MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII -- Approximately 30 Marines and Sailors assigned to Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 24 here set out for their deployment to Iraq Aug. 23 where they will serve in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The “Warriors” will relieve Marines and Sailors from MALS-24 who are currently deployed to Iraq and have been in the region for seven months.
“Some of us will be augmented to Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 16 to help them out,” said Gunnery Sgt. Lonnie J. Foster, avionics technician, MALS-24, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.
“We’re going to be out there to support HMH-363 (Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 363) when they arrive and help fix their CH-53Ds (Sea Stallion helicopters).”
Before the Marines and Sailors loaded their gear on a truck that took them to Hickam Air Force Base where they boarded a plane to Iraq, the commanding officer of MAG-24 spoke with the ‘Warriors’, with their family members by their sides, about their deploymet to Iraq.
“As you get ready to prepare to depart, remember to watch out for yourself and your fellow Marines,” said Col. Edward Yarnell, commanding officer, MAG-24, 1st MAW. “For the families out here today, remember that the MAG is here to support you while your loved one is deployed.”
The Marines and Salors of MALS-24 have spent the past six months preparing for their deployment to Iraq by conducting training specific to operations in Iraq and honing fundamental skills to improve their combat readiness.
“I’m absolutely looking forward to going, because I volunteered for it,” said Foster, a 32-year-old native to Bayou La Batre, Ala. “It goes back to why we joined. We’re not meant to train all the time; we’re meant to participate in the Global War on Terrorism.
“This is an outstanding group of Marines, and they are well prepared to do their job out in Iraq.”