Yesterday was a grim milestone for 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division: The Pentagon announced the 35th death of the brigade’s yearlong deployment.

(For what it’s worth, the brigade says they’ve lost 37 soldiers. Our two counts vary because 5/2 counts two civil affairs soldiers who were attached to the unit but not from Lewis-McChord.)

Other local links:

5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
Fallen soldier was close to returning home [Yakima Herald-Republic]
Lewis-McChord unit loses 35th soldier [Associated Press]
Chugiak graduate killed by roadside bomb in Afghanistan [Anchorage Daily News]
Yakima soldier …

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We’ve published the final articles Joe and I sent in from our trip to Iraq. Both are profiles: one of Capt. Junior Tupuola, a chaplain whose like took a long, twisting path to the service. The other is on Command Sgt. Maj. Frank Grippe, the top NCO in I Corps who is, to say the least, quite a personality.

Other local links:

3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
2-19th Iraqi Army Division, Task Force Wings Conduct a Large-scale Partnered Air Assault [DVIDS]

4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
Soldiers Gain More ‘trigger Time’ at EST 2000 …

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The Pentagon announced Friday that Col. Jerry P. Martinez, who commanded McChord Air Force Base from 2006 to 2008, is noiminated for a promotion to brigadier general and a job as deputy commander for political-military affairs at the Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan. Martinez is now the inspector general of the Air Mobility Command.

In other guys-that-used-to-command-here-getting-a-promotion news, Army Brig. Bob Brown is being nominated for his second star. Brown, who formerly commanded Fort Lewis’ 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, is now the deputy commanding general for support for the 25th Infantry Division. The division is currently deployed to run Multi-National …

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We lead today with more bad news from Fort Lewis’ 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. Two soldiers were killed when a roadside bomb exploded near their vehicle in southern Afghanistan.

And the news comes on the same day that friends gathered at Fort Lewis to mourn three others.

Other local stories:

5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division:
‘You made us proud’ [The Patriot-News]
Final remembrance [Fort Lewis Ranger]
‘It was like a slow-motion day all day’ [KOMO-TV]
Three fallen Stryker soldiers remembered at Fort Lewis [KOMO-TV]

1st Special Forces Group:
…

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McChord Air Force Base’s 62nd Airlift Wing earned a satisfactory grade – the highest possible – following a weeklong surprise nuclear surety inspection, the wing announced Thursday.

The inspection took place Aug. 17-24 by officials from the Air Mobility Command Inspector General and studied four areas: management and administration, personnel reliability, safety and logistics movement.

The wing’s 4th Airlift Squadron is tasked with transporting the military’s nuclear warheads. McChord officials often describe the mission as their highest priority.

“This is another validation of the emphasis and professionalism we place on the (nuclear) mission,” wing commander Col. Kevin Kilb said in a release. “We take that responsibility very seriously … It’s such an honor to have this mission and I’m extremely proud of our airmen.”

For more information, click below to read the press release:

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There’s reason for the South Sound’s Air Force community to celebrate: It’s the 62nd Airlift Wing’s 62nd anniversary at McChord.