US Air Force (USAF) STAFF Sergeant (SSGT) Michael Batres, left and AIRMAN First Class (A1C) Michael Davis, with the 447th Expeditionary Logistical Readiness Squadron (ELRS), both Special Purpose Vehicle Mechanics, carefully weld steel plates for a 5-ton truck as armor protection, at the Baghdad International Airport (BIA), Iraq, in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM

Iraq War aka Operation IRAQI FREEDOM was the 2003 invasion of Iraq, led by U.S. Army General Tommy Franks, under the code-name "Operation Iraqi Freedom". 248,000 soldiers from the United States, 45,000 British soldiers, 2,000 Australian soldiers and 194 Polish soldiers from Special Forces unit GROM sent to Kuwait for the invasion. The invasion force was also supported by Iraqi Kurdish militia troops, estimated to number upwards of 70,000.