CPT Raychad Vannatta served as company commander of Bravo Company, 1-137th Aviation Regiment at Joint Base Balad (JBB), Iraq during 2008 and 2009 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). In this December 2009 interview, CPT Vannatta discusses his company's mission conducting ring routes, detainee movement operations and training for special operations, the challenges of the first few months in theater, and an incident where an aircraft went down toward the end of his deployment. CPT Vannatta concludes his interview with the observation, "I'm very proud of my organization. I think we were a mediocre organization up front and throughout the deployment, either because of expectations or because it was directed from me, my first sergeant, or my battalion commander, we've always been able to meet the challenge. Whether that was providing more aircraft a day with eight ships, when Active Duty guys come in and say, "Oh, we only have write-up per aircraft." We were tied for last in the battalion in maintenance as far as write-ups go. We're now tied for first in maintenance in the battalion now. We went from being very weak in maintenance to being very strong in maintenance. We have flown the most flight hours; we're the highest flying company in the battalion. If that's the way we're going to measure things I'm extremely proud of my organization."

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited