33 Iowa National Guard soldiers have come home just in time for Thanksgiving after nearly a year overseas.
The Iowa National Guard announced the 2-211th Aviation will deploy to Kosovo as part of Task Force Voodoo on December 29, 2023. While there, the unit helped to maintain peace and security as part of Operation Joint Guardian, a NATO-led operation aimed at bolstering security in Kosovo.
The 2-211th Aviation Brigade worked with almost 7,000 NATO forces from 13 different countries.
During the mission, they flew 1,750 hours and trained over 2,000 soldiers on air medical evacuation operations. They also completed nine successful air medical evacuation flights, which provided essential support to NATO soldiers and local communities.
The unit’s Black Hawk helicopters also assisted in extinguishing a forest fire, dropping almost 73,000 gallons of water to help control it.
The 33 members of the 2-211th Aviation will receive honors for their service and sacrifices made while on mission on Saturday, December 7, at the Waterloo Convention Center.