1st Battalion, 33rd Armored Regiment

The Army's first two Interim Brigade Combat Teams [IBCT] -- 3rd Brigade of the 2nd ID and 1st Brigade of the 25th ID, both stationed at Fort Lewis - started the transition to IBCTs in 1999. They are scheduled to finish the process in fiscal year 2003 and 2004, respectively. As of July 2001 discussions were underway with the manufacturer of the Interim Armored Vehicle to accelerate fielding of the vehicles to 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, and 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division.

1st Battalion, 33rd Armor deployed in May 2001 in preparation for a rotation to the Joint Readiness Training Center, Fort Polk, La., with the 25th Infantry Division (Light) in December. Joining 1st Bn., 33rd Armor, at Yakima Training Center [YTC] were attachments from 25th Forward Support Battalion and 593rd Corps Support Group. Training at YTC gives tank crews an opportunity to polish skills that get rusty on while in garrison. The tank companies honed their war fighting skills and tested themselves in a capstone event called Tank Table VIII. In this event, individual crews used all of the tank's weapons systems to engage and destroy troop and vehicle targets between the ranges of 350 to 2,400 meters. There are 10 series of engagements, which are conducted during both the day and night.

Headquarters and Headquarters Company mission is to deploy by air and sea, draws or downloads equipment, occupies a designated assembly area and prepares for combat. On order, conducts combat service support of the Task Force's offensive and defensive operations. Headquarters and Headquarters Company provides command, control and combat support for the four tank companies in the battalion. HHC consists of the Battalion Commander and staff, Maintenance, Medics, Mortars, Scouts, Support, Commo and DFAC personnel. HHC supports every battalion mission, every day.

Only one battalion of the 33rd Armored Regiment is an active component of the US Military today, the 1-33 Armor based at Fort Lewis, Washington. The 1st Battalion, 33rd Armor Regiment was activated 15 April 1941 at Camp Beauregard, Louisiana. The unit went through a rigorous train-up period in September 1943 and then set sail for action in Europe. Once on the ground, the 33rd Regiment became the "Sunday Punch" in the 3rd Armored Division's famous drive across the continent. The unit moved so fast across France to the Falaise-Argentan Gap that tank commanders often received maps of terrain that had been crossed several days prior. There were no detailed plans, no briefings, and no objective short of Berlin.

Slowed only by lack of fuel and supplies, the unit fought at a furious tempo. As one of the spearhead units, the 1st Battalion had the honor of being the first American force to capture a German town -- Roentgen. On 16 November 1944, 1-33 Armor was ordered to seize the towns of Hasenrath and Scherpenseel. The Battalion Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Mills, was killed while directing the fight, but 1-33 fought on to victory; the unit was later accorded the great honor of receiving a Distinguished Unit Citation for its heroic performance and LTC Mills was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. The 1st Battalion continued its assault across Germany, eventually halting at Dessau on the Elbe River.

After World War II, the battalion went through a series of deactivations and reactivations. In March of 1995, the 1st Battalion, 33rd Armor Regiment was reactivated at Fort Lewis, Washington as part of the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. The soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 33rd Armor Regiment have most recently carried on the "Men of War" tradition preparing for battle at Yakima Training Center, the Joint Readiness Training Center, and the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California.