MAJ Kelly Boian served as commander of Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Regiment in Al Dora, Iraq during 2005 and 2006, and on a stability transition team (STT) in Sinjar Province, Iraq during 2009 and 2010, both in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). In this April 2011 interview, MAJ Boian discusses his training at the Counterinsurgency (COIN) Academy in Taji at the beginning of his first deployment, the uncertainty of his mission during preparation for his second deployment, and what the mission of his STT ended up being. MAJ Boian concludes his interview with the observation, "For the STT, the biggest thing they could do to make it better is to make sure the brigade is tied into it; they're going to support it and allocate whoever is going to work with that STT. That was really the harsh hit we had; the uncertainty of not knowing who we were going to work with, getting down their battle drills, and how to work with that unit when we got out there. [Ideally this would include] integration with the organic unit you're going to be attached to and working with early on and then a dedicated security element to be with you and give you the flexibility to move out there with that unit."

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited