RELEASED BY:
LT. COL. GREG HAPGOOD
PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICER
OFFICE: (515) 252-4582
CELL: (515) 971-6385
HOME: (515) 986-5725

RELEASE: IMMEDIATE

IOWA ARMY NATIONAL GUARD UNIT EXTENDED FOR DUTY IN OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM

The Department of Defense announced today the extension of National Guard and Reserve units involved in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry, Iowa Army National Guard, which is part of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division, is among those units chosen for an extension in the Iraq theater of operations. The extension may last up to 125 days, or through August 2007. This extension affects approximately 640 Soldiers from the Iowa Army National Guard.
 

The 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry (“Ironman Battalion”) is comprised of units located in Waterloo (Headquarters and Headquarters Company, and Detachment 1 of Company B), Dubuque (Companies A and D), Oelwein (Company B), Iowa Falls (Company C), and Charles City (Detachment 1 of Headquarters and Headquarters Company). Approximately 560 Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Battalion are on this deployment.
 

The 1st Battalion, 194th Field Artillery, Iowa Army National Guard, is comprised of units located in Fort Dodge (Headquarters and Headquarters Battery), Storm Lake (Detachment 1 of Headquarters and Headquarters Battery), Spencer (Battery A), Algona (Battery B), and Estherville (Battery C). Approximately 40 Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 194th Field Artillery are on this deployment.
 

Company E, 1st Battalion, 334th Brigade Support Battalion (BSB), Iowa Army National Guard, is comprised of approximately 130 Soldiers from more than 21 units located throughout the state of Iowa. The units operate as the Forward Support Company (FSC) for 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry, headquartered out of Waterloo and deployed to Iraq as Company F, 1st Battalion, 134th Brigade Support Battalion, Iowa Army National Guard.
 

The Iowa units were ordered to federal active duty under a partial mobilization call-up that authorizes the President to order members of the National Guard and Reserves to active duty for one year that can be extended for an additional year by the Secretary of the Army.
 

Approximately 640 Soldiers total from these units were mobilized in October 2005 and departed Iowa shortly thereafter for their mobilization station at Camp Shelby, Miss. before deploying to Iraq in support of the global war on terrorism. Their active duty mission consists of conducting close combat with enemy forces and providing security of key terrain, facilities, and installations.
 

The commander of United States Central Command (CENTCOM), under which 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry operates, is authorized to extend the deployment duration of selected combat, combat support, and combat service support units as required for continued operations in the CENTCOM area of responsibility. The extension of a unit past 12 months in the Iraq theater is done on a case-by-case basis and is approved by the Secretary of Defense only after a detailed process verifying that specific unit’s capability is conducted. Additionally, all other options to avoid an extension are exhausted and the length of the extension is mitigated to the shortest period operationally possible.
 

For questions concerning this release as well as additional information about the operations, training, and activities of the Iowa Army and Air National Guard, please contact Lt. Col. Greg Hapgood, Iowa National Guard Public Affairs Officer by email at gregory.hapgood@ia.ngb.army.mil or (515) 252-4582 (office), (515) 971-6385 (cell), or (515) 986-5725 (home). You may also contact Master Sgt. Duff E. McFadden, at (515) 252-4666 (office), (515) 480-7647 (cell), (515) 251-7335 (home), or by e-mail at duff.mcfadden@ia.ngb.army.mil.

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