FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. – (CLARKSVILLENOW) 223 soldiers will be spending Thanksgiving at home after returning to Fort Campbell early Monday morning from their nine-month deployment to Afghanistan. The troops are with the 2nd Battalion, 44th Air Defense Artillery Regiment of the 101st.
The soldiers were greeted by family, friends and comrades, at the Welcome Home Ceremony at Campbell Army Airfield. Sergeant Major Kevin Peterson met his son Logan Grey for the first time and said he didn’t even know his son was on the way until after he deployed. Peterson’s wife Elizabeth said Logan was only a week old but they’ve been waiting for dad for nine months.
The soldiers provided counter-rocket, artillery, and mortar coverage to critical assets in Afghanistan in order to offer sense-and-warn capabilities to friendly troops and deter enemy attacks. The soldiers covered seven sites in Afghanistan and took the lead on counter-unmanned aerial system efforts.
Colonel Ryan Schrock talked about the mission of the soldiers in Afghanistan. “The soldiers of 2-44 performed brilliantly as teams in order to accomplish the mission at all levels, intercepting rockets and mortars and just did a fantastic job,” Schrock said.