1st Battalion-508 Parachute Infantry Regiment (Former 3- 504)
3rd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment
"Fury From the Sky "
On 15 January 2006, as part of the Army's transformation towards a modular force, the title and composition of the 1st Battalion was changed.
In September 1942, MAJ Roy E. Lindquist began planning the activation of the unit he was to command. On 20 October 1942, at Camp Blanding, Florida, the 508th was born. The primarily came from the 502nd Parachute Infantry and the 26th Infantry Division. By mid-December, the 508th Parachute Infantry reached full strength. In February 1943, the regiment adopted the “Red Devil” emblem and the battle cry “Diablo” as they moved to Fort Benning for parachute training. In March, the 508th was moved to Camp Mckall, North Carolina, were they trained until December.
On 28 December 1943, the regiment boarded the U.S. Army Transport James Parker and set out to join the convoy across the Atlantic for WWII. On 9 January 1944, the James Parker docked at Belfast, Ireland and the 508th commenced training throughout Great Britain. During Operation Overlord, the regiment was responsible for the Southwest portion of the 82nd Airborne Division sector in Normandy. Their primary targets were bridges over the Douve River, located in Brienville and Beuzeville-la-Bastille. Clouds and heavy anti-aircraft fire caused the formations to break up and many of the planes to stray off course. Despite these obstacles, 2,056 Red Devils jumped into Normandy on 6 June 1944. The paratroopers hit the ground, assembled into small groups, and started establishing themselves in the most strategic positions possible. The regiment focused on three particular targets: the bridges over the Mederet River at La Fiere and Chef-du-Pont, and Hill 30, a small knoll on the west bank of the Mederet. On 12 June 1944, the Red Devils returned to England after suffering 1,161 casualties out of 2,056 paratroopers.
At approximately 1330 hours on 17 September 1944, the Red Devils jumped into Holland as part of Operation Market Garden. Although initial resistance was light, heavy fighting followed for days. In November, the regiment returned to England for another rest, but soon found itself on 16 December 1944 in Ardennes. The 508th found itself against 12 German divisions in the famous “Battle of the Bulge.” On 29 January 1945, First Sergeant Leonard Funk earned the Medal of Honor for rescuing approximately 10 paratroopers from German capture by killing over 45 German soldiers and wounding the rest. As a result, President Harry Truman awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor to Leonard Funk.
The 508th returned home on 24 November 1946, and was later inactivated at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey. A Company was reactivated in April 1951 and by 1964, the 1st Battalion had been reformed and reactivated. On 20 April 1965, the Red Devils received a mission to restore peace and provide security to the Dominican Republic under Operation Power Pack. Despite slow progress and bitter fighting, the paratroopers succeeded and returned home to the U.S. in July.
With the outbreak of the TET offensive, the 508th was on the move again. On 15 February 1968, led by Colonel Alexander Bolling, the regiment began arriving in the Republic of Vietnam. The Red Devils played a major role in Operation Yorktown Victor and many others. The paratroopers served in Vietnam for over 22 months sacrificing 212 soldiers.
On 25 October 1983, U.S. Army Rangers jumped into Grenada to rescue American medical students. By the morning of the 27th, the Red Devils arrived to take part in Operation Urgen Fury. Within days, the People’s Republican Army had surrendered and Cuban and Soviet personnel on the island were expelled. The battalion remained as a peacekeeping force and returned on 11 November 1983 to Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
In January 1985, the Red Devils deployed again as a multi-national observer force in the Sinai Desert. For a six month period, the battalion served as part of an eleven nation force in accordance with the Camp David Treaty. Following the Sinai, the battalion was inactivated at Fort Bragg, North Carolina and relieved from assignment to the 82nd Airborne Division.
On 10 July 1987, the 1-508th was withdrawn from the Combat Arms Regimental System and became part of the 193rd Infantry Brigade (Light) in the Republic of Panama under the United States Army Regimental System. The 193rd Infantry had reorganized on 04 December 1986, with a reaffiliation of its two infantry battalions and a field artillery battalion. As a result, the 187th Infantry became the 1-508th Infantry, regimentally affiliated with Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
On 20 December 1989 at 1600 hours, the battalion received the executive order to put Operation Just Cause into effect. The battalion commander ordered the front gate of Fort Amador shut down. On 21 December 1989, the 1-508th, known as TF Devil, cleared the Amador Yacht Club, Amador Marina, La Boca, and Balboa Housing Area. After conducting a relief in place with the Rangers, TF DEVIL conducted numerous follow-on missions including perimeter security and acted as a QRF for any contingencies, which included conducting reconnaissance for possible weapons caches, mine fields, and other violations of the cease fire.
The 1-508th returned to active duty at Fort Kobbe, Panama until 1994. In compliance with provisions of the Panama Canal Treaty of 1977, which mandates U.S. Forces withdrawal from Panama by noon, 31 December 1999, the Red Devils officially inactivated on 15 October 1994.
On 27 April 1996, the Red Devils traveled to Italy and officially reactivated as the 1-508th Airborne Battalion Combat Team. The battalion participated in numerous training and contingency operations throughout the EUCOM Area of Responsibility including Kosovo, Tunisia, Hungary, Poland, Germany and many others. On 12 June 2000, the Red Devils became a part of the Sky Soldier team as the 173rd Airborne Brigade was reactivated in Vicenza, Italy.
On 26 March 2003, the battalion participated in the largest combat airborne operation since WWII as 447 Red Devils jumped into Bashur DZ in Northern Iraq as a part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. For 12 months, the 1st Battalion (Airborne) 508th Infantry conducted combat patrols and civil affairs engagements in Kirkuk, Al-Hawija, Al-Zaab, Taza/Layland, Daquq, and Tuz. Three Red Devils gave their lives during combat operations in Iraq.
On 26 May 2006, 1-508 PIR was reassigned to Ft Bragg, NC as a part of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.
