Welcome to the Bavarian Millitary Community

16 Welcome to the U.S.Army Garrison Grafenwoehr. 1972 April - V Corps Headquarters and the Terrace Club in Frankfurt are bombed by terror- ist group Red Army Faction (RAF). The RAF would bomb USA-EUR headquar- ters in Heidelberg one month later. 1972 to 1973 The Seventh Army Training Center’s responsibilities dramatically expand. It is now responsible for all U.S. Army training activities in Europe. Combat support courses from the Combat Sup- port Training Center in Oberammergau are moved to Rose Barracks. 1975 January - The 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry is activated at Lee Barracks in Mainz, and moves to Vicenza, Italy. At the same time, the 8th Infantry Division’s 1st and 2nd Battalions, 509th Infantry were discontinued and replaced by two mechanized battalions, making the division fully mechanized. The year 1975 marked the end the Army’s largest logistical organization, the U.S. Theater Army Support Com- mand. The Command has more than 69,000 U.S. and local national civilians, supporting over 400,000 U.S. Soldiers in Europe and the Middle East. 1976 July - The Seventh Army Training Center becomes the 7th Army Training Com- mand (7th ATC). Established on July 1, 1976, the command is responsible for the Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels Training Areas, the Combined Arms Training Center at Rose Barracks, near Vilseck, and the Training Support Activ- ity, Europe. The 7th ATC facilitates and manages training, including the devel- opment of concepts, requirements, and the evaluation of training readiness. Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), which is critical to moving data on the modern Internet, is introduced in 1976. 1977 January - RAF terrorists bomb U.S. Army bar- racks of the 42nd Artillery Brigade at Giessen. Several RAF members are killed in the ensuing firefight. August - The first A-10 attack aircraft arrive in Europe and are put through their paces at the Grafenwoehr Training Area for the international press The A-10, affec- tionately known as “the Warthog” is a deadly tank killer that supports the infantry. 1979 December - The Soviet Army invades Afghanistan. 1980 November - Operation “Real Train” begins at the Hohenfels Training Area. Participating M603A Tanks are the most advanced of the M60 series, but are later replaced by the M1 Abrams in 1984. 1981 From 1981 to 1993, the U.S. Army extends and enlarges Rose Barracks, the southern tip of the Grafenwoehr Training Area. The total cost of reno- vations and enlargement exceeds one billion U.S. dollars. The USAREUR Soldier in the mid 1980s was many things. More than any other institu- tion, the Army had become America’s great melting pot. As a member of an all-vol- unteer Army the Soldiers assigned to U.S. Army Europe experienced cohesion, team- work and esprit de corps in picturesque Europe, and by 1987 the Army’s recruitment slogan, “Be All You Can Be” was an open invitation to talent from every part of the country, and to individuals from every social or ethnic background. History of the Grafenwoehr Training Area