I Corps to deploy in combat for first time since the Korean War

[David]

The Tacoma News Tribune


Nearly 10,000 troops from Fort Lewis will head to Iraq next year, when the post’s commanding general and the rest of I Corps take over daily operations in the country and two Stryker brigades fall under its command.
Those numbers don’t include the 81st Brigade Combat Team of the Washington National Guard. Its 2,500 citizen-soldiers hold their send-off ceremony in Wisconsin today and within a month will go to Kuwait and ultimately Iraq.

A renewed buildup of local troops in Iraq was big news, but not a big surprise, when the Department of Defense announced it Tuesday. All told, the U.S. military is planning deployments of about 26,000 troops and would maintain 14 combat brigades in Iraq from about February to early fall 2009. Joining I Corps will be the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division and the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division – all based at Fort Lewis.

A firm timetable hasn’t been set, but I Corps is expected to arrive in the winter. The two Stryker brigades will follow during the summer or fall. A more exact time or location hasn’t been determined because it’s not certain which units they will replace, I Corps spokeswoman Maj. Kathy Turner said.

This will be I Corps’ first combat deployment since the Korean War. The 3rd Brigade will make its third trip to Iraq, and 5th Brigade will go for the first time.

I Corps and its 900 deploying soldiers and civilians will run daily operations of the war from its headquarters at Camp Victory in Baghdad.

Lt. Gen. Charles Jacoby, who commands the corps and Fort Lewis as a whole, will be second-in-command to Gen. Ray Odierno, the commander of Multi-National Force-Iraq.

Brig. Gen. Jeff Mathis will oversee day-to-day operations at Fort Lewis.

The corps will assume Iraq command from XVIII Airborne Corps. Jacoby has taken what he’s called “two extensive reconnaissance trips” to work with the unit and help plan for an easy shift of power.

“Our staffs are already in an almost-daily contact with each other,” he said.

Working with two familiar Fort Lewis brigades in theater should provide an advantage for Jacoby and his staff.

“There’s tremendous power” in teams, he said. “We’ve trained together, worked together, know each other.”

Col. Harry Tunnell, the 5th Brigade commander, sees a practical advantage to the scheduling.

“I Corps has supported us in all of routine, administrative endeavors, and our training as well,” he said. “We’ve built all those relationships across the corps, and I think it’d be a good thing to retain that.”

The units – and the military as a whole – are entering a time of uncertainty about the Iraq war. Sen. Barack Obama, the Democratic candidate for the presidency, favors a phased withdrawal of troops to begin shortly after taking office. Republican candidate Sen. John McCain advocates staying in Iraq.

Jacoby said the units will follow the schedule the Department of Defense has laid out, and that he hasn’t been briefed about any potential changes.

“We are not going to overly anticipate what’s going to come in ’09 or ’10 in terms of withdrawals,” he said.

Both presidential candidates, however, have favored additional troops for Afghanistan – including a possible transfer of forces from Iraq to bolster the effort.

It has been rumored that 3rd Brigade could be sent to Afghanistan, but Tuesday’s announcement may have ended that talk – or at least muted it.

“Right now, we’re not being told to anticipate further shifts,” Jacoby said. “That’s really up to Central Command and the next administration to figure out.

“We’re comfortable with the forces being provided to us and the mission we’ll have. And if the country needs us to go in a different direction, if Centcom needs us to go in a different direction, we’ll be ready to adapt to that.”

Off post, several soldiers said Tuesday’s announcement was just a formality to affirm what they knew was coming.

Spc. Brandon Cox is preparing for his second deployment. The 5th Brigade soldier previously fought with the 82nd Airborne Division from August 2006 to November 2007.

“I went as a light soldier, and now I’ll be going over with bigger vehicles with more armor, so I’ll feel more protected,” said Cox, a 21-year-old Spanaway resident. “Now we need to get everything squared away, get more organized.”

Pfc. Joshua Sale, also a 5th Brigade soldier, is preparing for his first deployment. “I’m not nervous at all, not one bit,” the 22-year-old said. “I’m actually looking forward to it.”

After a late summer, fall and winter with crowded conditions at Fort Lewis, next year’s deployments will have the effect of emptying the place out again.

The post will lose about a third of its soldiers, dropping to levels not seen since the 3rd and 4th Stryker brigades were gone at the same time in 2007.