Pioneering Army Unit to Debut in Iraq (Stryker brigade)

[Rose Siding]

Pioneering Army Unit to Debut in Iraq

Rounds commands a newly formed Stryker brigade combat team -- the first of its kind, intended as a model for the Army of the future, and scheduled to make its combat debut in Iraq within two months.

"The brigade is ready to go," Rounds said in an interview.

Rounds' unit, formed from the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, has trained intensively this year in anticipation of being certified combat ready by October. It was not until July 23, however, that the soldiers learned they will be going to Iraq as part of a troop rotation plan.

Although President Bush declared on May 1 that major combat was over, military commanders in Iraq have said repeatedly that they still are in a war zone, one in which the tool they prize most -- timely information about the enemy -- is the very one that Rounds' soldiers are equipped to provide.

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The Stryker is a 19-ton, eight-wheeled armored vehicle built in the United States and Canada. It comes in two variants: an infantry carrier and a mobile gun system. The infantry carrier, in turn, has eight configurations, including a reconnaissance vehicle, a mortar carrier and a vehicle for the brigade commander.

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