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The 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, is known as the Falcon Brigade. The Army Center of Military History recognizes “Falcons” as its official special designation. Its service combines airborne readiness with combat, advisory, and multinational training missions.
Brigade and Battalion Histories
The brigade is not the same organization as the entire 325th or 508th Infantry Regiment. Individual battalions of those regiments have served within the Falcon formation, alongside supporting units with their own lineages. Their relationships have changed over time.
During Operation Urgent Fury in 1983, 2nd Brigade elements were among the 82nd forces deployed to Grenada. The division's troops airlanded after Rangers secured Point Salines; the campaign should not be described as a Falcon Brigade combat parachute assault.
Advisory and Partner-Force Missions
Army coverage in 2017 identifies 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, under 2nd Brigade while supporting Operation Inherent Resolve. That documented assignment is separate from the earlier Operation Iraqi Freedom campaign.
In July–August 2024, paratroopers from 2-508 participated in HYDRA III in Colombia. The exercise combined airborne rehearsals, parachute operations, and work with Colombian counterparts, emphasizing the coordination required to operate with partner forces.
A Changing Formation
1st Squadron, 73rd Cavalry, served within the Falcon Brigade before its colors were cased at an inactivation ceremony on July 31, 2024, at Fort Bragg (Fort Liberty at the time). Its place in older brigade organizations remains part of Falcon history, but it should not appear in an undated current roster.
AAC's collection recognizes the brigade's veterans across these different organizational and operational periods.
Historical Sources
- Special Designations. U.S. Army Center of Military History. Official special designations; distinct from heraldic mottos and informal unit identities.
- The Development of Airfield Seizure Operations in the United States Army. Army University Press, Military Review, R. F. M. Williams, 2021. Distinguishes parachute assaults, airlanded reinforcements, and airfield-seizure operations in Grenada, Panama, and Iraq.
- 2nd Brigade, 82nd Airborne recons patrol base site for advise and assist mission. U.S. Army, Staff Sgt. Jason Hull, May 28, 2017. Identifies 2-508 and 2nd Brigade during Operation Inherent Resolve.
- US, Colombian armies enhance interoperability during airborne infiltration exercise HYDRA III 2024. U.S. Army South, August 1, 2024. Documents 2-508’s brigade affiliation and the July–August 2024 combined exercise.
- 1-73 Cavalry cases colors as part of inactivation ceremony. 82nd Airborne Division Public Affairs / DVIDS, July 31, 2024. The squadron’s Falcon Brigade association and its 2024 ceremony. Other deployment wording in this article is not adopted.
Airborne Apparel Company is proud to offer reproductions and original designs honoring this military heritage and the people who served.