115th Brigade Support Battalion

The 115th Brigade Support Battalion is a battalion of the United States Army. Organized at Camp Henry Knox, Kentucky in 1919 as the 657th Motor Transport Company, it was re-designated the 84th Motor Transport Company on 1 December 1919. Since that time, many re-designations have occurred as the United States Army has changed.

115th Brigade Support Battalion
Coat of arms
CountryUnited States
BranchUnited States Army
TypeSupport Battalion
Garrison/HQFort Hood
Motto(s)Mule Skinners
ColorsBuff, Red, Gold
Insignia
Distinctive Unit Insignia

History

Interwar years

The 115th Brigade Support Battalion carries the history, lineage, and colors of the 15th Supply Transport Battalion. It was originally organized at Camp Henry Knox, Kentucky in 1919 as the 657th Motor Transport Company, it was re-designated the 84th Motor Transport Company on 1 December 1919 and demobilized 31 December 1920 at Camp Dix, New Jersey. The unit was reconstituted 1 May 1936 in the Regular Army as Troop D, 16th Quartermaster Squadron, an element of the 1st Cavalry Division.[1]

World War II

Troop D, 16th Quartermaster Squadron, activated 15 January 1941 at Fort Ringgold, Texas. The troop traveled with the division throughout its World War II campaigns in the Pacific theater earning campaign credit for Bismarck Archipelago, Leyte, Luzon, and New Guinea as well as two Meritorious Unit Commendations for actions in support of the 1st Cavalry Division.[2]

Troop D was moving with the division when it earned its initial first designation, "First in Manila" during the campaign to retake the Philippine Islands. As the Japanese will to fight evaporated on the clouds of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Troop D marched into Japan when the division achieved its second motto, "First in Tokyo". During the occupation, the troop became the quartermaster support unit for the division.

Korean War

In 1949, the troop became the 15th Quartermaster Company and moved to Korea in 1950 to participate in combat supplying of the 5th, 7th, and 3rd Cavalry Regiments, Division Artillery, and Special Troops. The 15th Quartermaster Company fought with the division north across the 38th Parallel. In the invasion of North Korea, the First Team’s third accolade, "First in Pyong Yang" was added to the battle honors of the division and its quartermaster company.

The 15th Quartermaster Company remained in Korea after the war and with the activation of "ROAD" division in 1963 was combined with the 23rd Transportation Battalion and re-designated as the 15th Supply and Transport Battalion.

Vietnam War

In 1965, the 15th Supply and Transport Battalion returned to Fort Benning, Georgia with the 1st Cavalry Division and organized as a part of the Army’s first airmobile division. From 1 July 1971 until the end of the year, the unit served in the Republic of Vietnam. During its tenure in Vietnam, it participated in many campaigns to include the Tet Counteroffensive. While in Vietnam, the 15th Supply and Transport Battalion received the Presidential Unit Citation, the Valorous Unit Award, three Meritorious Unit Commendations, and three Republic of Vietnam Crosses of Gallantry and the Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Honor Medal.[3]

Cold War

Upon its return to the United States in 1971, the 15th Supply and Transport Battalion and the 1st Cavalry Division moved to Fort Hood under the TRICAP concept. In January 1975, the 1st Cavalry Division was reorganized, becoming the Army’s newest armored division. The 15th Supply and Transport Battalion adapted itself quickly to meet the ever-changing logistical needs of the division.

In 1984, the entire structure of the Division Support Command (DISCOM) underwent a dynamic change. Support battalions were activated, incorporating previous elements of the 15th Supply and Transport Battalion, the 15th Medical Battalion, and the 27th Maintenance Battalion. These units had previously provided brigade-level combat service support as forward area support teams; thus was born the 1st Forward Support Battalion on 1 October 1984. The 1st Forward Support Battalion took on the mission of supporting 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division.

Under the initial support battalion concept, the newly formed battalions had no history and lineage and only generic colors. This problem was corrected in 1987 when the Department of the Army and the Institute of Heraldry re-designated all support battalions. The 1st Forward Support Battalion became the 115th Support Battalion (Forward) on 15 May 1987 and given the full lineage, honors and colors of 15th Supply and Transport Battalion.

Gulf War

In October 1990, the 115th Forward Support Battalion deployed to Saudi Arabia for Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm and provided logistical support to the soldiers of the 1st Brigade Task Force. During Operation Desert Storm, traversing 260 kilometers into the heart of Iraq, the 115th Forward Support Battalion met the challenge of providing continuous logistical support.

In the spring of 2003, the 1st Cavalry Division was organized under the FORCE XXI structure. The creation of multi-functional logistics companies with the FORCE XXI Forward Support Battalion consolidates all classes of supply and maintenance organizational elements currently embedded within the maneuver battalions with the direct support capability currently in the Forward Support Battalion.

The new 115th Forward Support Battalion, with "centralized" combat service support, provides all logistical support, and tied together the entire spectrum of supplies and services for the maneuver battalions within the 1st Brigade Combat Team (BCT). It consisted of three forward support companies (FSCs), a brigade support company, a medical company, and a headquarters and distribution company.

Modern era

In March 2004, the 115th Forward Support Battalion deployed to the Persian Gulf for Operation Iraqi Freedom II. The battalion mastered a myriad of new tasks and challenges as it adapted to the rapidly changing environment in and around Baghdad during their year-long deployment. Continuing their lineage of excellence, the 115th Forward Support Battalion provided first-class logistical support to the 1st Brigade Combat Team during periods of intense combat in Sadr City, and during the landmark first free Iraqi election.

In 2005, the Army moved from a division-based force structure to brigade-based. The 1st Brigade Combat Team re-structured as Interim Brigade Combat Team, incorporating the previous elements of the 1st Battalion, 82d Field Artillery Regiment; 312th Military Intelligence Battalion; 20th Engineer Battalion; 13th Signal Battalion; and 115th Forward Support Battalion.

On 12 July 2005, the 115th Forward Support Battalion became the 115th Brigade Support Battalion and re-aligned from DISCOM to the 1st Brigade Combat Team under the new structural concept. The 115th Brigade Support Battalion provides distribution-based, centrally-managed combat service support to 1st Brigade Combat Team to sustain its operational employment in small scale contingencies.

The unit has a reputation within the 1st Cavalry Division for getting the job done and "Making it Happen," a phrase that describes the hard-charging spirit of the battalion and the men and women who serve in it.

Awards and decorations

Campaign credit
Conflict Streamer Year(s)
World War II
Bismarck Archipelago
Leyte
Luzon
New Guinea
Vietnam War

Unit decorations
Ribbon Award Year Notes
Presidential Unit Citation (Army)[4] 23 Oct – 26 Nov 65
Valorous Unit Award[5] 1 May – 29 Jun 70
Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)[2] 25 Feb - 25 Jun 1944
Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)[2] 26 Jun – 25 Dec 44
Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)[6] 1 Jun 67 – 31 May 68
Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)[7] 1 Jun 68 – 30 Nov 69
Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)[5] 1 Jan 70–31 Jan 71
Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation (Army)[2] 7 Dec 41 – 10 May 42 or 17 Oct 44 – 4 Jul 45
Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry, with Palm[8] 9 Aug 65 – 19 May 69 For service in Vietnam
Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry, with Palm[9] May 69 – Feb 70 For service in Vietnam
Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry, with Palm[10] 21 Feb 70 – 28 Feb 71 For service in Vietnam
Republic of Vietnam Civil Action Unit Citation[10] 1 Jan 69 – 1 Feb 70 For service in Vietnam

References
  1. US Army, Office of the Quartermaster General. 115th Support Battalion Archived 23 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
  2. Department of the Army (change dated 4 June 1962). Pamphlet 672-1, page 58. Accessed 11 May 2017. Unit listed as "16th Cavalry Quartermaster Squadron, 1st Cavalry Division".
  3. Department of the Army (24 March 2017). Pamphlet 672-3, page 20. Accessed 12 May 2017. Unit listed as "15th Transportation Battalion".
  4. US Army (21 September 1967). General Orders No. 40, page 4. Retrieved 12 May 2016. Unit listed as "15th Transportation Battalion (Acft-Maint Sup) (Airmobile)".
  5. US Army (29 November 1972). General Orders No. 43. Retrieved 12 May 2016. Unit listed as "15th Transportation Battalion".
  6. DAGO 28, 69
  7. DAGO 2, 71
  8. DAGO 59, 69
  9. DAGO 11, 73 amended DAGO 42, 72
  10. DAGO 42, 72

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