FORT CAMPBELL, Ky – The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), uncased their unit colors during a ceremony in front of Division Headquarters April 28, 2023.

The uncasing of the colors marked the formal conclusion of the Division Headquarters’ and 2nd Brigade Combat Team’s deployment in support of Operation Assure Deter and Reinforce and their return to Fort Campbell.

The 101st was deployed to multiple NATO countries in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The division’s area of operations included Poland, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Greece, where Screaming Eagle Soldiers worked to build an infrastructure capable of supporting continued operations of NATO and U.S. armed forces.

This was the first time the 101st has deployed to Europe in an operational fashion since World War II.

Maj. Gen. JP McGee, commanding general of the 101st, addressed the ceremony’s attendees to deliver his thoughts about the deployment.

“In the three tours that I’ve had here with the 101st, I have never seen this division do so much, so well,” he said. “It has been a period of exceptional activity, but also exceptional accomplishments.”

McGee remarked that the purpose of the deployment was to defend the freedom that the 101st fought to establish when it began the campaign to liberate Europe in June of 1944, and that that work is remembered by many European citizens to this day.

“The patch that we wear means something in Europe,” said McGee “The patch that we wear is unique and special on that continent, and it was recognized time and time again – not just by the military, but by random people you would meet in all sorts of locations.”

He also highlighted that the area of operations covered by the division spanned over 240,000 square miles and supported five allied nations.

The uncasing of the colors marks the close of Divisions Headquarters and 2BCT’s time working with our NATO partners and the beginning of their relationship with 1st Brigade Combat Team, who will be replacing those units in the European theater.