| 187th Infantry Regiment | |
|---|---|
Coat Of Arms |
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| Active | 1943–present |
| Country | United States |
| Allegiance | Regular Army |
| Branch | Infantry |
| Garrison/HQ | Fort Campbell |
| Nickname | Rakkasans[1] |
| Motto | Ne Desit Virtus |
| Infantry Colors | Blue and White |
| Engagements | World War II Korean War Vietnam War War in Southwest Asia Afghanistan Campaign Iraq Campaign |
| Insignia | |
| Distinctive unit insignia | |
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| U.S. Infantry Regiments | |
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| Previous | Next |
| 186th Infantry Regiment | 188th Infantry Regiment |
The 187th Infantry Regiment (Rakkasans)[1] is a regiment of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) of the United States Army.
The regimental motto is the Latin "Ne Desit Virtus" ("Let Valor Not Fail"). The nickname "Rakkasans" is derived from the Japanese word for parachute. The name was given to the 187th during its tour in occupied Japan following World War II. When a translator dealing with local Japanese dignitaries was trying to explain what their unit was trained to do (and not knowing the Japanese word for "airborne soldiers") he used the phrase "falling down umbrella men", or rakkasan. Amused by the clumsy word, the locals began to call the troopers by that nickname; it soon stuck and became a point of pride for the unit.
Currently, the 1st Battalion - 187th Infantry and the 3rd Battalion - 187th Infantry are active in the 101st Airborne's 3rd Brigade Combat Team.
Slang term : Angels From Hell, For retired insignia.
Originally Constituted in World War II as the 187th Glider Infantry Regiment[3] on November 12, 1942, and activated on February 25, 1943 at Camp Mackall, North Carolina, A two battalion glider regiment assigned to the 11th Airborne Division, the men of the 187th trained both as glider and parachute troops. They moved to Camp Polk on 1944-01-09 for Glider training. The regiment Staged at Camp Stoneman, California on 1944-04-29, and Departed from the San Francisco Port of Embarkation on 1944-05-06.
The regiment arrived in New Guinea on 1944-05-29 and joined the New Guinea Campaign. The regiment departed New Guinea on 1944-11-11, and arrived on Leyte on 1944-11-18 to join the Leyte Campaign.
The Regiment left Leyte, and joined the Luzon Campaign by assaulting Nasugbu Point Luzon on 1945-01-31, blocking Japanese forces as part of the advance on Manila from the south. From then until April the 187th fought their way from Nichols Field, Fort McKinley, and Manila to Mount Macolod and Malepunyo.
In May the 187th moved into Lipa to refit, rebuild, and prepare for the invasion of Japan. At this time the 3rd Battalion was formed and the regiment was redesignated a para-glider regiment.
The regiment was attached to the Provost Marshal General, US Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) from 1945-06-01 through 1945-07-27 at Manila. The campaigns in the Philippines were declared completed on 1945-07-04, The regiment moved to Okinawa on 1945-08-12 for Occupation Duty. This is where the unit gained its name; Rakkasan, when it was the only unit to parachute onto Japanese soil at the time. Then with the war coming to an end on 1945-08-14, the regiment subsequently moved to Japan on 1945-08-30, and was alleged to be the first foreign ground combat unit to enter that nation.
In April 1949 the regiment returned to the United States and was stationed at what was then Camp Campbell, Kentucky. It was redesignated the 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment on 1949-06-30 and was part of the 11th Airborne Division.[3] In early 1950 the 187th participated in "Operation Swarmer," the largest peacetime airborne maneuver in history.
The 187th was selected as an airborne regimental combat team responding to the crisis in Korea. On 1 August 1950 the regiment became the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team (ARCT) when supporting units were added and deployed to Japan, arriving on 20 September 1950. The advance party of the Third Battalion of the Rakkasans was the first to arrive in Korea, arriving at Kimpo Airfield on 23 September. On 24 September, it was placed under the operational control of the First Marine Division, relieving the 2d Battalion of the 7th Marine Regiment, arriving almost a week after Douglas MacArthur's surprise landing at Inchon on 17 September 1950.
One month later, on 20 October 1950, the regiment made successful combat parachute assaults near the towns of Sukchon and Sunchon, North Korea as part of the Battle of Yongju. The published purpose of that drop was to capture members of the North Korean Government fleeing Pyongyang and also to free American POW's being moved from Pyongyang toward the Manchurian border. Neither objective was realized. Followed by battles at Suan, Wonju, Kaesong, Munsan-ni, and Inje.
The 187th led the second and last parachute assault in Korea on 23 March 1951. Under BG Thomas J. H. Trapnell, it redeployed to Japan on 26 June 1951 where it became a strategic reserve but returned to Korea on 24 May 1952 to assist in the suppression of the prisoner rebellion at the Koje-do POW camp (completed on 10 June). It once more returned to Japan on 18 October 1952 but made its final return to Korea on 22 June 1953. The unit returned the United States in July 1955 and, the following year, became part of the newly reactivated 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, KY.[3]
The 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team consisted of the following units: The following units were assigned by General Order 34 (Confidential) Headquarters 11th Airborne Division.
The following units were added on 23 August 1950 by General Order 41, 11th Airborne Division dated 22 August 1950.
The following units were attached on 26 August 1950 per General Order 42, Headquarters 11th Airborne Division dated 25 August 1950.
On 28 August 1950, Operations Order Number 1, IX Corps, the 2348th Quartermaster Air Packaging and Resupply Company was attached to the Command of Colonel Bowen, Sr.
Note: Many personnel from the 511PIR in the 11th Airborne Division were transferred to the 187th ARCT to bring it up to full strength for overseas deployment.[4]
During the Korean War, three members of the Regiment were awarded the Medal of Honor, Lester Hammond, Jr., Rodolfo P. Hernandez and Richard G. Wilson.
When the Pentomic concept that replaced regiments and battalions with battle groups was introduced in 1957, Companies A, B, and C of the 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment were redesignated as HHCs of the 1st, 2d, and 3d Airborne Battle Groups, 187th Infantry, respectively. The 1st ABG, 187th Inf was assigned to the 11th Airborne Division in Germany from 1 March 1957 to 1 July 1958, when the 11th was inactivated and reflagged as the 24th Infantry Division. During its assignment to the 24th it was involved in the Lebanon intervention. On 8 February 1959 it was relieved from the 24th, rotated back to the United States and was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, NC. Its colors were inactivated on 25 May 1964 and concurrently consolidated with the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry (constituted and activated 1 February 1964 at Fort Benning, Georgia, as an element of the 11th Air Assault Division, and the consolidated unit designated as the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry, an element of the 11th Air Assault Division (Test) at Fort Benning, GA. It was inactivated on 30 June 1965 when the 11th Air Assault Division and 2nd Infantry Division were combined to form the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile), during which time the elements of both the 11th and 2nd were reflagged with new designations.
The 2nd ABG, 187th Infantry remained assigned to the 101st Airborne Division and was inactivated on 1 February 1964 when the Army abandoned the Pentomic structure in favor of brigades and battalions.
The 3rd ABG, 187th Infantry was not active during the Pentomic era. The colors were redesignated on 1 February 1963 as HHC, 3d Battalion, 187th Infantry, assigned to the 11th Air Assault Division (Test) at Fort Benning, GA, and activated on 7 February 1963. It was relieved from the 11th on 1 February 1964 and the colors were assigned to the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, KY. There was no transfer of troops or equipment; instead, the existing 3-187th at Fort Benning was reflagged as 1-187th.
| Administrative Headquarters |
Forward Headquarters |
Arrival | Major Command |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/187th Infantry Regiment arrived in Vietnam on 1967-12-16 | |||
| Phuoc Vinh | Phuoc Vinh | December, 1967 | 3/101 Airborne Division |
| Dak To | June, 1968 | ||
| Cu Chi | July, 1968 | ||
| Long Binh | October, 1968 | 3/101 Airborne Division (Airmobile) | |
| Bien Hoa | Phong Dien | November, 1968 | |
| Ta Bat | July, 1969 | ||
| A Shau Valley | Berchtesgaden Fire Support Base | August, 1969 | |
| Bien Hoa | Ta Bat | September, 1969 | |
| Phong Dien | October, 1969 | ||
| Mai Loc | November, 1969 | ||
| Phong Dien | Phong Dien | December, 1969 | |
| Huế | Phu Bai | September, 1970 | |
| Camp Carroll | Camp Carroll | March, 1971 | |
| April, 1971 | 1/5th Infantry Division (Mechanized) | ||
| Huế | Phu Bai | May, 1971 | 3/101st Airborne Division (Airmobile) |
| August, 1971 | US Army Forces, Military Region 2 | ||
| November, 1971 | 3/101st Airborne Division (Airmobile) | ||
| 3/187th Infantry Regiment departed Vietnam on 1971-12-10 | |||
The 3/187th Inf. exploits from May 10 - May 20, 1969 on hill 937 in the A Shau Valley were later put on the silver screen in 1987 using the hills nickname Hamburger Hill as the title. For this action the Unit received the Presidential Unit Citation for the valor shown over 11 assaults on the hill.
When the 101st returned from Viet Nam, most of its personnel in the rank of staff sergeant and below were discharged upon arrival at Oakland, California, or Seattle, Washington. What remained largely consisted of a command group of staff officers and senior NCOs. The division settled into buildings recently vacated by the "U.S. Army Training Center, Fort Campbell, Kentucky."
When the 101st was rebuilt, the separate 173rd Airborne Brigade was inactivated and its assets used to form the 3rd Brigade as an Airborne unit consisting of 1-503rd INF, 2-503rd INF, and 3-187th INF. The partial Airborne capability also extended to supporting units of the division (i.e., one company of three in a supporting unit was Airborne). This lasted only until April 1974, when jump status for the 3rd Brigade was terminated, and the Airmobile Badge (renamed Air Assault Badge later that year) was introduced.
In October 1983 the 1st, 2d, and 4th Battalions, 187th Infantry, were activated, and on November 21, 1984 a 5th Battalion was activated. The 1st and 2nd Battalions were assigned to the 193rd Infantry Brigade in Panama and the 3rd, 4th and 5th were assigned to the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) at Fort Campbell. The 4th and 5th were created by reflagging the existing 1-503rd and 2-503rd, the colors of which were soon reactivated in Korea within the 2nd Infantry Division. The Panama-based 2-187th included one Airborne company (Moatengators) within the battalion, and later jump status was expanded to the entire battalion. 2/187th was the last Airborne Battalion of the 187th. During a realignment of the United States Army's combat forces in 1987 the 1st and 2d Battalions were inactivated and the 5th and 4th Battalions were reflagged as the 1st and 2d Battalions, respectively. Upon moving to the 101st, the 187th became Air Assault.
From September 1988 through March 1989, 1st Battalion reorganized as Task Force 1-187 and deployed to the Sinai Desert, Egypt as the United States' contingent of the Multinational Force and Observers peacekeeping mission .
In September 1990 the Rakkasans were deployed to Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield. In February 1991 two companies from the 1st Battalion captured 434 Iraqi soldiers during the air assault into Objective Weber and on February 25 the Rakkasans conducted the deepest and largest air assault operation in history. Striking 155 miles (249 km) behind enemy lines into the Euphrates river valley, the assault led to the timely defeat of Iraqi forces and ensured a total allied victory. The unit moved farther north than any other unit during Operation Desert Storm.
From 1991 to 1993 the 3/187 was commanded by Lt Colonel David H. Petraeus who renamed the battalion the Iron Rakkasans after the physical training test he created. CSM Donald Purdy was the Battalion Sergeant Major during this time. Spc James Paterson was known for being the best CSM Purdy impersonator and actually performed the impersonation for CSM Purdy.
In 1995 The Iron Rakkasans was redesignated as Task Force 3-187 and deployed to the Sinai Peninsula in July 1995. The Iron Rakassans were responsible for the southern portion of Zone C and based at South Camp, Sharm el Shiek, Egypt. During the deployment, they were instrumental in the recovery of casualties from an accident near one of the sector control centers and evacuating them to hospitals utilizing Multinational Forces Helicopters. On November 23, 1995, a 7.1 earthquake hit the Sinai Peninsula. Again the Iron Rakkasans performed road recon and rescue operations throughout the peninsula. For the Iron Rakkasans actions during their deployment, they earned a Presidential Unit Citation for their actions during the deployment. The unit returned to the United States in January 1996.
In early 2002 the Rakkasans deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom where they most notably participated in Operation Anaconda in the eastern Shah-i-Khot region. The 2nd Battalion (Raider Rakkasans) as well as C and D company 1st Battalion(Leader Rakkasan) were awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for combat valor during this period.
In 2003, the Rakkasans, commanded by Colonel Mike Linnington, were deployed to Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry was temporarily attached to the 3rd Infantry Division and accompanied them during the push into Baghdad. While attached to the 3rd Infantry Division, 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry became one of the first units to invade Baghdad, for this feat the 3rd Battalion (Iron Rakkasans) were awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. Before moving north to Ninevah province, the Rakkasans conducted extensive stability and support operations in Baghdad's southeast sector. The Rakkasans conducted the majority of their operations in the northwest of Ninevah province with the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry focusing efforts around Tallafar, Zumar, and Avgani. The 2nd Battalion, 187th Infantry worked primarily around Sinjar and Biaj, and the 3rd Battalion was headquartered in Rabia.
They returned to Fort Campbell in 2004 and redeployed to Iraq again in the fall of 2005. During their second tour in Iraq, they focused operations in Salah ad Din province, with the 3rd Battalion, and 1/33 Cavalry regiment temporarily detached for operations in Baghdad and a Ninevah province. The brigade commander was Colonel Michael D. Steele. It was during this deployment that the brigade conducted "Operation Swarmer", one of the largest combat operations in Iraq since the initial invasion. Rakkasans worked with Iraqi Army soldiers throughout Salah ad Din province defeating insurgents, Al Qaeda cells, and uncovering numerous caches of weapons and explosives.[8]
In October 2007 the Rakkasans again deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom 07-09 led by brigade commander Col. Dominic Caraccilo. The brigade was headquartered at Camp Striker near Baghdad with an area of operation that extended from the Euphrates river in the west to the Tigris in the east and ran south from Baghdad to Al-Mahmudiyah. This area included the Triangle of Death which had seen significant violence in the war and was often a staging area for the insurgency. As a unit following the surge, the Rakkasans manned combat outposts throughout the rural areas to provide local security for the populace, partner with Iraqi defense and police forces, and facilitate numerous economic and developmental projects. When the Rakkasans redeployed to Fort, Campbell at the end of their tour in November 2008, they did not transfer authority to an incoming U.S. military unit. Instead, the area became the responsibility of the partnered Iraqi forces marking a significant step in the transference of security and authority from coalition forces to the Iraqis.[9][10]
The "Rakkasans" are portrayed in the 1987 movie Hamburger Hill. The 187th AIR was also portrayed in the 2003 movie "Big Fish"
This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Army Center of Military History document "187th Infantry Lineage and Honors".