Putting on the 'Electric Purina' for the First Time in 1985

The 525th MI Bde subdued patch

By JIM PURCELL

I was a 19-year-old graduate of the Intelligence Analyst Basic Course at Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, and a private first class in the U.S. Army when I arrived to Ft. Bragg, North Carolina in September, 1985.

Ft. Bragg, at that time, at least according to the sign on the All-American Highway, was Home of the XVIII Airborne Corps and the Rapid Deployment Force. Its mission was to be able to field a force anywhere in the world in a certain number of hours. It being 32 years ago, I forgot the number. But it was something between 36 and 72, I think. The Army has changed over time, its capabilities have changed over time. This was the way it was then, though.

Back then, the primary maneuver divisions for the XVIII Airborne Corps were the 82nd Airborne Division, the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and the 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized). The 82nd was headquartered at Bragg, while the 101st was at Ft. Campbell, Kentucky and the 24th Infantry was at Ft. Stewart, in Georgia. The major supporting units for the Corps back then included 1st Corps Support Command (COSCOM), the 525th Military Intelligence Brigade (CEWI) (ABN), the 35th Signal Brigade and several other units.

Jim and Pat Purcell, circa 1985

This was just the XVIII Airborne Corps side of the house, because as commander of the Rapid Deployment Force, the corps commander had operational control over various units from around the services, should he have to change hats for a crisis.

I drove to Bragg with my then-wife, Patricia. We checked into a motel they had on post there for a week or so while I was at the 19th Replacement for the Corps. Then, I was assigned to Company A, 319th Military Intelligence Battalion, which was one of three battalions at 525. The other two were the 519th MI and 224th MI battalions, respectively. Both 319 and 519 were at Bragg, while the 224 was at Hunter Army Airfield, in Georgia.

I was assigned to Company A, 319th MI from the Replacement. I was pending my clearance, which back then took a little while to do, so I was immediately put in Supply until my clearance eventually came through from Ft. George G. Meade's Central Clearance Facility, in Maryland. Back then, CCF was the authority that granted, or didn't grant security clearances for people in uniform or out.

319th MI Bn

When I first arrived, I wasn't quite sure what unit I was in because more than half of the guys and gals at morning formation were still wearing the Corps' "gagging dragon" on their BDU's, while the rest of them were wearing the (then) new patch of the 525th MI. It was always a hassle back then to change units because you had to find a tailor, on post or off, and get new patches sewn on. It was easier in my case, because there wasn't a lot to it...I started out as one of the first new soldiers assigned to the 525 that had never worn the Corps patch.

When my clearance did come back, I was assigned to the Counter-Intelligence Analysis Branch of the Director of Security, G-2, for the XVIII Airborne Corps. Back then, we had a real-world mission. All of us in the G-2 did and took great pride in that. I know that professionalism and doing one's best was upper most in nearly everyone's mind.

The XVIII Airborne Corps patch

Of some note: It could never happen today, but back then, there was a small sand pit located just outside of the parking lot for the Corps Headquarters, called the "Head Shed." It was located pretty close to the front door of CI Analysis, so I asked my trainer at CI Analysis, his name was Sgt. Palillo, just what that sand box was for. He said, "Well, if you have a problem with someone, then you can ask them if they want to do some hand-to-hand training at the sand box. If they accept then you 'train,' and if they don't then you leave it and them the hell alone." This could never happen in today's Army.

For the record: Before he ended his tenure at CI Analysis I asked Palillo, whom I never did get along with, if he wanted to conduct extra training at the sand box. He accepted my offer. He was a thin man, and working out a lot I thought I had an edge on the NCO. Well, he took off his shirt before we 'trained,' and I knew I made a mistake because he was as ripped as Bruce Lee. Palillo was also very well trained in martial arts and took me to town and showed me all the sights, right in front of a small crowd that had formed to watch the ad hoc event. It was an Old Army way of doing things. People can say what they will, but it was an Army I felt comfortable in.

Back then, 525's battalions were organized by specialty: 319th was basically HUMINT, which was an acronym for "Human Intelligence"; 519th was essentially ELINT, for electronic (or 'signals') intelligence; and the 224 was an aerial observation outfit that acquired information for all the folks at the Corps. Signal intelligence people (SIGINT) were scattered throughout the brigade assisting in the missions for the various units.

"Iron Mike" at Ft. Bragg, NC

The birth of any new unit, particularly an airborne one, is exciting. For the first time, soldiers from 525 were jumping as part of their very own unit. The chain-of -command authorized its own Air Movements Team, which a friend of mine, Arthur Harwood, was on. It sent people to Recondo School on Bragg. It helped the brigade create its own gravity, in a way, without just being part of some sprawling unit.

Meanwhile, the Corps, administratively, became a very large company. I don't know how much pressure a new company commander feels when, among his company, is the XVIII Airborne Corps commander, which at that time was LTG James Lindsey. On his staff, and also assigned to HHC, XVIII Airborne Corps, were military luminaries the likes of then-MG Hugh Shelton , who went on to become a full-four-star general. The soldiers were supremely confident in the chain-of-command.

It was all new and exciting, especially for me since I had only studied at being an analyst and then, for my first assignment, I became the "Senior Human Intelligence Editor" for a shop that was looking for a senior NCO. However, for whatever reason, they didn't throw me back when I was in the boat.

I worked that job until very late 1987, when I would come up on levy to go to Europe.

The Army has obviously changed a lot since then, because among the things we were permitted to do was observe a strict "two martini maximum" rule during lunch off-post. Also, the parties after work, maybe to relieve some of the at-work strain were often very elaborate and...festive. No one would put up with that anymore. They were so festive that guys regularly had to get bailed out of jail.

Fayetteville was different back then. Some might say more 'wide open' and less civilized. I won't disagree. Things change for a good reason some time. I will not say that the changes were bad. Fayetteville eventually became a quiet, law-abiding place. When I was there, it was a wild place, which was a haven for young GIs who were, maybe for the first time, away from their homes and doing difficult jobs.

The work was sometimes excruciating on the job, at least from my perspective. And, like Forest Gump said, "That is all I will say about that." But, it was a great crew and I could not think of a better place to serve.  I think of Bragg often, and fondly, and look forward to returning there some time.