History: 82nd Airborne cavalry units at Fort Liberty case colors indefinitely

FORT LIBERTY — Cavalry units in the 82nd Airborne Division have started inactivating, the division announced on its social media pag es this month.

The Army announced in March that it will cut 32,000 jobs, which includes 3,000 to special operation forces and 10,000 in close combat forces, along with inactivating cavalry squadrons in continental U.S.-based Stryker brigade and infantry brigade combat teams.

The force structure change aligns with a shift from counterinsurgency and counterterrorism operations to large-scale combat operations, the Army said.

3rd Squadron

Social media posts from the division stated that the 3rd Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment cased its colors during an Aug. 9 inactivation ceremony.

The regiment was first activated Jan. 13, 1941, as the 76th Tank Battalion and participated in campaigns from World War II to the current Operation European Assure, Deter, and Reinforce in Europe.

“We are grateful to our generations of Veterans and this remarkable unit,” the post stated.

The 82nd Airborne Division has three squadrons under its 73rd Cavalry Regiment at Fort Liberty — the 1st Squadron , 3rd Squadron and 5th Squadron .

1st Squadron

The 1st Squadron, which inactivated July 31, traces its beginnings to the 756th Tank Battalion, an Army article stated.

The 756th designated as the 73rd Heavy Tank Battalion and assigned to the 7th Infantry Division on July 14, 1950, and spent three years of combat in Korea, before inactivating in July 1957, and reactivating July 1, 1963, as 1st Battalion, 73rd Armor during the Vietnam War.

The battalion deactivated at the end of the Vietnam War and reactivated from 1981-1988 at Fort Irwin, California, and was redesignated and assigned to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team in 2006, deploying as a part of Task Force Falcon to conduct operations to support Operation Iraqi Freedom.

In January 2010, the squadron was part of the Global Response Force deployed to Haiti for humanitarian relief after an earthquake. It deployed again from May to December 2011 to Iraq’s Anbar Province in support of Operation New Hope and to Kuwait in 2015 for Operation Inherent Resolve in support of Iraqi forces defeating ISIS.

In 2020, the squadron deployed to Syria to support Operation Inherent Resolve to provide security for special operations forces to maneuver.

Attending the July ceremony were family members, former commanders and veterans, including retired Command Sgt. Maj. Retired Ronald Regan, who served with the unit for about 16 years.

“You can see by the history it was a great unit and it's sad to see history being set aside,” Regan said.

According to the Army article, the battalion’s colors and other unit artifacts will remain in the 82nd Airborne Museum archive.

Lt. Col. Kevin D. Humphres, commander of the squadron, said the unit will be remembered by those who served in it.

“When casing the colors a final time it is a feeling of a dearly departed friend, who you know you will never see again,” Humphres said.

The Army announced it's cutting these jobs. What does that mean for Fort Liberty?

'It’s no secret': 82nd Airborne Division leader addresses Army cuts to cavalry squadrons

What's next for paratroopers in cavalry units?

During a video interview with The Fayetteville Observer in May, division commander Maj. Gen. J. “Pat” Work said leaders were taking care of the roughly 1,000 paratroopers affected by the change.

The Army report stated it is cutting jobs and not individual soldiers.

Cavalry scouts who are junior paratroopers will change jobs, and senior noncommissioned officers are working with them to ensure they “maintain momentum with their careers,” Work said.

Leaders have found jobs for armor officers that allow them to remain competitive, he said.

“Those paratroopers have numerous options on what they choose to do in uniform,” he said.

Staff writer Rachael Riley can be reached at rriley@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3528.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: History: 82nd Airborne cavalry units at Fort Liberty case colors indefinitely