Hood, TX. 1992-2002 Throughout the 1990s the 2d Chemical Battalion remained stationed at Fort Hood, ready on order to deploy and take command and control of chemical units in any theater of operations. During this period the battalion participated heavily in development of the M93 Fox NBCRS (Nuclear Biological and Chemical Reconnaissance System) based on the German TPz Fuchs. The battalion was the first to deploy with Foxes, for chemical reconnaissance missions in Desert Storm. Beginning in 1998 it also tested the upgraded M93A1 Variant proving as viable new automated systems for sampling, analysis and reporting and the first remote chemical sensing system, the Remote Sensing Chemical Agent Alarm (RSCAAL) A number of chemical companies rotated in and out of the battalion including the 21st, 44th, 46th 59th, 84th, 101st, and 172nd. The 181st Chemical Company did not rotate, but remained with the battalion. Operation Iraqi Freedom to Present There is no known written history of the Red Dragons’ participation in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Some facts are known by direct observation. The Battalion deployed for the initial invasion which began on 19 March 2003. The 44th and 46th Chemical companies advanced with the 4th Infantry Division for provide smoke for river crossings. Several platoons deployed with Foxes. The first vehicle to enter Baghdad Airport was a Red Dragon Fox, to detect and identify chemical agents. A few isolated chemical munitions were identified, but the primary effort involved industrial chemical inventories. Large quantities of nitric acid posed particular problems. After the invasion, Red Dragon platoons were deployed to a variety of locations as far north as Tikrit. They were tasked for guard duty, infantry patrols, convoy escort, and other non-chemical duties. One platoon guarded a Tikrit bridge within a mile of Saddam Hussein's "Spider hole". Another platoon remained in Kuwait providing escort for visiting VIPs. From 2004 to 2010 companies were almost constantly rotated on deployments. Further, individual soldiers were pulled from undeployed companies and inserted into both chemical and non-chemical units. The demand was high; soldiers meeting the criteria for deployment could be almost certain of individual deployment. During this period beginning in 1990 the M1135 Nuclear Biological Chemical Reconnaissance Vehicle (Stryker) system was deployed to replace the Fox. Some deployments in this period involved identification and assessment of “sensitive sites” which might contain chemical or valuable intelligence. The last company to deploy to Iraq was the 44th Chemical Company