Major Matthew Crystal was deployed from March through July 2003 to Operation Iraqi Freedom as the commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC), 16th Engineer Battalion, supporting the 1st Armored Division. In this interview, Crystal describes the movement of his battalion from Germany to Kuwait, and from there to Baghdad. Crystal discusses how the realistic deployment and load-out training that the 1st Armored Division commander, Major General Ricardo Sanchez, insisted upon contributed to the success of this deployment. Much of his initial challenges in theater included force protection and basic utilities to the two forward operating bases he was responsible for establishing. Crystal, who was essentially the rear area engineer, talks about some of the interaction he had with the local Iraqi population, including their persistent questioning about how long the Americans were going to stay. Crystal additionally describes some of the challenges faced as they worked to reestablish running water to the civilians in the area. "I think we really need to focus on interacting with contractors while we're preparing for stability operations," he said, adding that, in his estimation, this is "one of the biggest downfalls of engineer training and really of any officer training." Crystal also describes the level of violence right after the fall of Baghdad as being relatively light, especially with regard to IED attacks. The main attacks on his unit were sniper attacks and booby traps in highway underpasses.

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