In February 2002, about 170 reserve and active duty Marines and sailors with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772 from Willow Grove Naval Air Station, Pa., were called into active service, sent to New River Air Station and assigned to the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
The MEU was preparing to leave on a regularly scheduled six-month deployment that would be extended to nine months because of the war in Iraq.
They expected to help active-duty forces for a year, but could have served two years before going home.
They had no idea what might happen in Iraq.
"The uncertainty was the biggest thing," Reserve CH-53E Super Stallion crew chief Staff Sgt. Mike J. Cuttic, 30, from Frackville, Pa.
"I don't think anybody had a doubt that we could do it; we were already deployed for seven months including sandy operations on the Horn of Africa before we were extended for two (more) months. But nobody knew what was going to happen next."
The squadron left eastern North Carolina in August 2002, stopping for a month of peacekeeping duty in Kosovo before going through the Suez Canal and training in the East African deserts of Djibouti.
In March, the 24th MEU joined the West Coast's 15th MEU, supporting the push north to Baghdad and trying to stabilize the southern area of the country for the next month.
The Super Stallion helicopters are the largest in the Marine Corps inventory and were always busy shuttling troops and cargo, resupplying food, water and ammunition or medical evacuation of the wounded.
"Everybody knows that there will be casualties in war," said Cuttic, a quality assurance engineer for a titanium manufacturing plant in civilian life.
"There was always a sense of urgency."
There were also new experiences in places they had never been.
Super Stallion airframe mechanic Sgt. Robert Bivens, 29, a quality control specialist for a farm equipment manufacturer from Lewisberry, Pa., had a chance to work with different people and on different helicopters such as the AH-1W Super Cobra, UH-1 Hueys and CH-46 Sea Knights.
"We got to see how the Army lives with their chow halls and barracks in Kosovo," Bivens said.
"We worked with the Navy (on the ships) and with the Air Force in Djibouti."
The squadron included activated reservists from a wide range of civilian jobs, including financial consultants, construction workers and law enforcement officers.
"We had a strong cast which was definitely a plus," Cuttic said.
Keeping aircraft clean and maintained was a challenge in the desert.
"There was a fine mist (of dirt) that went everywhere, there was no stopping it," Cuttic said.
"We'd fly for 10 hours and spend another three to four hours cleaning."
The lines blurred between Marine units from both coasts, each team doing what was necessary to win such as a resupply mission Cuttic remembers to the 1st Marine Division southeast of Baghdad before the ground troops entered the city.
"From West Coast to East Coast and reserve units - they were all intertwined," Cuttic said. "I don't think anybody questions where you're from or what you're doing. The most important thing was the teamwork and sticking together. There is close knit group in the Marine family."
But military friends are not substitutes for family.
"The length of time away from my family is the hardest," said Cuttic, the father of three daughters. "We talked regularly through email on the ship and the occasional phone call."
Cuttic has been home to Pennsylvania on leave twice since their unit's return on Memorial Day, and he's looking forward to the final trip.
"My honey-do list is quite long," Cuttic said. "I have some yard work, some home improvement and reintegration of us as a family again."
Contact Eric Steinkopff at estein kopff@jdnews.com or 353-1171, Ext. 236.