The 101st Combat Aviation Brigade has prepared to deploy roughly 1,900 soldiers to the Middle East as part of an active-duty rotation.
OAK GROVE, Ky. (WKRN) — The 101st Combat Aviation Brigade has prepared to deploy roughly 1,900 soldiers to the Middle East as part of an active-duty rotation.
The 101st Brigade will head from Kentucky to the U.S. Central Command on a nine-month rotation to relieve soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division Combat Aviation Brigade.
“One of the biggest feelings that our folks probably have is excitement in preparation for going out the door to go perform the mission which we’ve trained so hard to do,” commander of the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, colonel Tyler Partridge, said.
Although Fort Campbell officials couldn’t share many specifics on what their mission would look like, they did confirm that it was part of an ongoing effort established well before the conflict escalated in Israel.
“The 101st Combat Aviation Brigade is certainly the most prepared brigade to take on this mission,” Partridge added. “Our organization has had the unique opportunity of engaging in roughly two years of large-scale, long-range air assault training here at Fort Campbell. We’ve conducted three of those operations most recently.”
Partridge expected the “Wings of Destiny” to deploy at the beginning of 2025. In the meantime, soldiers will work to prepare their spouses and loved ones for their absence.
“A soldier’s day to day activity is not an easy thing. The fight on the home front — so to speak — definitely comes with some hardships and emotions Our families are leaning into and preparing for as they undertake an absence of their soldier for quite some time. And therein lies what the focus of the organization is for the next few months before we go out the door,” Partridge said.
Ft. Campbell will host several town hall meetings with resources for families, including financial assistance, child and youth resources, and family counseling.
“The formation here has walked through all of those echelons and training in support to fly farther, faster, in the fiercest conditions and we stand ready to deploy,” Partridge said.