1,000 Nellis personnel heading to Middle East, Bosnia

Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2002 | 8:58 a.m.

About 1,000 Nellis Air Force Base personnel are expected to be deployed to the Middle East and Bosnia by the end of the year as part of a routine troop rotation.

"We usually have about 200 people deployed at a given time, except at the end of the year, when we get this hump where we have about 1,000 out," Nellis spokesman Mike Estrada said.

"These rotations are planned 18 months in advance and are in support of Operation Enduring Freedom."

Estrada said the deployment has nothing to do with the possibility of war in Iraq, and that the Air Force is working to even out Nellis' rotation schedule.

Security personnel, mechanics and air traffic controllers are among those being deployed, Estrada said.

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