Macon’s 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) is headquartered at facilities once used by the 122nd Regional Training Institute on South Shurling Drive. The 48th, which moved from Macon Russell Armory after returning from its 2009-2010 deployment to Afghanistan, will remain in the old RTI site until the new regional readiness complex is completed. King took over as the 48th Brigade Commander fr
om Col. King’s senior enlisted leader is Command Sgt. Recker. As a combat brigade team, the 48th is authorized an estimated 3,425 Soldiers to carry out its mission statement of mobilizing, conducting post-mobilization training, and then deploying rapidly to any contingency area – at home or abroad – by air, sea or land, whether in support of the governor during state emergencies or in conjunction with combined offensive and defensive operations worldwide. The 48th’s most recent deployment – the second since 9/11 – was to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom from June 2009 to May 2010. The 48th also mobilized in 2004 for combat operations in support of the War on Terror, and then the Brigade deployed to Iraq in 2005, where it experienced some of the fiercest combat action of the campaign. Elements of the 48th also deployed to Bosnia in 2001 to provide support for Task Force Eagle. More than 4,500 members of the 48th mobilized in 1990 to participate in Desert Storm, and it was the first and only National Guard combat brigade validated as combat-ready for the Gulf War – though the conflict ended before the 48th was deployed. During this last deployment, the 48th suffered an estimated 49 wounded in action and eight combatrelated deaths, significantly less than the 26 Soldiers it lost to enemy action during its deployment as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom III in 2005-2006, but still an enormous loss to the families, friends and fellow service members of those fallen heroes. No exact number of those wounded during Operation Iraqi Freedom is available. In 2010, elements of the brigade received the Meritorious Unit Citation for their accomplishments during the 48th’s deployment to Afghanistan. Several awards for valor have also been presented to 48th Brigade Soldiers for their individual contributions during that yearlong mission.
