1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry
The 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment was reactivated on June 8th, 2006, at the Conn Barracks Parade Field in Schweinfurt, Germany, as part of 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. As of June 2006, the 173rd Airborne BCT was being reorganized as part of the US Army's modularization process. This reactivation on June 8th was the first time the colors of the 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment had flown since the end of operations in WWII.
The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 91st Reconnaissance Squadron on August 6th, 1942. It was redesignated for the 91st Reconnaissance Battalion on May 25th, 1950. The insignia was redesignated for the 91st Armored Cavalry Reconnaissance Battalion on October 22nd, 1953. The insignia was redesignated for the 91st Cavalry Regiment, with the description and symbolism updated on Marc 1, 2006.
Not to be confused with the Army Air Force 91st Recon Squadron or the Army 91st Recon Troop, the 91st Recon Squadron completed numerous missions in North Africa during WWII while attached to various Infantry and Armored Divisions. The 91st Recon Squadron was a non-divisional unit and reported directly to the Army's II Corps throughout the war.
North Africa demonstrated that reconnaissance units required the capability to attack and defend as a natural extension of their reconnaissance and security missions. An example of a reconnaissance unit attacking independent of any reconnaissance or security mission is the attack executed by the 91st Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron (CRS) on 23 April 1943.
The 91st CRS was the only nondivisional cavalry reconnaissance unit deployed to North Africa. The unit, originally organized as the mechanized cavalry reconnaissance squadron of the 1st Cavalry Division, was the oldest and most experienced squadron size mechanized reconnaissance unit in the Army. It, unlike most of the mechanized cavalry organizations, was relatively unaffected by the changes which occurred in cavalry in 1942, and therefore was ready for overseas deployment.
