GREAT FALLS (AP)
Gov. Brian Schweitzer arrived in Great Falls at 2 a. m. today to wish 175 members of the Montana Air National Guard’s 120th Fighter Wing a safe trip as they deploy to Iraq. Schweitzer told the group they are "the best trained, best equipped warriors in the world." The Guard unit departed shortly after 4 a.m. for a 60-day deployment. They will serve at Balad Airbase, just north of Baghdad. Fifty members of the 120th are already in Iraq. The airmen will fly and maintain their squadron of F-16 fighter jets while in Iraq. They will be assigned to the 322nd Air Expeditionary Wing to help provide close air support.
