Thursday, February 21, 2008

Dozens of Air Force reservists from Tucson to deploy next week


About 80 reservists stationed at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base will head to the Middle East for more than a year

By Aaron Mackey
ARIZONA DAILY STAR

Dozens of U.S. Air Force reservists based at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base are scheduled to deploy next week.
About 80 reservists with the 943rd Rescue Group, which specializes in combat search and rescue, are scheduled to deploy to the Middle East, says Master Sgt. Shawn McCowan, a unit spokesman.
The 943rd will deploy along with members of its parent unit, the 920th Rescue Wing, for more than a year, McCowan says.
McCowan wouldn’t say when the unit would leave or exactly where the reservists would be sent because of security concerns, which is standard military procedure.
The deployment is the first in a series for the unit, he says.
The unit will deploy other reservists in early June and again in October, he says.
The 943rd, a tenant unit at D-M, was activated in February 2005 and is equipped with six HH-60G Pave Hawk rescue helicopters, according to a military fact sheet.
The 943rd is the only reserve combat rescue unit in the Southwest, the fact sheet says.
The unit was established to provide search and rescue capabilities in support of combat operations abroad and can also respond to natural disasters that occur in the United States.

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