Willow Grove unit's deployment could be its last

Almost three dozen reserve members of a tactical aircraft unit at Willow Grove Naval Air Station that is to be disbanded this fall have embarked on what officials say will probably be the unit's final deployment.

The 35 members of the 31st Aerial Port Squadron, a subordinate unit of the 913th Airlift Wing, were bused off the base Sunday to an unspecified air base. They are headed to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan to unload and check cargo for four months.

The 913th trains and equips reservists for aerial resupply, including delivering personnel and equipment to the battlefield. The deployment, planned for many months, comes 10 days after Air Force Reserve Command officials announced plans to disband the unit by Oct. 1. - AP