PARKERSBURG - The 1092nd Engineer Battalion in Parkersburg and Point Pleasant will be deployed to Afghanistan next year, a spokesman for the West Virginia National Guard said Tuesday.

About 200 soldiers from the two units based in Parkersburg will ship out in the spring for a one-year deployment, said Lt. Col. Michael O. Cadle.

"I can't be real specific, but it's likely they will leave the States in the spring," Cadle said.

The deployment has been planned for about a year, Cadle said. It is not part of the increase in servicemen announced by President Obama, Cadle said. Obama announced last month he was sending another 30,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan to fight the Taliban.

Cadle didn't know where in Afghanistan the battalion will be sent.

The 1092nd will be the headquarters for a group of engineer battalions, serving as command and control for units from six states, Cadle said. It also will be involved in construction, including building roads, other infrastructure and support facilities for the troops, he said.

The last deployment for the was from 2003 to 2004 when the unit spent a year in Iraq, Cadle said. It has never been deployed to Afghanistan, he said.

Afghanistan was invaded by the UBy Jess Mancini

Special to the Times

PARKERSBURG - The 1092nd Engineer Battalion in Parkersburg and Point Pleasant will be deployed to Afghanistan next year, a spokesman for the West Virginia National Guard said Tuesday.

About 200 soldiers from the two units based in Parkersburg will ship out in the spring for a one-year deployment, said Lt. Col. Michael O. Cadle.

"I can't be real specific, but it's likely they will leave the States in the spring," Cadle said.

The deployment has been planned for about a year, Cadle said. It is not part of the increase in servicemen announced by President Obama, Cadle said. Obama announced last month he was sending another 30,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan to fight the Taliban.

Cadle didn't know where in Afghanistan the battalion will be sent.

The 1092nd will be the headquarters for a group of engineer battalions, serving as command and control for units from six states, Cadle said. It also will be involved in construction, including building roads, other infrastructure and support facilities for the troops, he said.

The last deployment for the was from 2003 to 2004 when the unit spent a year in Iraq, Cadle said. It has never been deployed to Afghanistan, he said.

Afghanistan was invaded by the United States in October 2001, about a month after the Sept. 11 attacks by the al Qaida terrorist organization.

About 1,500 U.S. troops based at Camp Lejeune, N.C., will head to Afghanistan this month as part of the surge announced by the president. By the end of spring, another 14,500 troops will be deploy there along with 7,000 Marines from Camp Lejeune and Camp Pendleton, Calif., and 3,400 soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division.

The president also said withdrawal from the country could start as early as July 2011.nited States in October 2001, about a month after the Sept. 11 attacks by the al Qaida terrorist organization.

About 1,500 U.S. troops based at Camp Lejeune, N.C., will head to Afghanistan this month as part of the surge announced by the president. By the end of spring, another 14,500 troops will be deploy there along with 7,000 Marines from Camp Lejeune and Camp Pendleton, Calif., and 3,400 soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division.

The president also said withdrawal from the country could start as early as July 2011.