2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment
On 15 January 2006, as part of the Army's transformation towards a modular force, the composition of the 2nd Battalion was changed.
The 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment is a rapid deployment Parachute Infantry Battalion in the 82d Airborne Division "America's Guard of Honor". Within 18 hours of notification, Task Force 2-505 PIR strategically deploys, conducts forcible entry parachute assault and secures key objectives for follow-on combat operations in support of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, the 82nd Airborne Division, and US National interests.
The Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) is an independent international peacekeeping organization established by the Arab Republic of Egypt and the State of Israel to monitor the security arrangements of their 1979 Treaty of Peace. The US Battalion (USBATT) monitors the Southern Sector, focused on the South Camp, with five CPs and seven OPs supplemented by vehicle patrols and day and night TOPs. Like Colombia and Fiji, the United States has provided an infantry battalion to the MFO since its commencement in 1982.
In contrast to the other battalions, the USBATT rotates as a unit every six months. The USBATT rotates as a battalion size task force every six months from among the Light Infantry Battalions throughout the US Army. The 1-32 Infantry, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, New York, assumed the USBATT mission in January 1999 from Task Force (TF) 2-1, 172d Infantry Brigade, Fort Wainwright, Alaska. The fiscal year started with the 1-502 Infantry from the 101st Airborne Division, in place until January 2000. In that month, Task Force 1-5 from the 25th Infantry Division (Light) took its post in the Southern Sector and served until it, in turn, was replaced by 2-505 Parachute Infantry Regiment from the 82nd Airborne Division last July. The 2-505 served in the MFO until January 2001.
After the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, LA (2005) units with the 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment helped in the effort to rebuild the city by conducting humanitarian missions and patrolling various parts of the city, including the French Quarter.
