENT FROM ROBERT E. LEE SCHOOL IN SATSUMA, ALABAMA?

ARRIVAL IN IRAQ, CAPTAIN HANRAHAN RECEIVES THE NOTIFICATION EACH SOLDIER CHECKS THE MAIL BOARD DAILY TO SEE IF THEY GOT MAIL. THE BOARD IS BROKEN DOWN BY PLATOON IN COLUMNS FOR LETTERS, PACKAGES AND ACCOUNTABLE MAIL. 15 PACKAGES…SOMEONE MUST LOVE ME

PICKING UP THE PACKAGES…. THAT’S A LOT OF PACKAGES TO CARRY FOR A SINGLE PERSON, THANK-GOD I HAVE PLENTY OF HELPING SOLDIERS.

I HAD TO GET THE BOXES OUT OF THE MAILROOM, SO I BROUGHT THEM TO MY OFFICE…

HOW IS HE GOING TO DELIEVER ALL THOSE PACKAGES….

WHY PEDAL IF YOU CAN DRIVE…

WHY DRIVE IF YOU CAN FLY….

OK, WHAT REALLY HAPPENED…

FIRST DELIVERY…

CH-47 CHINOOK HELICOPTER MAINTENANCE TEAM

TOOLROOM

PRODUCTION CONTROL

UH-60 MAINTENANCE TEAM

AVIONICS AND ELECTRICIANS

AVEL PLATOON

DID SOMEONE SAY SOK…OH, YOU MEAN SOCK????

BIG SMILES…

THESE ARE ONLY A FEW SOLDIERS OF OUR LARGE COMPANY; HOWEVER, EVERYONE GOT A SOCK. THEY ENJOYED THE CANDY AND TOILETRIES. AS YOU CAN SEE BY THE PICTURES, THE SOLDIERS ARE HARD AT WORK. THEY WORK LONG 12 HOUR WORK DAYS AND ONLY GET ONE DAY OFF A WEEK. FOR SOME OF THE SOLDIERS, THIS IS THEIR FIRST DEPLOYMENT; HOWEVER, OTHER SOLDIERS HAVE BEEN DEPLOYED THREE OR FOUR TIMES. DEPLOYMENTS ARE NOT OPTIONAL, IF YOU ARE IN A DEPLOYING UNIT, YOU ARE REQUIRED TO DEPLOY.

THIS JOB ISN’T EASY!!!

BOYS AND GIRLS, ARE YOU READY TO MEET THE PEOPLE WHO WANT TO GIVE YOU A TOUR AROUND IRAQ?

MEET JOSE… HE IS THE PRIMARY GUIDE FOR THIS TOUR… Jose grew up in Baghdad. Baghdad or Bagdad, city population 3,841,268, capital of Iraq, central Iraq, on both banks of the Tigris River. The city's principal economic activity is oil refining. Most of Iraq's other industries are in Baghdad, such as the making of carpets, leather, textiles, cement, and tobacco products and the distilling of arrack, a liquor. Military industries are also located there. Baghdad has several museums, numerous archaeological sites, and three universities, the largest of which is the Univ. of Baghdad (1958).

MEET SPEEDY… Speedy grew up in Mosul. Mosul, city population 664,221, provincial capital, Northern Iraq, on the Tigris River, opposite the ruins of Nineveh. It is the largest city in Northern Iraq and the third largest city in the country. Trade in agricultural goods and exploitation of oil in the nearby oil fields are the two main occupations of the inhabitants. While most of the urban population is Arab, the surrounding region has a large Kurdish population. The city is the seat of Mosul Univ. and a center of Nestorian Christianity.Nineveh

MEET BETTY… Jose grew up in Al Basra. Al-Ba ṣ rah is the capital of Basra Province, Iraq, and had an estimated population of 3,800,200 as of Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it is incapable of deep water access, which is handled at the port of Umm Qasr. The city is the historic location of Sumer, the home of Sinbad the Sailor, and a proposed location of the Garden of Eden. It is Iraq's second largest and most populous city after Baghdad.Basra ProvinceIraqUmm QasrSumerSinbad the SailorGarden of EdenBaghdad The city is located along the Shatt al-Arab waterway near the Persian Gulf, 34 miles from the Persian Gulf and 545 kilometers (339 mi) from Baghdad. The area surrounding Basra has substantial large petroleum resources and many oil wells. Basra is in a fertile agricultural region, with major products including rice, maize corn, barley, pearl millet, wheat, dates, and livestock. Iraq has the worlds largest oil reserves estimated to be more 360 billion barrels, most of it from Basra. 80% of Basra is unexplored.Shatt al-ArabPersian Gulf Baghdadpetroleumoil wellsagriculturalricemaize cornbarley pearl milletwheatdateslivestock

MEET JIMMY… Jimmy is from the city of Irbil. Irbil is located close to the Turkish and Iranian borders, 48 miles east of Mosul in the foothills of the mountains that rise to the east. Irbil is largest city in the Kurdish area of Iraq, with more than 500,000 residents, it is a commercial, agricultural, and administrative center. Irbil lives from commerce and administration, and thrives from the local oil industries. The city is situated at the foothill of the mountains in the east. The population is a mixture of Christians and Sunni Muslim Kurds.

NOW THAT YOU HAVE MET THE CREW, LETS TAKE A LOOK AROUND COB SPEICHER, IRAQ. CAPTAIN HANRAHAN AND HIS SOLDIERS ARE LOCATED THERE AND THEY WANT TO SHOW YOU AROUND. WHAT DO YOU ALL THINK, ARE YOU READY FOR THE TOUR FROM OUR NEW FRIENDS?

THANK YOU

THANK-YOU THE BLACKSHEEP OF BRAVO COMPANY WANT TO SAY THANK-YOU FOR ALL YOU DO FOR SUPPORTING THE TROOPS. YOU HAVE MADE OUR DAY MUCH BRIGHTER AND PUT MANY SMILES ON OUR FACES. THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR GENEROSITY….