The U.S. Army announced today it will accelerate the modular conversion of two active-component Brigade Combat Teams, increasing the combat capability of the Nation's available Army forces. While already planned, the modular conversion of these two units ahead of schedule marks another positive milestone in the ongoing transformation of the Army premier fighting unit: the Brigade Combat Team.
Once transformed, the new Brigade Combat Teams support a larger Army initiative to increase the number of combat and combat-support units available to support both current and future combat and homeland-defense missions. By increasing the total number of available active-component BCTs in the Army, units and - more importantly - Soldiers will have a few more months at home than they presently have, known as dwell time. Currently, the ratio is one year deployed time to sometimes less than one year at home station. Today's dwell-time pace cannot be sustained indefinitely by the Active Army. Increasing the number of available BCTs for the ready-force pool also helps to slow or reduce the amount of stress on the current force structure.
The specific Army posts affected by these plans are as follows:
* Impacting Fort Riley, Kan.:
-- 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, will pass its transition-team mission and resources to the 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division and convert to a Heavy Brigade Combat Team starting in April 2007. This conversion occurs 11 months earlier than planned. The Brigade Combat Team will also re-flag in September 2007 to become the 2nd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, thereby aligning all Fort Riley unit flags under the 1st Infantry Division's colors.
* Impacting Fort Hood, Texas and Fort Knox, Kentucky:
-- 3rd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division -- currently a brigade in name only; scheduled to stand up and form at Fort Knox, Ky., in 2008 - will convert to an Infantry Brigade Combat Team starting in April 2007, 17 months earlier than planned. However, because its facilities are not yet ready at Fort Knox, the Brigade Combat Team will form at Food Hood. It will train and prepare for deployment to combat at Fort Hood, return from combat to Fort Hood, and subsequently re-station to Fort Knox, its home base, in late Fiscal Year 2009.
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For more information, contact Lt. Col. Carl Ey, phone (703) 614-2487, with U.S. Army Public Affairs. "
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