As part of Exercise Test Drop in August 1952, the 406th Engineer Brigade constructed an airfield in the vicinity of Smith Lake on land acquired by Fort Bragg. The field originally known as Smith Lake Airfield.
In June 1952 the 6th Transportation Company (Helicopter) arrived with 21 Sikorsky H-19C Chickasaw and two Bell H-13 Sioux helicopters; it deployed to Korea in December 1952 as the first combat helicopter company.
In May 1953 Fort Bragg engineers completed final plans for an expanded field and started construction the next summer. In August 1954, the runway was repaved, aprons improved, and the floor was laid for field's first hangar.
On June 21, 1955, the airfield was renamed in honor of Warrant Officer Herbert W. Simmons, Jr., a pilot killed on November 3, 1953, when two H-29B helicopters collided near the field.
During the mid-1950s, the Helio U-10 Courier aircraft was tested at Simmons. Most of the Army's U-10s were stationed at Fort Bragg and in the Panama Canal Zone. The first U-10 from Fort Bragg is now in the Army Aviation Museum at Fort Rucker in Alabama.
Construction in 1956-1957 converted the field to a permanent army airfield, allowing transfer of air activities from overcrowded Pope Air Force Base to Simmons AAF. In 1957 the 82nd Aviation Company was formed at Simmons.
In the early 1960s Fort Bragg and Simmons played an important role in emerging air mobility. In December 1961 the 8th Transportation Company (Light Helicopter), departed Simmons AAF with their Piasecki H-21 helicopters for duty in Vietnam. The 8th and another unit, the 57th Transportation Company, were the first helicopter units to serve in Southeast Asia.
By 1965 Simmons comprised 23 permanent buildings, which remain in use. Fixed wing aircraft based at Simmons included the XVIII Airborne Corps and 82nd Airborne Division liaison planes, Grumman OV-1 Mohawk observation aircraft and the 4th ASTA (Aerial Surveillance Target Acquisition) attached to the 82nd Aviation Battalion.
During July 1965 the 116th Assault Helicopter Company formed at Simmons and trained for duty in Vietnam. The company departed for Vietnam in October 1965 and joined the 11th Combat Aviation Battalion there.
The 18th Aviation Brigade activated at Fort Bragg on July 1, 1966, formed from the 269th Aviation Battalion. Following seven months of training, the 269th departed for Vietnam in January 1967 where it served in the 12th Aviation Group.
By 1976 Simmons had 176 aircraft assigned and 375 flights operations a day. In 1983 the number grew to 298 aircraft. The 82nd Combat Aviation Battalion expanded in July 1979, acquiring the 119th and 129th Assault Helicopter Companies of the 269th Aviation Battalion. These two companies became A and B companies of the newly designated 82nd Combat Aviation Battalion. The battalion deployed to Grenada for Operation Urgent Fury in October 1983 and remained into 1984.
In the early 1980s there were 22 operating activities with total personnel strength of 2,134 and 298 assigned aircraft.
On August 17, 1987 the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 269th Aviation Battalion, reorganized and was redesignated as the 18th Aviation Brigade. The brigade served in the Persian Gulf, Panama, first Gulf War, and provided storm relief following Florida's Hurricane Andrew. On the first day of the Gulf War, February 24, 1991, the 18th Aviation Brigade airlifted troops and equipment into Iraq.
The 82nd Airborne Division is an airborne infantry division of the United States Army specializing in parachute assault operations into hostile areas with a U.S. Department of Defense mandate to be "on-call to fight any time, anywhere" at "the knife's edge of technology and readiness." Primarily based at Fort Liberty, North Carolina, the 82nd Airborne Division is part of the XVIII Airborne Corps. The 82nd Airborne Division is the U.S. Army's most strategically mobile division.
Hunter Army Airfield, located in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is a military airfield and subordinate installation to Fort Stewart located in Hinesville, Georgia.
The 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, originally the 505th Infantry Regiment, is an airborne infantry regiment of the United States Army, one of four infantry regiments of the 82nd Airborne Division of the United States Army, with a long and distinguished history.
Gray Army Airfield, also known as Gray AAF, is a military airfield located within Joint Base Lewis–McChord near Tacoma, in Pierce County, Washington, United States.
The 18th Aviation Brigade is an inactive aviation brigade of the United States Army. Its initial formation in 1987 drew upon the resources of the 269th Aviation Battalion, originally formed in 1966.
The 158th Aviation Regiment is an aviation regiment of the United States Army.
The 229th Aviation Regiment is an aviation unit of the United States Army.
The 12th Combat Aviation Brigade is a Combat Aviation Brigade of the United States Army. It was first organized as the 12th Aviation Group at Fort Moore, Georgia, on 18 June 1965.
In 2009, the United States and NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) coalition, along with Afghan National Army forces, continued military operations against the Taliban in Afghanistan. 2009 marks the eighth year of the War in Afghanistan, which began late in 2001. And 75th ranger regiment is also in Afghanistan as of 2018
The 110th Aviation Brigade, of the United States Army, is responsible for overseeing all initial entry flight training at the United States Army Aviation Center of Excellence in Fort Novosel, Alabama. The aviation brigade operates an aircraft fleet of over 500 helicopters across five airfields to train nearly 2000 Army aviators each year, earning the distinction of being acknowledged as the largest military helicopter training organization in the world. It consists of a Headquarters, an academics section, a night vision device section, four subordinate aviation battalions, and an Army Reserve Augmentation Brigade Headquarters:
Campbell Army Airfield is a military airport at Fort Campbell, which is located near Hopkinsville, a city in Christian County, Kentucky, United States.
The 16th Combat Aviation Brigade is a Combat Aviation Brigade of the United States Army. It is subordinate to 7th Infantry Division and I Corps and based at Gray Army Airfield part of Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM).
The 4th Aviation Regiment is an aviation regiment of the United States Army, tracing its history back to 1957.
The 159th Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB) formerly supported the 101st Airborne Division, and was stationed at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. While active, 159th CAB made the 101st Airborne Division the only US Army Division with two organic aviation brigades, and currently the 101st CAB is the only CAB supporting the unit at Fort Campbell. The 159th CAB was inactivated on 15 May 2015.
The 11th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade is a Combat Aviation Brigade in the United States Army Reserve. The unit's lineage can be traced to the prior lineage and insignia of the 11th Aviation Group which was last headquartered in Illesheim, Germany in 2005. It is one of two aviation brigades of Army Reserve Aviation Command. The brigade consists of a headquarters company, two Black Hawk assault battalions, and one fixed wing battalion. The brigade was activated in its current formation on 16 September 2016.
The 3rd Aviation Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army Aviation Branch. It operates the Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, and Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopter. It has been associated with the 3rd Infantry Division for some time.
The 82d Aviation Regiment, part of the U.S. Army, has three battalions and one separate company under the Combat Aviation Brigade, 82d Airborne Division. The brigade also has the 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment and the 122d Aviation Support Battalion. The lineages for the Combat Aviation Brigade, 82d Airborne Division and its subordinate units of the 82d Aviation Regiment, although often mistaken for one another, are separate.
The United States Army Pathfinder Course trains military personnel in the U.S. Army and its sister services to set up parachute drop zones and helicopter landing zones for airborne and air assault missions.
Forward Operating Base Shank is a former Forward operating base of the U.S. military, located in Logar Province of eastern Afghanistan, about 12 km south-east of the city of Baraki Barak. During Operation Enduring freedom, FOB Shank was one of the most heavily rocketed forward operating bases in Afghanistan. In 2014, the base was turned over to Afghan National Army, who established Camp Maiwand at the northern end of the FOB. American forces later returned and reoccupied the southern portion of the FOB, under the name Camp Dahlke.
The United States Army Special Operations Aviation Command (USASOAC) provides command and control, executive oversight, and resourcing of U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) aviation assets and units in support of national security objectives. USASOAC is responsible for service and component interface; training, doctrine, and proponency for Army Special Operations Aviation (SOA); system integration and fleet modernization; aviation resource management; material readiness; program management; and ASCC oversight. USASOAC was established 25 March 2011 consisting of 135 headquarters soldiers and subordinate units totaling more than 3,300 personnel, include the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), (160th SOAR (A)) which features 4 Aviation Battalions, the USASOC Flight Company, the Special Operations Aviation Training Battalion, the Systems Integration Management Office, and the Technology Application Projects Office. The first commander of USASOAC was Brig Gen. Kevin Mangum.
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