SAN ANTONIO -- More than 80 Airmen from the 59th Medical Wing at Wilford Hall Medical Center were deployed to Iraq on Thursday in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The deployment is one of several that will occur over the next few weeks.

More than 200 personnel will be mobilized to more than 20 different locations, including a major field hospital in Iraq.

The deployment was emotional for the Airmen and their families, who will be apart for several months.

Many of the personnel in the first group have already been to Iraq, but for Airman Erin Spangler, the deployment will be a first for her.

"I think I'm still in denial," Spangler said while holding her infant in her arms for the last time in four months.

The Airmen will undergo a confidential briefing before they leave Thursday afternoon.