Final 'surge' contingent, US Aviation Brigade, headed for Baghdad

[babylonsister]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iraqweb6may06,0,7259956.story?coll=la-home-headlines

U.S. aviation brigade headed to Baghdad
The 3,200 troops and 152 helicopters are the final contingent in a plan to improve security. But violence continues as a suicide bomber kills 15, injures 26.
By Chris Kraul, Times Staff Writer
4:30 PM PDT, May 5, 2007

BAGHDAD — The final troop contingent in President Bush's controversial plan to improve security, a brigade that includes 152 attack and transport helicopters, will soon arrive in the capital, a U.S. commander said.

With the arrival of the 3rd Infantry Division's Combat Aviation Brigade, based at Ft. Stewart, Ga., the addition of 28,500 troops begun in mid-February will be complete. The brigade will be based at Camp Victory near Baghdad International Airport, Maj. Gen. James Simmons, deputy commander of multinational forces, said in an interview Friday.

As the buildup neared completion, violence continued in the capital. A suicide bomber in a line with police recruits outside an Iraqi base near the infamous Abu Ghraib prison west of Baghdad detonated an explosive vest Saturday, killing 15 and injuring 26 others, police said. In Kut, southeast of Baghdad, nine insurgents and four Iraqi police were reported killed in a battle.

In the north, an explosion aimed at a police patrol in the center of Kirkuk killed two civilians and injured three police. To the south, the Basra airport was reported closed until further notice after insurgent attacks Saturday damaged a runway.

The new air combat brigade will increase the U.S.-led forces' helicopter fleet by 34%. Also coming are 3,200 pilots, crew members, mechanics and other support personnel.

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[movonne]

1. Camp Victory...what a joke...

[aquart]

2. They give everything an opposite name.

[gratuitous]

3. So now we can start judging the surge?

We've been told over and over again that we had to give the surge a chance to work. Well, Bush has now thrown the last bundle on the guttering fire. Some folks said we needed to give it three months, others said it would show results almost immediately. So, from May 5, we should surely get a very good idea of how this is going to play out by Memorial Day (what a funny name for a holiday; it's not like anyone in the Bush family ever died in a war). Can we start criticizing it then?

And how come we're still calling it a "multinational" force when it's only the U.S. that's putting more personnel into the meat grinder?

[Blackhatjack]

4. So now there are no other troops left to send ... what is next?

It is a reality, and not a strategy --there literally are no more troops ready to deploy which have been properly equipped and trained.

We are the most vulnerable at home as a nation in the last 50 years. The national guard lacks important equipment and manpower to counter a natural disaster(ie. hurricane) let alone a terrorist attack.

The individual ready reserves have been activated.

Many full time troops are completely stressed by going 3-4 tours of duty, without the requisite time off at home they were promised. AND NOW their tours of duty have been extended to 15 mos, and rumors of 18 mos tours will further degrade morale and efficiency.

We cannot maintain the present troop levels in Iraq without a draft, which we definitely do not want.

It is way beyond bad, and the worst has yet to hit.

So now Bush says we will not look at whether the 'surge' is working until Sept.

Someone better do something quick to end this war, or we are going to have an even worse disaster on our hands.