Sixteen soldiers with the Montana National Guard returned home to cheering crowds Thursday after spending nine months in Afghanistan training the nation’s army and police forces.

The soldiers, assigned to an embedded training team in the Guard, returned to Montana just as Defense Secretary Robert Gates landed in Kandahar to discuss what’s being described as a resurgent Taliban and its al Qaida allies.

But on a cold Helena runway with a full moon hanging low in the sky, the Taliban threat in Afghanistan was far from the minds of those who braved brisk winds to welcome their loved ones home.

Amy Williams stood with her four sons — enough children to spell out the word “HERO” in large red letters — while scanning the skies for the approaching plane.

While the boys stood eager to see their father, Mrs. Williams grinned and admitted to feeling a little nervous.

“I have no idea why,” she said. “It just started today.”

Moments later, the C-130 appeared in the dimming sky east of the city. When the aircraft touched down, the crowd — estimated at 150 strong — erupted with a cheer while waving flags and banners.

Nearby, a color guard formed to greet the 16 soldiers, who stepped from the aircraft dressed in black. Lt. Gov. John Bohlinger was there to greet them, along with military officials.

“It feels great to be back,” said Sgt. First Class Kevin Williams, who quickly found his family in the crowd. “I think it went quick.”

While in Afghanistan, the training team experienced armed encounters with the Taliban and made good friends with Afghan locals.

The team left Montana in January and spent several weeks training for the mission at Fort Riley, Kan., where the soldiers learned to conjugate verbs in Dari and studied the basics of the Afghan culture.

“To put it into a sports analogy, we didn’t score a touchdown, but I think we moved the ball ahead 10 yards, which is all we set out to do,” said Col. Scott Smith, the team’s commander. “That’s what our goal was — to move them ahead a little bit, and I think we did that under arduous conditions.”

With his son in his arms, Smith added, “There was a lot of Taliban around and a lot of things I’m not going to say with my son around.”

Smith did say that his team embedded with and mentored the Afghan National Police and the Afghan National Army in hopes of training them to become free-standing organizations.

It was, Capt. John Bleile would later add, an incredible experience and one he won’t soon forget.

“It makes you think about life in general and the things you take for granted every day,” he said. “The biggest thing is looking into the eyes of the citizens of Afghanistan and knowing they really appreciate us over there and what we’re doing.”

As the Montana soldiers headed home to settle in with their loved ones, Secretary Gates landed in Afghanistan on Thursday where he announced that the U.S. military would move three additional combat brigades into the country by summer.

CNN reported Thursday that Gates was still debating the ideal size of the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan.

He added, however, that Americans must be “more sensitive” toward Afghan concerns about international troops on their soil.

Reporter Martin Kidston: 447-4086 or mkidston@helenair.com