FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FORT HOOD, Texas – The 1st Cavalry Division reactivated its engineer brigade during a ceremony Oct. 22 at Fort Hood, restoring a division-level engineer capability to the First Team for the first time in more than two decades.
The reactivation transitioned the 36th Engineer Brigade, known as the “Rugged Brigade,” into the 1st Cavalry Division Engineer Brigade, creating the Army’s largest and most capable active-duty engineer brigade.
“Today, we honored the storied legacy of the 36th Engineer Brigade and reactivated the 1st Cavalry Division Engineer Brigade, creating the Army’s largest and most capable active-duty engineer brigade,” said Col. Justin M. Pritchard, commander of the 1st Cavalry Division Engineer Brigade.
The reactivation supports the Army’s Engineer Force Structure 30 initiative, which is returning division engineer brigades to armored formations. The brigade provides capabilities designed to help the division breach adversary obstacles, protect combat platforms, maneuver across complex terrain and defeat adversary advances.
“The 1st Cavalry Division Engineer Brigade is at the tip of the spear for modernizing how we execute sapper missions on the battlefield through the Machine Assisted Rugged Soldier initiative,” said Brig. Gen. Chad C. Chalfont, commanding general of the 1st Cavalry Division, during remarks at the ceremony. “This brigade is training with cutting-edge autonomous systems to breach obstacles using robots first to make contact with tank ditches, mines, and wire, and then reduce them.”
The reactivation also marks a new chapter for the Rugged Brigade while carrying forward 85 years of engineer history. The 36th Engineer Brigade traces its legacy to World War II, when it supported amphibious landings in Africa. The brigade later served during the Korean War, Gulf War and Global War on Terror, providing mobility, counter mobility and survivability capabilities to maneuver forces.
“The Rugged Brigade is proud to don the big yellow patch and join the First Team,” Pritchard said. “While our colors are changing, our mission and standards are not. For the first time in over two decades, the 1st Cavalry Division Engineer Brigade is back-ready to deliver combat-credible forces whenever and wherever called.”
The 1st Cavalry Division Engineer Brigade was previously inactivated in 2005. Its reactivation restores an engineer brigade capability historically associated with armored divisions and strengthens the division’s ability to support maneuver during large-scale combat operations.
Col. Justin M. Pritchard and Command Sgt. Maj. Aaron F. Neubauer uncase the colors of the 1st Cavalry Division Engineer Brigade during a reflagging ceremony at Cooper Field, Fort Hood, Texas, Oct. 22, 2026. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Michelle Lessard-Terry)
###
