Sector One

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Lore & Background

The 70th Armor Regiment was designated a parent organization as part of the Combat Arms Regimental System (CARS) in 1963. When CARS was replaced by the U.S. Army Regimental System (USARS) system in 1981, the 70th Armor Regiment continued to carry the colors and honors of the regiment. Although there is no regimental headquarters, battalions of the 70th Armor Regiment have since served in various theaters and campaigns. Units of the battalion participated in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, and have served in Southwest Asia as part of the Global War on Terrorism. On 9 October 2012, the last active battalion of the 70th Armor Regiment, the 4th Battalion, 70th Armor Regiment was inactivated along with its parent headquarters, the 170th Infantry Brigade (Separate) in Baumholder, Germany. On 9 October 2014, the 2nd Battalion, 70th Armor regiment was activated and assigned to the 2nd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, at Fort Riley, Kansas. With 13 unit awards and 22 campaign streamers, the 70th Armor Regiment is the most decorated armor unit in the United States Army.

In Their Own Story

The 70th Tank Battalion was initially formed as a light tank battalion, equipped with M5 Stuart tanks. It was organized with a Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Service Company, and three lettered companies (A, B, and C), each with 17 M5s. During World War II, it converted to a standard medium tank battalion organization, replacing the M5 Stuarts with M4 Shermans. The new organization included a Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Service Company, three medium tank companies (A, B, and C) and a light tank company (Company D) still equipped with M5 Stuarts. After the war, it was redesignated a heavy tank battalion for the Korean War, with Companies A and C equipped with M4A3E8 Sherman tanks and Company B equipped with M26 Pershing tanks. The Pershings were later withdrawn and replaced with M4A3E8 Shermans. When reactivated in the early 1960s, the battalions were reorganized again, equipped with M60 tank variants. In the mid-1980s, under the 'Division 86' force structure, battalions took on a new structure with four line tank companies and a consolidated headquarters company.

Reader's Guide

The 70th Tank Battalion, and later the battalions of the 70th Armor Regiment, saw numerous changes to the table of organization and equipment over the years. As a light tank battalion, the 70th Tank Battalion was equipped with M5 Stuart tanks. The battalion was organized as follows: Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC) included the battalion staff and the battalion command headquarters section, including three M5s, a reconnaissance section equipped with jeeps, a mortar platoon equipped with 81 mm mortar half-tracks, and an assault gun platoon equipped with three M8 howitzer motor carriages. Service Company consisted primarily of the battalion maintenance platoon and the battalion supply and transportation platoon. Companies A, B, and C were each identically organized with three platoons of five M5 tanks, plus a company headquarters tank section of two additional M5s for a total of 17 tanks per company. Each company also had a maintenance section, which had an additional M5 as a recovery vehicle. When the 70th re-emerged in 1963 as part of the Combat Arms Regimental System, it had a completely new organization with a headquarters and headquarters company, three tank companies, and a combat support company replacing the service company. The line tank companies were equipped with M60 tank variants, organized into three platoons of five tanks, with two tanks in the company headquarters tank section.

Did You Know?

• The 70th Tank Battalion was constituted in July 1940 as an independent tank battalion intended to provide close support to infantry units.
• The battalion supported the 4th Infantry Division on Utah Beach during the D-Day landings in France.
• The 70th Tank Battalion was one of the first three tank battalions to deploy to Korea in the Korean War.
• With 13 unit awards and 22 campaign streamers, the 70th Armor Regiment is the most decorated armor unit in the United States Army.
• On 9 October 2012, the last active battalion, the 4th Battalion, 70th Armor Regiment, was inactivated in Baumholder, Germany.