15th Brigade Support Battalion
"Gamblers"
15th Forward Support Battalion
On July 15, 2005, as part of the Army's transformation towards a modular force, the 15th Forward Support Battalion stood down from DISCOM and was stood up with the 2nd Brigade as the 15th Brigade Support Battalion.
The 15th Brigade Support Battalion has a long heritage of providing logistic support to the Army. For more than 75 years, the battalion has deployed around the world to participate in numerous campaigns.
The 15th Forward Support Battalion is the most decorated active support battalion in the U.S. Army. Constituted on March 23rd, 1925 as the 1st Medical Squadron, the battalion was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division and has supported it ever since. The distinctive insignia, coat-of-arms, and motto "Standing By" were adopted in July of 1928. On March 25th, 1949, the unit was redesignated as the 15th Medical Battalion.
With the reorganization the Army's logistic support structure, the battalion was redesignated as the 15th Forward Support Battalion on May 1st, 1987 to incorporate the new support doctrine of "fuel, arm and fix forward." For over 13 years, this concept has been the underpinning of flexible, responsive logistic support, enabling land forces to conduct continuous and effective combat operations on the AirLand Battlefield. With a multifunctional staff, a headquarters detachment and three diversified company-sized units, the Brigade Support Battalion performs four of the six tactical logistic functions (fueling, arming, fixing, and sustaining). With help from the Main Support Battalion and the Corps Support Command, the direct support logistics structure ensures that maneuver commanders can keep their units fixed, fueled, manned, moved, armed and sustained indefinitely.
In October of 1990, the Gamblers were called into action, deploying to Southwest Asia in support of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. On the 20th of October, 1991, the battalion provided critical logistical support to the "First Team's" 2nd Brigade when it launched the first ground strike into Iraq during Operations Knight Strike. In August of 1995, the Gamblers were again called to action for Operation Intrinsic Action in response to Iraqi aggression. Deploying with 48 hours notice, our battalion enabled the brigade to maintain its highest level of readiness before returning to Fort Hood and passing the mission to follow-on units.
In March of 1999, the 15th Forward Support Battalion relieved her sister battalion, the 115th Forward Support Battalion, as center of logistics operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina as part of the NATO Stabilization Force during Operation Joint Forge (SFOR 5). While in theater, the Gamblers served as the command and control element of 15th Logistics Task Force, working closely with augmentees from the 404th Aviation Support Battalion, the 27th Main Support Battalion, and the 13th Corps Support Command. During the critical period of the Brcko Decision and the unrelated NATO Air War against the Former Republic of Yugoslavia.
The mission of the 15th Brigade Support Battalion is to provide logistical support to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team.
The 15th Brigade Support Battalion is organized with three companies.
The Headquarters and Alpha Company consists of all battalion-level command and staff personnel, all battalion food service personnel, and a support operations section. Additionally, it is the supply and service company in the battalion and provides petroleum supply, ration support and general supply support to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team.
The Bravo Company is a maintenance company that conducts direct support repairs and services on equipment in the 2nd Brigade Combat Team. The company has the capability of repairing tracked and wheeled equipment, engineer equipment, fire control equipment, and tank turrets. Additionally, the service and recovery section provides metal working support and vehicle recovery support. The company also maintains a repair parts warehouse.
The Charlie Company is a medical company that has the mission of treating, holding and evacuating patients from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team.
In 2004 the 1st Cavalry Division's 15th Brigade Support Battalion, nicknamed "The Gamblers," had to control the area abutting Camp Victory North to the east to deny sanctuary from which to attack this division headquarters on the edge of Baghdad's international airport. The expedient move might have been to evict the 1,500 or so Iraqis living in the Victory North sector, headquarters for the 1st Cav's 2nd Brigade Combat team. The Gamblers' main job is providing logistics for the 1st Cavalry Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team, overseeing support functions such as the mayor's cell, mechanical repairs and medical care. McCarver said the Gamblers decided to take on force protection to free up as many war fighters as possible for combat.
