3:509th PIR

The 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment (3/509th PIR) traces its lineage to the original 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion, the first American airborne unit to see combat during World War II, jumping into North Africa in 1942. After distinguished service in Italy and Southern France, the unit was inactivated postwar, but its lineage was later assigned to the 509th Infantry Regiment. Reactivated in 2006 as the 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment (Airborne), the unit became part of the 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. Since then, 3/509th has deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, carrying on its legacy of airborne excellence and combat readiness.