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Iraq troops get a break
Hat tip to Drudge.Someone at the Pentagonâs thinking.... Around 270 soldiers deployed in Iraq will fly to a Baltimore airport Friday to begin 15-days of vacation in a new program designed to boost morale. Once in Baltimore, the soldiers can catch connecting flights anywhere they want to go — at their own expense — as long as they are back at Baltimore 15 days later for a government-funded return trip to Iraq. hope thereâs not too many AWOLâs Troops can also be flown to Rheinmein air base in Germany at government expense. The 15-day vacation is subtracted from their 30-day annual leave, according to Maj. Pete Mitchell, a U.S. Central Command spokesman. When the program gets fully underway as many as 900 soldiers facing 12-month duty tours will be flown out of Iraq every day. good rotation out Many soldiers got a shock after they arrived in Iraq and were told they would be there at least 12 months. There are 140,000 U.S. personnel — mostly from the Army — in Iraq. Many are reservists or from the National Guard. Around 120,000 reservists are on active duty for the war in Iraq, according to Pentagon officials. Posted by: Frank G 2003-09-25 |
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