WINDSOR LOCKS, Conn. (AP) - Gov. M. Jodi Rell has welcomed home a Connecticut National Guard unit that returned from a nearly yearlong deployment in Afghanistan.
The 15 soldiers of the Embedded Training Team arrived to cheers from family and friends Tuesday afternoon at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Windsor Locks.
The training team helped the Afghan National Army develop a capability to fight terrorism within its country's borders.
The unit is commanded by Col. Mark Russo of Guilford and left Connecticut in April 2007 for three months of training at Ft. Riley in Kansas before heading to Afghanistan.
Maj. Gen. Thaddeus J. Martin, commander of the Connecticut National Guard, says no other state Guard units are currently deployed.
