When the combat-tested soldiers of the Hawai'i-based 25th Combat Aviation Brigade go to work, they don't leave much at home.

For the past two days, a hundred personnel from the Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command-599th Transportation Group, Fleet Industrial Support Center-Pearl Harbor, U.S. Army Pacific and U.S. Army Garrison-Hawai'i, Director of Logistics have been working day and night to load 90 helicopters and approximately 900 pieces of equipment onto a transport ship for the brigade's departure to Iraq on Tuesday.

It took two weeks to transport all of the vehicles and equipment from Schofield Barracks and other locations to Pearl Harbor.

The vehicles and equipment are being loaded onto International Shipholding Corp.'s 637-foot charter ship Green Ridge — it normally transports cars and trucks — according to a complex, computer-generated storage plan that maximizes space and prevents potential damage during transport.

The massive operation is expected to continue through tomorrow.

"Moving all of this heavy equipment is a challenge, but we've gotten very proficient at it," said Col. Mike Lundy of the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, out of Schofield Barracks.

About 3,000 troops from the brigade will serve in the one-year deployment. They'll be joined by a battalion from Germany and members of the Tennessee National Guard.

The 25th Combat Aviation Brigade will assume responsibility for air operations in the large northern section of Iraq known as Multinational Division-North, engaging in air assault, medevac and close-combat operations in support of U.S. ground forces and Iraqi army and police.

About 2,400 soldiers from the brigade were deployed to Iraq from July 2006 to October 2007.

The brigade has kept busy in the 19 months since its return, including four training cycles at Camp Irwin in San Bernardino, Calif.

It's also suffered heartbreaking loss.

In June, two pilots from the brigade were killed when their OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopter crashed at Wheeler Army Airfield during a general maintenance test flight. The cause of the crash is under investigation.

"It always difficult, but it's a reality of what we do," Lundy said of the deaths. "We have a lot of support programs for the soldiers if they need them. They're doing well."

Roughly 70 percent of brigade personnel have been previously deployed to Iraq; most have served multiple tours. Lundy said that level of experience will help the brigade as a whole once they reach the country.

"Every deployment is different, and there will be new challenges, so we have to go with an open mind and be mentally agile, but having that experience is still critical to our performance," Lundy said.

"The new ones knew what they were getting into," Lundy said. "They knew when they enlisted that they were being deployed. It's not a surprise for them, and they've received the training they need to do what is expected of them."

The brigade will hold a ceremony signifying the start of its deployment tomorrow at 9 a.m. at Wheeler Army Airfield.