In this interview, MAJ James R. Smith, US Army, Engineer; discusses his deployment to Iraq as the brigade Engineer in 2010 through 2011 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). MAJ Smith talks about his immediate thoughts when he arrived in country and describes his first couple of days with getting every set up. He describes a typical day and his missions of closing camps and out-stations. He shares a difficult challenge with filling a billet of a major as a captain and talks about how he overcame that challenge. MAJ Smith talks about the mentors he had and closes his interview by stating, "The cultural training classes helped us develop a better picture of our operational environment."

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