November 18, 2005
C-2
Hawaii Army Weekly
T
RANSFORMATION
Sgt.Maurice Smith
3rd Brigade PAO
SCHOFIELD BARRACKS— It echoes constantlythroughout the hallways of office buildings,barracksrooms and maybe eventhroughout the housing here atSchofield.For the Soldiers onthis particular post,they areliving it every day.“Transformation”is allaround this area.From unitconversion ceremonies to acti- vation and inactivation cere-monies,brigades such as the3rd Infantry Brigade CombatTeam are living transformationevery day to be better preparedwhen called upon for combat.“While Transformation isabout change,it’s more aboutthe future,”said Maj.SamWhitehurst,executive officer,3rd IBCT.“Transformation is aboutmaking us more expeditionaryand better prepared to dealwith current threats as well asfuture,emerging threats,”hesaid.Even as 3rd Brigade trans-forms to an Infantry BrigadeCombat Team,they have beena fixture here in the Pacific forthe last 40-plus years.Knownas the Broncos,3rd Brigadewas organized under the 25thInfantry Division at SchofieldBarracks on August 12,1963. At that time,the Broncos weremade up of three battalions,the 1st Battalion,14thInfantry;the 1st Bn.,35th Inf.and the 2nd Bn.,35th Inf..Over the years,the Bronco Brigade has deployed insupport of numerous strategic training exercises,humanitarian assistance missions,and combat mis-sions throughout the Pacific Rim as well as otherparts of the world.Most recently,3rd Bde.deployed in support of Oper-ation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.As part of ongoing combat operations against the Taliban inSouthern Afghanistan,they brought stability andsecurity to one of the most war-torn areas in theregion.Now as 3rd Bde.transforms to an infantry brigadecombat team consisting of two infantry battalions,arecon squadron,and a field artillery,special troops,and brigade support battalion they have just beenalerted for deployment to Iraq sometime next year.Col.Patrick T.Stackpole,the brigade commander,believes that transformation will give his unit theright forces in order to be successful in Iraq.“We brought all of the combat support into thebrigade ...(and our) separate companies ...are nowpart of the brigade every day vice in the past when wewould only get them prior to deployment,”said Stack-pole.“This is the way that we fight.It should be the waywe train.It should be the way that we work everyday,”he said.Even as the Broncos transform,they will be readyfor combat next year.“We have analyzed the problem –combat in Iraq-well.I think we have identified the key tasks we needto be proficient in to successfully complete that task.Ithink we’ve got time to do it.So I’m very confidentthat we will be trained and ready to go,”said Stack-pole.The Broncos’ command sergeant major also agreeson the unit readiness being increased for this missiondue to the transformation.“The brigade will be ready to deploy.They will beready to handle any mission given to them,just asthey were given to them in Afghanistan,”said Com-mand Sgt Maj.Frank Leota,Broncos’ command ser-geant major.“We got the right people in the right places,greatleadership,leadership development programs,and agood thing about is we have a lot of experience still leftfrom Soldiers who have been to Afghanistan,”saidLeota.“We also picked up experience from folks who havebeen in Iraq.It is a well-rounded organization withthis new restructure of the IBCT,said Leota who hasalso experienced similar developments at a prior dutystation.“I’ve also done that (restructuring) with a Strykerbrigade in Fort Lewis,so I’m no stranger to transfor-mation,”he said.With all of this going on,two things remain thesame within 3rd IBCT since being activated and maynever change – the Soldiers fighting everyday toensure freedom for our country,and the Broncosmotto,which has always been “None Better.”
MAJOR SUBORDINATECOMMANDS
3rd Brigade revs up training
Pfc.Kyndal Brewer
Staff Writer
SCHOFIELD BARRACKS — Witha history full of accomplishments,2ndBrigade of the 25th Infantry Division,is in the process of transforming into2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team(SBCT),to continue building upon itslegacy.“The SBCT is setting the stage forthe future of Army forces,”said Maj.Dewey A.Mosley,the brigade deputyeffects coordinator.“Concurrently,Stryker brigades are engaged in com-bat operations while newly formingStryker brigades are preparing todeploy in their place,”he continued.“Itis essential that these brigades areprovided with the best resources andtraining possible to accomplish theirmission.”Second Brigade was originally con-stituted on Aug.5,1917.Since thattime,the brigade has taken part inWorld War II,the Korean War,the Vietnam War,and conflicts in Haitiand Boznia.“Everywhere they went,they madea name for themselves,”said Mosley.In January of 2004,the unitdeployed to Iraq,right outside thecity of Kirkuk.During its deployment,Soldiers engaged in peacekeepingoperations and humanitarian projects.“The culmination of their deploy-ment occurred just before they wererelieved when they helped supportthe first free elections in Iraq in over50 years,”said Mosley.So far in the transformationprocess to a Stryker brigade,2ndBrigade has received five newactivated units,which include556th Signal Company;5thSquadron,14 Cavalry Regi-ment;52nd Anti-tank Co.;185th Military IntelligenceCo.;and 66th Engineer Co.Each unit will bring newcapabilities to the brigadesuch as enhancing intelli-gence,surveillance and recon-naissance integration;organ-ic support and sustainmentcapabilities;and modularemployment of the SBCT,andmost importantly,Stryker vehicles.“The Stryker itself reallybrings forth major capabili-ties,”Mosley explained. A Stryker vehicle candeploy in a C-130,combatloaded.It can be on theground and ready to go inabout 12 minutes.It alsoprovides greater mobility,survivability and lethality.“The greatest advantagethat the SBCT brings to thefight is not just the new equip-ment,”Mosley said.“Truetransformation is buildingadaptable,agile leadersthat embody the warriorethos.”
2nd Brigade gets Strykers
Master Sgt.Terry Anderson
25th ID Public Affairs Office
SCHOFIELD BARRACKS — As the25th Infantry Division works its waythrough its biggest structural changessince World War II,Tropic Lightninghas welcomed some new faces and hasbid Aloha to many of its traditionalunits that have played an importantrole in the division’s history.Units that have already inactivatedinclude the 125th Military IntelligenceBattalion;65th Engineer Bn.;the 1stBn.,62nd Air Defense Artillery;25thMilitary Police Company;Battery F,7thField Artillery;and the 125th SignalBn.The 125th Sig.Bn.held its inactiva-tion ceremony Oct.28,marking 64years of rich history in the 25thInfantry Division.“There are so many people to thankfor the support of this battalion,”saidLt.Col.Anthony Farris,125th Sig.Bn.Commander.“Voice of Lightning,TropicLightning,hooah!”Units that will soon inactivate aspart of the transformation processinclude 1st Bn.,25th Aviation Regi-ment;the 68th Medical Co.(Air Ambu-lance);2nd Bn.,5th Inf.Regt.;and the725th Main Support Bn.Some Soldiers from the inactivatedunits are reassigned to other unitsacross the division that need their mili-tary occupational specialty.“Since the Division recently rede-ployed from OIF [Operation Iraqi Free-dom] and OEF [Operation EnduringFreedom],many of our Soldiers [depart-ed] to new duty assignments elsewherein the Army,”said Maj.Dominic Spara-cio,G-7 transformation deputy.“This normal post-deploymentturnover alleviated much of theissue of moving Soldiers from inactivat-ing units to the remaining or trans-forming units.However,many Soldierswho were not due to PCS,and [who]were still needed in the remainingunits,have been reassigned to otherunits in the Division,”Sparacio contin-ued.“Any new positions not filled bySoldiers from inactivating units arebeing filled from elsewhere in the Army.”Newly activated units include 2ndStryker Brigade Combat Team’s 556thSignal Co.;66th Engineer Co.;5thSquadron,14th Cavalry Regt.;and the185th Military Intelligence Co.Company B,52nd Artillery,activatedWednesday.Units within the 2nd SBCT thathave reorganized include the 225thBrigade Support Bn.;2nd Bn.,11thField Artillery;and Headquarters andHeadquarters Co.,2nd Bde.Reorgani-zation of the three infantry battalionswithin the 2nd SBCT began Wednesdayand will conclude Dec.16.Within the 3rd Infantry BrigadeCombat Team,the Special Troops Bat-talion will also activate Wednesday.Units reorganizing include 3rd Bn.,7thFA;3rd Squadron,4th Cav.Regt.;HHC,3rd Brigade;2nd Bn.,27th Inf.Reg.;2nd Bn.,35th Inf.Regt.;and the 325thSupport Bn.The Division Headquarters has alsoreorganized the HHC,and it has acti- vated Tactical Command Posts and aSpecial Troops Bn.The 25th Combat Aviation Brigadewill activate two units by Jan.2006,the209th Aviation Support Bn.and 3rdBn.,25th Avn.Rgt.The brigade will reorganize 2nd Bn.,25th Avn.Regt.and HHC,Avn.Bde.The 1st Bn.,25th Avn.Rgt.,will reor-ganize into 2nd Bn.,6th Cavalry Regt.,next summer.The 45th Corps Support Group willreorganize its headquarters,activatethe 82nd Eng.Support Co.and becomethe 8th Theater Support Command.This transformation process mayseem very confusing on the surface,butSparacio says when you dig below thesurface it all makes sense.“Many of our units inactivated asseparate organizations that are nowincorporated into the brigade combatteam [BCT] structure that the Army isembracing,”he said.“Previously,we hadseparate infantry brigades whoreceived support from separate func-tional supporting units such as engi-neer,signal,military police,militaryintelligence,quartermaster,ordnance,etc.“Many of the separate units inacti- vated,but the personnel and much of the equipment is being reallocated tothe now larger brigade combat team.That way the units can train togetherand deploy together as a cohesiveteam.”
Many unitsactivate,inactivate
Soldiers of 1st Battal-ion,21st Infantry Regi-ment,search forweapon caches inKirkuk,Iraq.
Sgt.Sean KimmonsSpc.Claudia K.Bullard
Above — Capt.Brendan Raymond (right),3rd Bn.,7th Field ArtilleryRgt.,leads members of his team on a foot patrol down a main thor-oughfare in Kandahar City,Afghanistan.Left — A Soldierwith 2nd Battal-ion,27thInfantry Regi-ment,dis-charges a roundduring "reflex-ive fire" trainingat the KR4Range onSchofield Bar-racks,Oct.12.
Spc.Leslie Alberts
1st Stryker BrigadeCombat Team(Fort Lewis, Wa.)2nd Stryker BrigadeCombat Team3rd Infantry BrigadeCombat Team4th Airborne BrigadeCombat Team(Alaska)25th CombatAviation Brigade45th Sustainment Brigade
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