The 34 Soldiers of the A, 2-104th General Support Aviation Battalion received a hero’s welcome at the Joint Training and Training Development Center on Feb. 6.

The leadership of the both the New Jersey Army and Air National Guard, along with family members and friends, attended the Welcome Home ceremony.

The Soldiers – UH-60 Blackhawk pilots, crew members and ground support personnel – were deployed for a year in support of operations in Kuwait and Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The Battalion is based at Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst.

The process began four days earlier when a contract airliner touched down at McGuire Air Force Base. As the Soldiers exited the aircraft, they were met at the bottom of the steps by members of the New Jersey Army and Air National Guard leadership led by Maj. Gen. Glenn K. Rieth.
The circle was completed when, after gathering their gear, the Soldiers took a bus to the Fort Dix chapel where they were met by their loved ones.