105th Returns from Iraq Deployment

RALEIGH, NC (02/11/2011)(readMedia)-- The North Carolina Army National Guard 105th Military Police Battalion's Headquarters and Headquarters Company will return from a deployment to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn on Sunday.

The unit is scheduled to fly into the Asheville Regional Airport on Feb. 13 at 9:30 a.m. The airport is located at 61 Terminal Drive, Suite 1, in Fletcher, N.C., 28732. The Soldiers will meet families at the hanger on the corner of Wright Brothers Way and Aviation Way. A brief ceremony will follow at approximately 10 a.m.

The 148 Soldiers of the unit, based out of Asheville, deployed last February. During their deployment, they were attached to the 49th Military Police Brigade, United States Forces-Iraq. They performed detainee operations at Forward Operating Base Cropper. Mission accomplishments include the transfer of over 3,000 detainees to the Government of Iraq. The unit also transferred the last U.S. Detention Facility to the Government of Iraq on July 15, 2010. In addition, the MPs trained over 700 Iraqi Correction Officers plus administrative staff, and transitioned operations from Operation Iraqi Freedom to Operation New Dawn.

This is the second deployment for the 105th MP Battalion's Headquarters Company. During the unit's first deployment from September 2004-October 2005, they provided all command and control and logistical support for Camp Bucca Theater Internment Facility located near the port of Umm Qasr in Iraq. While at Camp Bucca, the 105th MPs managed a detainee population which grew from 2,500 to over 7,500 in a period of just three months. The unit was awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation for its service during this period under the command of both the 16th and 18th Military Police Brigades.

MEDIA: To attend, please RSVP with the North Carolina National Guard Public Affairs Office via email at pao@ng.army.mil or by phone at (919) 612-9712. To receive the most up-to-date information on this homecoming, please follow the NCNG on Twitter at http://twitter.com/NCNationalGuard. For more NCNG news, visit our website: www.nc.ngb.army.mil/, or fan us at http://www.facebook.com/NCNationalGuard.