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Aviation Soldiers
return home safely
Story by Staff Sgt. Jeff Lowry
Posted: May 1, 2008
Indiana
National Guard Soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 238th General Support
Aviation, flew medical evacuation missions over
Iraq
for nearly a year. Now that they're back in the U.S.A., their emotions are flying
higher.
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| Indiana Army National Guard Capt. Timothy
D. Stoner, a company commander with 2nd Battalion, 238th
General Support Aviation, listens to his son Gage, left, as
he holds his daughter Campbell, center, and another son,
Briggs. Soldiers with the 2-238th returned home to Indiana
Tuesday April 29, 2008. The Soldiers served nearly a year in
southwest Asia in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Aviators with the unit flew more than 4,000 hours, of which
nearly 3,200 were in combat situations in 1,261 missions.
Photo by Staff Sgt. Jeff Lowry, Indiana National Guard |
"I'm flying
higher now that I'm home," said Capt. Timothy D. Stoner, the unit's
commander. "It's wonderful to be back home."
The members of
the 2-238th returned Tuesday to the 38th Division armory amid tears,
cheers, U.S. flags
waving, and patriotic songs.
During the
unit’s deployment, it supported medical evacuation missions from
three different operating bases in Iraq. Aviators
flew more than 4,000 hours, of which nearly 3,200 represented combat
situations in 1,261 missions. The unit carried 1,064 passengers. The
Soldiers did this while maintaining a 90 percent readiness rate.
"It was good we
were there," said Sgt. Moriah Addington, an administration sergeant
with the unit. "We're medevac (medical evacuation). You see everyday
why we're there."
The commander
and a pilot agreed that saving a servicemember's life carries great
rewards.
"It was a great
mission," said Stoner. "It's the best mission - saving Soldiers'
lives. Our guys did an incredible, incredible job."
"It was a good
stay," said Chief Warrant Office Brett Oldfather, a pilot with the
unit. "Our flight medics did well. It was flawless."
The
Shelbyville-headquartered unit mobilized nearly a year ago, May 5,
2007. The Soldiers of the 2-238th include medical evacuation
specialists, aviators flying UH-60 Blackhawks, and the maintenance
and technical repair experts who keep the helicopters in top
condition in sandy, battlefield environments.
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