| 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team | |
|---|---|
 Shoulder sleeve insignia | |
| Country |  |
| Branch |  |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Brigade |
| Nickname(s) | Jersey Blues (Special Designation) [1] |
The 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team ("Jersey Blues" [1] ) was an infantry brigade combat team of the United States Army National Guard of New Jersey. It was headquartered at the Lawrenceville Armory.
The 50th Brigade Combat Team was the major unit of the New Jersey Army National Guard. The headquarters was located in Lawrenceville, NJ. The 50th Brigade Combat Team had two light infantry battalions, one field artillery battalion, one cavalry squadron, a special troops battalion, two MP companies, and a support battalion. Its nickname "Jersey Blues" dates back to the 17th century with the earliest units serving in both the French and Indian War (see book titled 'Colonial Tribulations') and Rev. War.
The brigade's lineage can be traced back to several different units starting with the 50th Armored Division. This unit was disbanded On 1 September 1993 and the division was reduced to the 50th Armored Brigade which was subordinate unit to the 42nd Infantry Division. [2] This unit consisted of the 2d Battalion, 102d Armor; the 5th Squadron, 117th Cavalry; the 113th Infantry; the 114th Infantry; the 3d Battalion, 112th Field Artillery; and the 250th Support Battalion. All units of the 50th Brigade were equipped with dated equipment such as M1IP Abrams main battle tanks, M113A1 armored personnel carriers and M109A5 self-propelled guns. The 50th Armored Brigade existed up until 2007–2008 when the brigade was upgraded and converted to a brigade combat team under the Army's new modularity program.
The 50th Armored Brigade took part in several homeland security missions after 11 September 2001. It also participated in several Global War On Terror missions before converting in 2008. The 1st Battalion, 114th Infantry took part in the Sinai Multi-National Force and Observers (MFO) Security Mission and was deployed for six months in 2004. The 2d Battalion, 102d Armor and the 2d Battalion, 113th Infantry deployed to Guantanamo Bay Cuba and served with the Joint Detention Operations Group as part of JTF-JDOG V. Battery B, 3d Battalion, 112th Field Artillery (augmented by soldiers from the 5th Squadron, 117th Cavalry) deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom II as an "In Lieu Of" Military Police Company. Batteries A and C deployed to Germany in 2004 as provisional Military Police companies. In October 2005 elements of the brigade were activated for Operation Hurricane Katrina relief in the city of New Orleans. The 2d Battalion, 102d Armor and the 1st Battalion, 114th Infantry were called to active duty and the combined unit shipped to Louisiana to provide security for FEMA. The brigade arrived at Belle Chase Naval Air Station and from there was forward deployed to the New Orleans Convention Center. From there the elements of the 42nd Infantry Division sent teams to various parts of the city on various missions of security ranging from roving patrol to security escort for the New Orleans Fire Department and various other relief agencies. In 2006, and again in 2007, the brigade sent composite teams from across its component units as embedded trainers and advisors for the Afghan National Army.
The force structure of the Brigade was changed in 2008 when the conversion to the 50th IBCT occurred. The new force structure now consists of the 1st Squadron, 102nd Cavalry Regiment, the 1st Battalion (Light), 114th Infantry Regiment, the 2nd Battalion (Light), 113th Infantry Regiment, the 3d Battalion, 112th Field Artillery Regiment, the Special Troops Battalion and the 250th Brigade Support Battalion. Equipment was mostly brought up to current Army standards and all heavy assets were given up.
In June 2008, 26 company-sized elements of the 50th IBCT were mobilized and trained at Fort Bliss, Texas, before being separately deployed to Iraq for the 2008–2009 rotation of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). The deployment of these 50th IBCT elements brought the total number of NJ National Guard Soldiers sent to Iraq and Afghanistan to over 3,200. The 50th IBCT units were mobilized for one year, including stateside training and “boots on the ground” in theater. The 50th IBCT units conducted a variety of important missions in Iraq. Pre-mobilization training began in 2007 and took place in New Jersey and Fort Indian Town Gap, Pennsylvania, with further OIF-specific preparations conducted at Fort Bliss, TX. Originally slated to deploy to Iraq in 2010, the 50th IBCT units deployed earlier to compensate for the changes needed to comply with new Department of Defense (DoD) policies. Earlier in 2007, the DoD had reduced the amount of time units spend overseas in a combat theater, which in turn shifted mobilization schedules and required earlier deployments than anticipated. The units of the 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team were welcomed home by family and friends with a parade through Trenton, NJ on 12 June 2009, after almost a year-long tour of Iraq. The brigade units, led by their commander, Colonel Steve Ferrari, were welcomed by Governor Jon Corzine.
The force structure of the Brigade was changed again in 2015, in accordance with the Army's latest Modified Table of Organization and Equipment (MTOE) for IBCTs. The new force structure consisted of a third infantry battalion, the 1st Battalion, 181st Infantry Regiment headquartered in Worcester, Massachusetts. Additionally, the 50th Brigade Special Troops Battalion was converted to a Brigade Engineer Battalion (BEB), designated as the 104th BEB.
On 15 June 2017, the 50th IBCT was reflagged as the 44th IBCT.
The 3rd Infantry Division is a combined arms and mechanized infantry division of the United States Army based at Fort Stewart, Georgia. It is a direct subordinate unit of the XVIII Airborne Corps and U.S. Army Forces Command. Its current organization includes one Infantry Brigade Combat Team and two armored brigade combat teams, one aviation brigade, a division artillery and support elements. The division has a distinguished history, having seen active service in both World War I and World War II.
The 1st Armored Division, nicknamed "Old Ironsides," is a combined arms division of the United States Army. The division is part of III Corps, with its base of operations in Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. It was the first armored division of the United States' Army to see battle in World War II.
The 36th Infantry Division ("Arrowhead"), also known as the "Panther Division", "Lone Star Division", "The Texas Army", or the "T-patchers", is an infantry division of the United States Army and part of the Texas Army National Guard. It was organized during World War I from units of the Texas and Oklahoma National Guard. It was reactivated for service for World War II 25 November 1940, was sent to the European Theater of Operations in April 1943, and returned to the Texas Army National Guard in December 1945.
The 42nd Infantry Division (42ID) ("Rainbow") is a division of the United States Army National Guard. The 42nd Infantry Division has served in World War I, World War II and the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT). The division is currently headquartered at the Glenmore Road Armory in Troy, New York.
The 34th Infantry Division is an infantry division of the United States Army, part of the National Guard, that participated in World War I, World War II and multiple current conflicts. It was the first American division deployed to Europe in World War II, where it fought with great distinction in the Italian Campaign.
The New Jersey Army National Guard consists of over 8,000 Guardsmen. The New Jersey Guard is currently engaged in multiple worldwide and homeland missions. Units have deployed to Iraq, Guantanamo Bay, Afghanistan, Germany, Kosovo, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Egypt. The Guard has also deployed to help with the recovery from Hurricane Irma in Texas and the U.S. Virgin Islands, Hurricane Maria in Florida and Puerto Rico, and Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.
Below is an estimated list of the major units deployed within the Multi-National Force – Iraq and other United States military units that were operating in Iraq under the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) in 2009, during the Iraq War.
The Georgia Army National Guard is the Army National Guard component of the Georgia National Guard, administratively part of the Georgia Department of Defense. It consists of more than 11,100 citizen-soldiers training in more than 79 hometown armories and regional facilities across the state. Georgia’s Army Guard is the eighth largest in the nation and includes combat, combat support and combat service support units.
The 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Buckeye) is an infantry brigade combat team of the United States Army National Guard with the brigade headquarters and four battalions stationed throughout Ohio and a battalion and cavalry squadron stationed in Michigan. The 37th IBCT traces its lineage and honors back to the 37th Infantry Division.
The 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division is a combined arms armored brigade of the 1st Cavalry Division. Its major equipment includes M1A2SEP Tanks, M2A3 & M3A3 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, M109A6 Paladin howitzers, and M1114 up-armored Humvees.
The 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Mountain) is an Army National Guard light infantry brigade headquartered in Vermont and is subordinate to the 10th Mountain Division, as part of the U.S. Army's Associated Units pilot. It was reorganized from an armored brigade into an Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) as part of the United States Army's transformation for the 21st century. The 86th IBCT utilizes the Army Mountain Warfare School, co-located at Ethan Allen Firing Range in Jericho, Vermont, to train in individual military mountaineering skills so the entire brigade can be skilled in such warfare. This large conventional unit level mountain warfare capability was lost when the 10th Mountain Division inactivated after World War II. This left the 86th IBCT as the only mountain warfare unit in the military and those trained in mountain warfare capabilities to individual soldiers who graduated from Ranger School, the mountain warfare school and the Special Forces Advanced Mountain Operations School, and the Army Mountain Warfare School instead of entire units that specialized in such tactics; that is until "The Vermont Brigade" configured itself to be such a unit.
The 82nd Cavalry Regiment is a parent regiment in the United States Army National Guard. It is represented in the Oregon Army National Guard by the 1st Squadron, 82nd Cavalry, part of the 81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team.
The 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is a modular infantry brigade of the Georgia Army National Guard. One of the oldest units in U.S. Army history, the lineage of the 48th Infantry Brigade can be traced back to 1825. It is one of few units in the US military that also saw service as a unit of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. Today, the 48th IBCT is part of the U.S. Army's "Associated Units" program where it's aligned under the 3rd Infantry Division, a combined arms combat maneuver unit of the Regular Army.
The 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is a modular infantry brigade of the United States Army National Guard of Indiana. It is headquartered in Lawrence Readiness Training Center, on the grounds of Fort Benjamin Harrison.
The 1st Squadron, 108th Cavalry Regiment is a Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Target Acquisition squadron of the 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Georgia Army National Guard. 1st Squadron provides the 48th IBCT both mounted and dismounted reconnaissance capabilities. Prior to 2007, the unit was designated as the 1st Battalion, 108th Armor Regiment.
The 151st Cavalry Regiment was a United States Army cavalry regiment represented in the Arkansas Army National Guard by 1st Squadron, 151st Cavalry Regiment, headquartered in Warren, Arkansas, an element of the 39th Infantry Brigade Combat Team.
The 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team is the largest formation of the Idaho Army National Guard. It is headquartered at Gowen Field, Boise, Idaho. It has been reorganized into an Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) but remains the only unit to be designated a "Cavalry Brigade Combat Team" by special appointment of the US Army. The 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team has units located throughout Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Nevada. It was reorganized into a heavy armor brigade in 1989. Often referred to as the Snake River Brigade and formerly known as the 116th Armored Cavalry Regiment, the unit includes about 3,000 citizen-soldiers from Idaho.
The 102nd Cavalry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army first established in 1913 and which saw service in World War II.
The 56th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is a unit of the Texas Army National Guard and subordinate to the 36th Infantry Division.
The 44th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is an infantry brigade combat team of the United States Army National Guard of New Jersey. It is headquartered at the Lawrenceville Armory in the Lawrenceville section of Lawrence Township in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States.
