In a scene that will be re-played over and over in coming weeks, 89 Schofield Barracks soldiers returned home to Hawai'i yesterday after a year in Iraq.

The routine of a war zone, and never being far from an M-4 carbine and danger outside the base perimeter, was replaced by welcoming families, lei, welcome-home signs and the ability to let down their guard for the first time in a long time.

The group, marching into a hangar at Wheeler Army Airfield, included 74 soldiers with the 524th Combat Service Sustainment Battalion and 15 soldiers with the 8th Field Surgical Team.

Spc. Adam Lyon got the first kiss with his wife, Jin, who had their daughter, 17-month-old Christina, in her arms.

"When family members see them, they were so happy to see them, and they didn't lose anybody," said Lt. Col. Vi Strong, a spokeswoman for the 8th Theater Sustainment Command.

More than 7,000 Schofield soldiers are just past the year mark in northern Iraq. They will be flooding back into Hawai'i this month and in October, with more than 150 due back Friday and another 250 returning on Sept. 12.

The 524th ran supply convoys out of Qayyarah West airfield, or "Q-West," near Mosul in northern Iraq.

"They would run up to 13 convoy logistics patrols a night," said Maj. Bob Villalobos, who was executive officer for the 524th until he was shifted to support operations officer for the 45th Sustainment Brigade.

Those missions would take Schofield and other soldiers attached to the unit up north to Turkey for supplies and to bases all over northern Iraq to distribute them.

Villalobos, who got back in July, said the 524th faced roadside bombs and other threats every night.

"Usually, out of 13 convoys, there was some type of activity on every single one," Villalobos said. "Every night, out of those 13, somebody's going to get into a situation where they've got to do stuff."

Some soldiers did get injured, Villalobos said, but no one was killed.

Villalobos said the Army improved protection in Humvees and trucks with "Frag-5" armor. The extra armor is capable of withstanding fragmentation from the detonation of improvised explosive devices and the impact of small-arms fire.

All soldiers in Iraq got their missions extended from 12 months to 15 months, but the soldiers returning yesterday were able to return at the year mark instead.

"They didn't know they were going to get to come home on time until — I guess they found out in July," Villalobos said. "They spent from April to July not knowing when they were going to come home."

About 194 soldiers from the 45th Sustainment Brigade, including personnel from Headquarters and Headquarters Company & B Detachment, 45th Special Troops Battalion; and C Detachment, 556th Personnel Services Battalion, returned to Schofield in July.

The 524th's higher headquarters is the 45th Sustainment Brigade.

About 175 soldiers from the 45th Sustainment Brigade who preceded the July group were the first major group of Schofield troops to come back from the deployment to Iraq that began last summer.

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com.