Tara Truax, center, of Des Moines, cries out upon sighting her boyfriend, Staff Sgt. Dan Mehmen of Indianola as he exits a plane upon his return from duty in Iraq Thursday morning in Des Moines. The 132nd Fighter Wing will welcome home approximately 250 personnel over the course of the next few days from an Air Expeditionary Force (AEF) deployment to Joint Base Balad, Iraq. The mission of the 132nd Fighter Wing was to provide armed over-watch of convoys and patrols; non-traditional intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance; counter rocket and mortar missions; and counter improvised explosive device missions. To accomplish this, the Wing flew approximately 400 sorties, which involved over 1,000 hours of combat flying.
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