29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (United States)

29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team
29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team shoulder sleeve insignia
Active 15 January 1959 – present
Country  United States
Branch  United States Army
Type Infantry
Size Brigade
Garrison/HQ Kalaeloa, Hawaii

The 29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is an infantry brigade combat team of the United States Army National Guard of Hawaii.

History

The 29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team was first constituted as the 29th Infantry Brigade on 15 January 1959 at Honolulu. Its headquarters and headquarters company was redesignated from the 120th Signal Support Company, organized and Federally recognized on 4 January 1954. During the Vietnam War, the brigade was ordered into active Federal service on 13 May 1968 and released from Federal service on 12 December 1969.[1]

The 29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is the largest unit in the Hawaii Army National Guard (HI ARNG). Since 1995, the brigade has been one of the nation's 15 enhanced readiness brigades. This distinction means that the 29th must be trained and equipped to deploy within 90 days of a federal call-up. The brigade has become a pan-Pacific brigade with units located on the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, Molokai, and Kauai; in the states of Arizona, California, Minnesota, and Oregon; and, on the Pacific islands of American Samoa and Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

The brigade consists of units that span the State of Hawaii. Its Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 229th Military Intelligence Company, and 29th Support Battalion are located on Oahu at its Kalaeloa facilities, formerly known as Barbers Point Naval Air Station. The bulk of the 227th Engineer Company's heavy engineering equipment which is so vital in war and during times of natural disaster is located in the HI ARNG's Pearl City complex on Oahu. A combat engineering detachment is situated in the community of Keaau on the island of Hawaii. The brigade's 1st Battalion, 487th Field Artillery can be found on the outskirts of Wahiawa in Central Oahu.

The units of the brigade's 1st Squadron, 299th Cavalry, are strategically located in communities throughout the state. The battalion's headquarters and headquarters company is located in Hilo, Hawaii, with a scout platoon detached to Kaunakakai, Molokai. The bulk of the battalion's Company A is located on Kauai in Kapaa, with a detachment in Hanapepe. Company B of the battalion is similarly split between the communities of Kealakekua and Honokaa on the island of Hawaii. Companies C and D are located in Kahului, Maui, and Wahiawa, Oahu, respectively.

Upon federal mobilization, the brigade's strength would increase as it is augmented by the 1st Battalion, 158th Infantry Regiment of the Arizona Army National Guard (ARNG), 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry of the California Army National Guard (ARNG), the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry of the U.S. Army Reserve (with units from the island of Oahu, Guam, and American Samoa), Troop F, 82nd Cavalry (Ground) of the Oregon ARNG, and Battery E, 216th Air Defense Artillery of the Minnesota ARNG.

On 20 July 2004 more than 2,100 soldiers were ordered to report for active duty 16 August 2004, about a month earlier than expected, to begin preparations for a year of combat duty in Iraq. With six months of training time on the mainland and at least a year in Iraq, the Hawaii soldiers were to be away 18 months. By late February 2005 the 29th Brigade replaced the 81st Brigade of the Washington Army National Guard, whose major elements were north of Baghdad in Balad.

The brigade returned to the United States between late December 2005 and early January 2006. It was demobilized in March 2006. After returning from Iraq, the brigade became the modular 29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

On 16 October 2016, a ceremony was held in Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, AK to activate 1-297th Infantry Regiment (AK ARNG). This new battalion was attached to the 29th IBCT with an effective date of 1 September 2016.

Order of battle

  • 1st Battalion, 158th Infantry Regiment (Arizona Army National Guard)
  • 1st Battalion, 294th Infantry Regiment (Guam Army National Guard)
  • 1st Battalion, 297th Infantry Regiment (Alaska Army National Guard)[2]
  • 1st Squadron, 299th Cavalry Regiment
  • 1st Battalion, 487th Field Artillery Regiment
  • 29th Brigade Support Battalion
  • 227th Brigade Engineer Battalion (activated in 2014 from 29th BSTB)[3]
The following units were added to the unit's command when it participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom 3:

References

Citations

  1. ↑ Wilson 1999, pp. 641–642.
  2. ↑ "Army National Guard infantry unit stands up". DVIDS. Retrieved 2017-08-17.
  3. ↑ "227th Brigade Engineer Battalion activation ceremony". DVIDS. Retrieved 2017-08-17.

Bibliography

  • Wilson, John B. (1999). Armies, Corps, Divisions, and Separate Brigades (PDF). CMH Pub 60-7. Washington, D.C.: United States Army Center of Military History. ISBN 9780160499920.
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