It's Official: Army's newest civil affairs unit recognized during ceremony at Fort Hood

FORT HOOD, Texas - Amid the furl and pop of Old Glory, the United States Army recognized the first civil affairs brigade assigned to Forces Command during a ceremony Sept. 30 at III Corps Headquarters.

The 85th Civil Affairs Brigade, accompanied by the 81st Civil Affairs Battalion, uncased their colors marking the beginning of a new era for the Army, FORSCOM and Fort Hood.

"The civil affairs Soldier is a unique and highly-valuable force multiplier to all commanders," Lt. Gen. Donald M. Campbell, Jr., commander, Fort Hood and III Corps, said during his address. "The establishment of a second active duty civil affairs brigade is a testament to your value to our Army and our Nation."

The brigade will be made up of five regionally aligned battalions throughout the country, each assigned to a major command. The 81st Civil Affairs Bn., will be located here and serve Southern Command.

An official assigned to the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne) said the addition of the new brigade increases the overall operational capability and global coverage for the civil affairs community. Having more units improves upon our ability to legitimize and support local national government entities while deployed.

The wide ranging skills of civil affairs teams are highly sought after within deployed environments and are often viewed as a precision type tool.

"The government, economics and commerce, public facilities, special functions and linguistic teams within your units all provide critical capabilities that not only allow our combat forces to conduct full spectrum operations, but are instrumental in building the foundations of Iraq and Afghanistan to be self sufficient," Campbell said.

Often misunderstood, the mission of civil affairs Soldiers is one requiring a varied skill set. They are asked to engage local government leaders to facilitate their needs while supporting the requirements of commanders and allowing strategic maneuverability.

Newly-assigned Soldiers within the civil affairs community undergo extensive training. According to the Special Operations Recruiting Battalion website, civil affairs training can take nearly one year for some Soldiers when including Airborne and language schools.

With units to activate at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., Fort Stewart, Ga., and Fort Bragg, N.C., the 85th Civil Affairs Bde., expects to complete the growth process by 2013.