36th Engineer Group
The 36th Engineer Group (Combat) provides horizontal construction, logistics and medical support to Fort Benning, tenant units and satellite installations. The unit's day-to-day mission at Fort Benning includes supporting the Post ammunition supply point (ASP); transporting supplies and heavy equipment; and conducting topographic surveys, construction design and horizontal construction.
The 36th Engineer Group is charged with maintaining combat contingency mission readiness and support to the U. S. Army Infantry Center and School. Currently, more than 35 active, National Guard and Army Reserve units are aligned with the Group and its component units to meet a wide range of missions. More than 1,500 soldiers serving in some 100 different Military Occupational Specialities are required to accomplish mission focus and installation support. Combat readiness is maintained by realistic field training and readiness deployment exercises, including a large number of off-post and overseas deployments.
On order, elements of the Group deploy by land, sea and air, occupy assigned assembly areas, and provide combat support and combat service support. On orders, Group Headquarters assumes C2 of designated Engineer forces and provides mobility, countermobility, survivability and general engineering support. The units provides a deployable support element to the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, and combat support and combat service support to the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division (Mech). Individuals and units, also, deploy in support of ongoing stability and contingency operations and off-Post exercises.
The 36th Engineer Group (C) is a diversified command, consisting of one battalion, a field hospital and two separate companies. The battalion is the 13th Corps Support Battalion, which is comprised of a Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment and the 104th Transportation, 598th Maintenance and 608th Ordnance Companies. The 104th includes two detachments: the 361st Trailer Transfer Detachment and the 233rd Heavy Equipment Transport Platoon. The field hospital is the 14th Field Hospital, which consists of a cadre; approximately 350 PROFIS personnel round out the unit when it deploys. Separate companies include the Group Headquarters and Headquarters Company and the 63rd Engineer Company (Combat Support Equipment).
The Group's 1,300 Forces Command soldiers train hard, ready to meet any contingency while providing a wide range of support to the Infantry Center and Fort Benning. Units assigned to the Group at Fort Benning support the Infantry Center not only with Engineer skills but with other services to include ammunition handling, local and line haul transportation, direct support maintenance, and air and ground ambulance support.
In addition to building roads on Post, the 36th has supported the 24th Infantry Division at NTC and the Ranger Regiment at JRTC and participated in numerous training exercises from Fort Bragg to Fort Polk to Kuwait.
Fort Benning's 36th Engineer Group has been at the forefront of the Army's post-Cold War mission of providing aid. It has performed disaster relief during the Georgia Floods of 1994 and conducted peacekeeping missions during Operations CONTINUE HOPE in Somalia and UPHOLD DEMOCRACY in Haiti. Soldiers of the 36th Engineer Group deployed in support of the Operation Fuerte Apoyo in Nicaragua. On 22 November 1999, the 36th Engineer Group, Fort Benning, Georgia, deployed its lead elements into the country as part of the U.S. relief effort known as Operation Fuerte Apoyo (Strong Support). The 36th was the command and control headquarters for all U.S. forces deployed to Nicaragua.
The 36th Engineer Group has a long and distinguished record during both war and peace. The unit was formed over fifty years ago, and fought with distinction in World War II, the Korean War, and the Gulf War.
In 1991 DESERT STORM validated the Engineer Restructure Initiative (ERI), formerly known as E-Force. The concept called for the addition of an engineer regiment to the heavy division. Commander, 36th Engineer Group, served as the 24th Division Engineer. One combat engineer battalion was assigned to each maneuver brigade - 5th Eng Bn (1st Bde); 3rd Eng Bn (2nd Bde); 299th Eng Bn (197th Bde). During the rapid attack to the Euphrates, the battalions performed the critical task of identifying, marking, and improving over 500 kilometers of combat trails through the Division attack zone.
The 36th's proud history as one of the first Engineer units to train and fight using amphibious tactics is mirrored in the unit's distinctive insignia, a seahorse on a red and white shield, proclaiming the prowess demonstrated during its many amphibious landings made in Europe. The Group's colors carry twenty-two battle streamers, many earned in combat while reorganized as Infantry, including service at Anzio where, for fifty days, soldiers wearing the seahorse shoulder patch held seven miles of front lines and earned the distinction by the Germans as "The Little Seahorse Division". The unit earned nine battle streamers during the Korean War and, more recently, two streamers for its outstanding support during the Gulf War.
