300 Michigan guard members prepare for Afghanistan

About 300 members of the Michigan Air National Guard are expected to report to active duty this month for deployment to Afghanistan.

Selfridge Air National Guard Base announced today that the group of its 127th Wing Airmen will include pilots, crew, maintenance technicians and support personnel. They're expected to serve 4- to 6-month tours in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

They will be part of a unit flying the A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft. The unit had been scheduled for deployment in spring 2012, but the timetable was moved up.

So far this year, more than 200 military members from the base in Harrison Township, about 20 miles northeast of Detroit, have been deployed.