The Drive For Closure
Background
Recently the Obama administration indicated that it might withdraw all toops
in Afghanistan after December 2014, an option that defies the present view of
the Pentagon that thousands of troops may be needed to contain al-Qaida and to
strengthen Afghan forces.
The US now has 66,000 troops in Afghanistan, down from a peak of about 100,000
as recently as 2010. The US and its NATO allies agreed in November 2010 that
they would withdraw all their combat troops by the end of 2014, but they have
yet to decide what future missions will be necessary and how many troops they
would require.
At stake is the risk of Afghanistan's collapse and a return to the chaos of
the 1990s that enabled the Taliban to seize power and provide a haven for
Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network. Fewer than 100 al-Qaida fighters are
believed to remain in Afghanistan, although a larger number are just across
the border in Pakistani sanctuaries.
Administration officials in recent days have indicated that they are
considering a range of options for a residual US troop presence of as few as
3,000 and as many as 15,000, with the number linked to a specific set of
military-related missions like hunting down terrorists.
On 02 October 2012, the Department of Defense announced the deployment of
roughly 1,390 Troopers from the 4th Brigade Combat Team to Afghanistan in
November, this year, for a nine month tour. Units of the 4th Brigade Combat
Team that will participate are: 2nd Battalion. 7th Regiment; 1st Squadron, 9th
Regiment; 2nd Battalion, 12th Regiment, 5th Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery;
27th Brigade Support Battalion; and the 4th Brigade Special Troops Battalion.
The 4th Brigade Combat Team will field about 16 security force assistance
advisory teams composed primarily of officers and senior noncommissioned
officers to advise, assist and enable the Afghan National Security Forces.
Since the staffing level of the Brigade is approximately 3,700, not all of the
Brigade Combat Team will be deploying. Soldiers not deploying will be
reorganized into other elements of the Division, while others will serve in
the Brigade Rear Detachment. During deployment, the rear detachment. in
addition to their liaison duties, will be responsible for maintaining
vehicles.
|
|---|
On 26 October 2012, the 4th Brigade Combat Team ( Long Knives), 1st Cavalry
Division held a color casing at Cooper Field. Over the next few weeks,
soldiers of the "Long Knife" brigade and its six subordinate battalions will
leave for a nine-month mission in Afghanistan. This will be the fifth
deployment for the Long Knife Brigade since 11 September, 2001, but the first
to Afghanistan. The unit returned from a yearlong deployment to Iraq in
September 2011.
Soldiers of the Brigade have completed several months of training including a
rotation at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk as a final
training event leading up to this deployment. The Long Knife Brigade will
join Regional Command-East to conduct an important new mission in Afghanistan
operating out of Laghman and Kapisa provinces as a security force Advisory and
Assistance Brigade, replacing the 4th Brigade, 4th Infantry Division from Fort
Carson, Colorado. These new teams are a critical element in the continuing
efforts to improve the capabilities of the Afghan National Security Force and
will help them take more responsibility for the security of their country.
Just under half of the 3,800 Long Knife soldiers staff will deploy. The
remaining soldiers will fill the rear detachment staff functions; or otherwise
be transferred to the command of other units in the Division.
On 12 November 2012, the last party of the 4th Brigade Combat Team (Long
Knife), with a short but rich history of service to the Nation, deployed to
Afghanistan. This staging completed the deployment of the Brigade, which began
on 30 October.
The brigade will initially be stationed at Laghman Province, Afghanistan with
the current mission of serving as a Security Force Advisory and Assistance
Brigade in the Regional Command- East of Afghanistan. Though this mission is
new to Afghanistan, it is not new to the Long Knife Brigade. The Brigade has
served in an advise and assist role in Iraq in previous deployments.
|
|---|
On 25 November, Soldiers from the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry
Division, are assuming the role of the first Security Force Assistance
Brigade (SFAB) in the Army and in Afghanistan during a historic transfer of
responsibility ceremony at Forward Operating Base Gamberi. Even as the first
SFAB, the advisement mission that members of the "Long Knife" brigade has
taken on is not new to them or the Army.
The SFAB is composed of multiple security force advise and assist teams, who
will work shoulder-to-shoulder with the 201st Afghan National Army Corps and
other components of Afghan National Security Forces across the provinces of
Laghman and Kapisa in eastern Afghanistan.
With this new mission comes new challenges and hurdles to overcome. The
brigade left nearly 60 percent of its combat power at its home station of Fort
Hood, Texas. The Soldiers who have deployed to Regional Command East were
specifically chosen for this mission and many are wearing multiple hats during
the deployment.
With four deployments in six years, including serving as an advise and assist
brigade in the closing days of Operation Iraqi Freedom, coupled with numerous
field exercises, training events and an intense, but successful, rotation at
the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, LA., there is no doubt that
Long Knife is ready to act as a larger-scale Baron von Steuben to its Afghan
counterparts.
|
|---|
On 24 December, Forward Operating Base Gamberi units from the 4th Brigade
Combat Team, 1st Cavalty Division, brought in Christmas cheer through
decorations and song. Though they may miss having their ordinary holiday
celebrations with their famalies, they were here making history by helping
Afghanistan stand on its own, the way the US was helped during the
Revolutionary War,
During the last few weeks, care packages have poured in at the FOB, containing
cards, ornaments, lights, Santa hats and other assorted decorations along with
the care and support of their senders. Stockings containing candy, cookies and
other tasty snacks were passed out to the troops. The stockings were then hung
around many an office.
More than 75 Soldiers from various religious faiths were able to rotate their
duty assignments so that they could participate in a Christmas Eve candlelight
service put on by the Brigade Unit Ministry Team.
|
|---|
22 March 2013, "F" Co, 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 227th Aviation
Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, returned to Ft. Hood marking the end of a
historic mission in Afghanistan.
Stationed at Forward Operating Base Shank, Logar Province, Afghanistan, the
"Nomads" provided Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance(ISR) support to
Regional Command-East via the use of the Gray Eagle, an unmanned aerial
system designed for reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition, as
well as strike missions. During their deployment, the only company in the Army
who has executed Gray Eagle combat missions, operated 12 Gray Eagle aircraft
and flew ove 10,000 hours.
The operation marked the first time in the Army a company completed warfare
missions with Gray Eagles, as it deployed 117 Soldiers last March and
redeployed the entire company without loss of life over the course of the
year.
|
|---|
Announced on 27 June as part of the Force Restructuring Budget Control Act,
the Army will reduce its number of Brigade Combat Teams from 45 to 33 by the
end of fiscal year 2017. In addition - General. Ray Odierno, Chief Of Staff,
told reporters at a Pentagon news conference, the Army will shrink its active
component end strength by 14 percent, or 80,000 Soldiers, to 490,000, down
from a wartime high of 570,000 troops.
In all, 12 Brigade Combat Teams will be inactivated, including two Brigade
Combat teams, stationed at Baumholder and Grafenwoehr, Germany,
Two Brigade Combat Teams will remain in Europe to fulfill strategic
commitments. One Brigade Combat Team will be inactivated at each of the
following installations: Fort Hood; Fort Bliss; Fort Bragg; Fort Campbell;
Fort Carson; Fort Drum; Fort Knox; Fort Riley Fort Stewart and Joint Base
Lewis-McChord.
The Army led an exhaustive review before deciding where and how to cut, -
looking at the Geographic Distribution, Environmental and Socioeconomic
mpacts of the reductions. The final decision was based on a number of
criteria, including the ability to train, provide for Soldiers and Families
and the ability to expand and regenerate forces.
The changes will reduce the overall number of headquarters while sustaining
as much combat capability as possible, with the reinvestment of the Soldiers,
equipment and support personnel into the remaining Brigade Combat Teams.
As you journey through the history of the 1st Cavalry Division and its
assigned elements, you may find it interesting enough to send a message to
your friends and extend them an invitation for the opportunity to review the
rich history of the Division. We have made it easy for you to do. All that is
required is for you to click on the Push Button below, fill in their eMail
addresses and send.
| The TITLE and URL of this WebSite are automatically read, formatted and entered into your standard eMail form. |
|
Note - The eMail Message is processed and transmitted On-Line to the
addressee(s) via your Internet Provider. |
 Need a gift for an Alumni of the 1st Cavalry Division? |
|---|
eMail Your WebSite Comments.
Return to 1st Cavalry Division Organization.
Revised 27 Jun '13 SpellChecked 
