1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division Public Affairs

Story by Spc. Mike MacLeod

CAMP RAMADI, Iraq – Iraqi commandos and reconnaissance scouts partnered with "All American" paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division, Nov. 15, to train for future helicopter operations.

Commandos and scouts from across 1st Iraqi Army Division trained with Paratroopers of 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division (Advise and Assist Brigade), on loading and unloading from assault helicopters.

Sgt. Maj. Mohanad, non-commissioned officer-in-charge of the Iraqi soldiers, said, while most of his soldiers had trained for air-assault missions before, this training was an important rehearsal for any partnered missions they might conduct with U.S. forces.

"Being able to get out here on the helicopters and do some hot loads gives us the opportunity to see how the Iraqis operate and for them to see how we operate," said 2nd Lt. John Griffin, scout platoon leader with the paratroopers. "It was important that we mesh our plans together. It was challenging at first, but we worked it out during the static loads [with the helicopters at rest]," he said.

Staff Sgt. Terrance Clark, a crew chief with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 462, said that the primary point of the exercise was to gain efficiency.

"We don't like to sit on a landing zone very long," he said.

Between the short flights, Iraqi and American soldiers inspected each others' equipment, discussed warfighting techniques and even traded uniform patches.

The iconic "AA" patch worn by the All American paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division is a favorite of the Iraqis, said Spc. Patrick Cullen, who traded one of his unit patches to an Iraqi scout, Ahmed, for an Iraqi one.

The paratroopers belonged to 1/82 AAB, the Army's first full-fledged advise and assist brigade deployed with the mission to increase the capacity and professionalization of Iraqi security forces.

The area in which they operate, Al Anbar province, is particularly conducive to military operations by helicopter, as the population centers are separated by expansive, sparsely populated desert.

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