18th Airborne Corps - Definition and Overview

Patch of the XVIII Airborne Corps.

The XVIII Airborne Corps is the corps of the United States Army designed for rapid deployment anywhere in the world. As of 2004, it consists of approximately 88,000 soldiers in four divisions.

Its headquarters are at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The corps consists of the following units:

• 3rd Infantry Division
• 10th Mountain Division
• 82nd Airborne Division
• 101st Airborne Division
• XVIII Airborne Corps Artillery
• 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment
• 18th Aviation Brigade
• 20th Engineer Brigade
• additional smaller units

In addition, it is "aligned" with several divisions of the U.S. National Guard.

History

The corps was first activated as the II Armored Corps at Camp Polk in Louisiana, 17 January 1942, then redesignated as XVIII Corps 9 October 1943, and became the Airborne Corps on 25 August 1944, as part of the preparation for Operation Market Garden. General Matthew B. Ridgway commanded the corps, which then consisted of the 82nd Airborne Division and the 101st Airborne Division.

The corps has participated in a number of operations since then:

• Operation Power Pack - Dominican Republic, 1965
• Operation Urgent Fury - Grenada, 1983
• Operation Just Cause - Panama, 1989
• Operation Desert Shield - Saudi Arabia, 1990-1991
• Operation Desert Storm - Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq, 1991
• Operation Enduring Freedom - Afghanistan, 2002-present

External links

• XVIII Airborne Corps Home Page (http://www.bragg.army.mil/18abn/)
• Global Security info on XVIII Airborne (http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/army/xviii-corps.htm)