III Corps completes mission in Afghanistan, returns to the waiting arms of family and friends in TX

III Corps HQ returns to Fort Hood — 1 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Soldiers with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, muster outside the III Corps Headquarters building on Fort Hood before marching in to their welcome home ceremony, Feb. 9, 2014. The HHC returned after completing a nine-month deploy... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

III Corps HHC finally home — 2 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Lt. Gen. Mark Milley, III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general (right), leads Soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, into the III Corps Headquarters building on Fort Hood for their welcome home ceremony after serving nine m... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Heading back into the III Corps Headquarters — 3 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Lt. Gen. Mark Milley, III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general, leads Soldiers from Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, into the III Corps Headquarters building on Fort Hood for their welcome home ceremony after serving nine months in... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Col. Brito in triplicate — 4 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – The family of Col. Gary Brito is hard to miss at the welcome home ceremony for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, in the III Corps Headquarters building on Fort Hood, Feb. 9, 2014. Soldiers of the HHC were returning after a nine-month ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Grady waits for Dad — 5 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Grady Grissom, 3, waits for his dad, Sgt. Justin Grissom, at the welcome home ceremony for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, in one of the lobbies of the III Corps Headquarters building on Fort Hood, Feb. 9, 2014. The Soldiers of the ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Lt. Gen. Milley thanks the families and friends of III Corps Soldiers — 6 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Members of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps command group, wait patiently in formation as Lt. Gen. Mark Milley, III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general, speaks to their families and friends during a welcome home ceremony, Feb. 9, 2... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Release us already! — 7 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Members of the III Corps Headquarters Company wait patiently to be released by the III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general, Lt. Gen. Mark Milley, during their welcome home ceremony, Feb. 9, 2014. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Ken Scar, 7th Mobile Publi... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Hi Dad — 8 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Grady Grissom, 3, greets his dad, Sgt. Justin Grissom, at the welcome home ceremony for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, Feb. 9, 2014. Grissom and the other Soldiers in the HHC returned to Fort Hood after completing a nine-month dep... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Daddy's home at last — 9 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Olivia Settles greets her dad, 1st Lt. James Settles, during the welcome home ceremony for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, on Fort Hood, Feb. 9, 2014. The Soldiers of the HHC returned to Fort Hood after a nine-month deployment to Af... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Lt. Gen. Mark Milley smiles — 10 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Lt. Gen. Mark Milley, III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general, laughs with families and friends of his Soldiers during the welcome home ceremony for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, Feb. 9, 2014. The Soldiers returned from a nine-... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

A photo with the head honcho — 11 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Lt. Gen. Mark Milley, III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general, poses for a photo with Sgt. Justin Grissom during their welcome home ceremony, Feb. 9, 2014. Both men returned after a nine-month deployment to Afghanistan with Headquarters and Headqu... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Is that you, Daddy? — 12 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Charlotte Settles gazes at her dad, 1st Lt. James Settles, during the welcome home ceremony for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, Feb. 9, 2014. Soldiers with the HHC returned from a nine-month deployment to Afghanistan. (U.S. Army ph... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Let me help you with that, Dad. — 13 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Hannah Norwood helps her dad, Col. Paul Norwood, tote his gear to their car after his return from a nine-month deployment to Afghanistan with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, Feb. 9, 2014. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Ken Scar, 7th Mobil... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Dancing by the Phantom Warrior — 14 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Charlotte Settles passes the time by dancing in front of one of the Phantom Warrior statues in the III Corps Headquarters building as she waits for her dad, 1st Lt. James Settles, of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, to return from A... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Lt. Gen. Milley talks to families and friends of III Corps — 15 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Homecoming — 16 / 16 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Meghan Settles (center), watches her husband, 1st Lt. James Settles, embrace their daughter, Olivia while their other daughter, Charlotte, looks on from mom's arms during the welcome home ceremony for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps,... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, III Corps, walked into a room full of cheers, hugs and tears in the III Corps Headquarters building on Fort Hood Feb. 9 after completing a nine-month deployment in Afghanistan.

Lt. Gen. Mark Milley, the outgoing commander of ISAF Joint Command in Kabul, Afghanistan, and commanding general of III Corps and Fort Hood, led his command team into the building to an excited crowd of supporters who had been waiting anxiously for hours.

Milley said a few words to the gathering while his Soldiers waited patiently in formation, thanked them all for a job well done, and released them to their families.

Milley transfered authority of IJC Feb. 8 to Lt. Gen. Joseph Anderson, incoming commander of ISAF Joint Command and commanding general of XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, N.C.

Milley will uncase the III Corps colors in a ceremony at 10 a.m. Feb. 12 at the III Corps headquarters.