Gunfighters come home from war

A Gunfighter hugs the daughter he hasn't seen in three months while he was deployed to the war zone.

There were tears in the eyes of some of the wives, and cries of "Daddy!" as small bundles of energy rushed into the arms of their fathers, and everywhere, there were smiles, hugs and the laughter that comes with the relief that a loved one was home safe.

Sunday night about 200 of the approximately 700 men and women from Mountain Home AFB who have been deployed for the last three months into southwest Asia in support of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan returned home after a deployment that saw them miss Christmas with their families.

Personnel from the 366th Fighter Wing, the bulk of them from the 391st Fighter Squadron, had deployed to a still officially undisclosed location in early December. A few have come home earlier, and more, including the 391st's F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft, will be returning in the next few weeks, but Sunday's delivery of the troops back to the arms of their loved ones was and will be the largest single contingent to return home as their current deployment to the war zone ends.

"We're excited to have our folks back home with their families and we are proud of their accomplishments in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom," said Col. Blair Hansen, 366th Fighter Wing commander.

For security reasons, the specific operations that the wing personnel took part in have not been detailed, but the 391st FS, from which the bulk of the deployed troops came, was responsible for providing close air support for ground forces battling the ongoing guerilla insurgency in Iraq, and other support as needed in the region.