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Unit Information
The 834th Aviation Support Battalion (ASB) is an Army National Guard battalion headquartered in St. Paul that provides logistics, transportation, medical, maintenance and communications support for the 34th Combat Aviation Brigade. The Soldiers of the 834th ASB support the systems that enable UH-60 Blackhawk and CH-47 Chinook helicopters to perform their missions. There are four companies in the 834th ASB: Headquarters and Supply Company (HSC) in St. Paul; A Company in St. Paul and Hastings; B Company at the Minnesota Army Aviation Support Facility in St. Paul; and C Company in Hastings.
In May the 834th Aviation Support Brigade returned from Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom as an element of Task Force 34.
The original mission of the 834th Aviation Support Battalion was to conduct full spectrum operations to sustain, maintain and secure the Soldiers and aircraft of Task Force 34.
As the mission evolved in theater, the extraordinary support provided by the 834th ASB laid the foundation of mission success for not only Task Force 34 (Multi National Corps – Iraq), but also for another brigade, Task Force 449 (Multi National Division – Center). Combined, these two major units represent roughly half of the Army aviation resources conducting combat operations as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). The 834th ASB provided critical logistical support to both brigades in the form of aviation maintenance, class IX (air) repair parts, fuel, ammunition distribution, transportation, communications, water and food, medical treatment, and communications.
Significantly, the 834th was the first and only ASB to establish and maintain two separate class IX warehouses and also support two aviation intermediate maintenance operations, widely separated by hundreds of kilometers in a combat zone.
The battalion met these unique challenges effectively and on time. In addition, the battalion conducted several other missions far removed from typical aviation support activities such as ground fuel resupply to Iraqi towns, and support to the Iraqi Based Industrial Zone (IBIZ) program.
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