1-227th ARB

[vTF-77 Command]

 

1-227th ARB

In the early 1960s, as the U.S. Army explored new ways to wage war, a bold experiment took flight at Fort Benning, Georgia. On February 1, 1963, Company A, 227th Assault Helicopter Battalion, was born within the 11th Air Assault Division, a testbed for the airmobile concept. These pioneers, equipped with UH-1 Hueys, were tasked with mastering helicopter warfare, ferrying troops into battle with speed and precision. By July 1965, the unit became Company A, 227th Aviation Battalion, assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division, and soon shipped out to Vietnam. Over seven grueling years, they flew through the A Shau Valley and Pleiku, braving enemy fire to deliver soldiers and supplies. Their Hueys, roaring over jungles, became lifelines, earning two Presidential Unit Citations and two Valorous Unit Awards for valor.

After Vietnam, the unit, now the 227th Aviation Battalion, returned to Fort Hood, Texas, only to be inactivated in 1974, their rotors stilled. A brief revival from 1978 to 1983 hinted at their resilience, but it was in 1987 that their true rebirth came. Redesignated the 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, they became the Army’s first divisional Apache Attack Helicopter Battalion, wielding the fearsome AH-64 Apache. Nicknamed “First Attack,” a nod to the 1st Cavalry’s storied “First Team” legacy—first into Manila in 1945, Tokyo, and Pyongyang—the battalion trained relentlessly, their Apaches a new breed of hunter.

In 1990, the desert called. Deployed to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, for Operation Desert Shield, 1-227th postured for war. On February 25, 1991, as Operation Desert Storm erupted, they led a raid, spearheading the 1st Cavalry Division’s deception plan to outfox Iraqi forces. Their Apaches struck hard, cutting off a retreating Republican Guard division at Basra, their Hellfire missiles lighting up the night. Returning to Fort Hood in March, they stood taller, battle-tested.

The late 1990s brought a leap forward. On June 2, 1998, 1-227th became the first Army battalion to field the AH-64D Apache Longbow, a digital predator capable of annihilating entire enemy divisions. Under Lt. Col. Michael Riley, they honed this lethal edge with the 21st Cavalry Brigade, redefining attack aviation. In 2003, the battalion, led by Lt. Col. Dan Ball, roared into Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom. On March 24, their Longbows clashed with the Republican Guard’s Medina Division near Karbala, 60 miles south of Baghdad. The battle was fierce—most Apaches took heavy damage, one crashed, its

pilots captured but later rescued by Marines. Despite the scars, 1-227th’s resolve held firm.

Reorganized in 2005 as part of the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, the battalion, now the 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, embraced a modular structure. In 2011, they faced Afghanistan’s rugged Paktika Province, deploying to FOB Sharana after high-altitude training at Fort Carson. Their Apaches flew full-spectrum missions across Regional Command East, and in July, one became the first AH-64D to log 10,000 flight hours, a historic milestone. By June 2012, under Lt. Col. Phillip Baker, they returned to Fort Hood, shifting to an Apache-pure attack role, readying for future fights.

Through the years, 1-227th’s “First Attack” ethos shone in exercises like Dynamic Front 18, where their maintainers, like Spc. Craig Gallegos and Sgt. Avery McMahon, kept Apaches armed and ready. Based at Fort Cavazos (formerly Fort Hood), the battalion’s 600-plus soldiers and AH-64Ds remain a cornerstone of the 1st Cavalry Division. From Vietnam’s Hueys to Desert Storm’s raids, from Longbow’s digital dawn to Afghanistan’s peaks, the 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, has written a saga of courage and innovation, their Apaches ever poised to strike first.

 

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