Caserma Ederle Caserma Ederle ( Camp Ederle ) is an Italian post where the U . S . Army has troops stationed located in Vicenza , Italy . The Vicenza Military Community is composed of Soldiers , family members , civilians and retirees with a small number of Airmen and Sailors are also stationed there . The post serves as the headquarters of United States Army Africa and the 173d Airborne Brigade . Caserma Ederle serves as the headquarters of U . S . Army Garrison Vicenza of the United States Army Installation Management Command , an umbrella for all U . S . military properties in Vicenza . The post is named after Major Carlo Ederle , an Italian hero of World War I and recipient of the French " Croix de Guerre " ( French War Cross ) , among other military honors . Life on the Caserma ( camp ) . Soldiers assigned to a tour of duty at Caserma Ederle are normally permitted to bring family members when being reassigned there upon a Permanent Change of Station . Still , many of the military personnel assigned to Caserma Ederle are unaccompanied . The post offers virtually all of the standard amenities present on most U . S . military installations , such as a Post Exchange , commissary , theater , etc . Single or unaccompanied junior enlisted soldiers live primarily in barracks located on the post itself , or in leased government quarters in the local community . Depending on the availability of housing upon arrival , personnel accompanied by dependents can live in housing quarters , Italian houses rented by the U . S . Government , government - owned housing units , or on the economy . Government - owned housing units for accompanied soldiers and their dependents are located in a separate and gated / secure area of Vicenza known as " Villaggio della Pace " ( literally " Village of the Peace " , but actually named after the street passing near the village and the camp - " Viale della Pace " ) . Single officers live on the economy . History . 1955 – 1990 . On 25 October 1955 , the Southern European Task Force was first established at Camp Darby , located in Pisa , Italy . In 1951 , the U . S . and Italy signed an agreement that the U . S . would operate lines of communication across Italy , and that the U . S . would occupy land near Livorno . This land became Camp Darby , named for Brigadier General William O . Darby , who was killed in action in northern Italy on 30 April 1945 . In 1955 , all U . S . occupation forces in Austria were withdrawn upon the entry into force of the Austrian State Treaty . Under provisions of the agreement with Italy , Camp Darby was the initial reception station for soldiers , equipment and supplies returning from Austria . With Austria now neutral , northern Italy ' s eastern flank became vulnerable to attack . To reduce the danger in that area , the U . S . agreed to establish a force there and on 2 October 1955 , the U . S . Army Southern European Task Force was activated . SETAF ' s first headquarters was on Camp Darby , but the largest number of soldiers has always been in Vicenza , Italy . Shortly after activation , USASETAF headquarters moved to Verona , Italy . Troop strength reached 10 , 000 and USASETAF was formally established via a U . S . - Italian agreement . In 1959 , following President Dwight D . Eisenhower ' s visit to Rome , a third agreement brought significant changes to USASETAF . Italy ' s military forces were re - established . As a result : As a result of this agreement , the 62nd Engineers and an artillery company were moved to Caserma Passalacqua . Both companies had nuclear weapons . The artillery company ' s Sergeant missiles had nuclear warheads and the engineering company was an ADOM ( Atomic Demolition Munitions ) engineering unit . The headquarters moved again in 1965 from Verona to Caserma Ederle . Caserma Ederele had already existed as an Italian post . Soldier strength dropped to 2 , 500 in 1970 and civilian employment went down 70 percent in a unilateral cost - reduction effort . The port opened by 8th Area Support Group in Livorno was returned to Italian control . On 20 October 1963 , the 5th Battalion ( Sergeant Missile ) , 30th Field Artillery was activated in Caserma Ederle . LTC Ronald L . Little assumed command of the 5th Battalion , which consisted of A , B , and Headquarters batteries . The 5th Battalion , 30th Field Artillery was deactivated on 15 December 1975 . SETAF ' s mission and geographical area of responsibility increased in 1972 when the command enlarged its signal support unit and took control of the 559th U . S . Army Artillery Group ( USAAG ) in Greece and the 528th USAAG in Turkey . These units had been in support of NATO since the early 1960s , along with the 559th USAAG , which had been a USASETAF unit in Italy since 1964 . The 509th Infantry Regiment ( Airborne Brigade Combat Team - ABCT ) was previously placed under the command of SETAF in 1973 and later deactivated in the mid - 1980s ; it was replaced by the 4 / 325th Infantry Regiment ( 82nd Airborne Division ) . The 4 / 325th ABCT was composed of three line companies ( including a COHORT company - Angry Alpha , the company adopted a dog who lived in the barracks for a month with Captain Kurt " E . T . " Rotzoll . The dog was named Angry ) , a headquarters company , a combat - support company , and a 105mm artillery battery . A member of NATO ' s Allied Mobile Forces ( Land ) , the 4 / 325th ABCT was the right flank element of the European front during the late Cold War and was deployable by parachute to anywhere in the region . The 4 / 325th ABCT was also home to THE GERONIMO football team . The team was mostly Angry Alpha soldiers . Spc . 4 Patrick " Uncle Fester " Knowles spearheaded the defense from the inside linebacker position . DT Eugene " HUGE " Watson and NG Steve Kempenich anchored the defensive line . Offensively Donald Epps was running over the opposing defenses on the way to the 1983 Northern Italian Football League Championship in 1983 . The 3 / 325 ABCT ( Blue Falcons ) , a detachment of the 82nd Airborne Division , occupied Caserma Ederle during the late 1980s as a contingent of the Southern European Task Force of the United Nations . The Blue Falcons specialized in airfield seizures , and one of the most likely deployment scenarios during the Cold War was to attack and gain control of an airfield behind enemy lines of the USSR to provide a point into which more forces from the U . S . could build a stronghold . The Blue Falcons trained extensively in cold weather tactics and operations in a specialized base in Folgaria , Italy . They deployed annually to train in Turkey , usually as part of joint operations training among other airborne units within SETAF , to include the British , French , Spanish , Italian , German , Turkish , etc . Blue Falcons trained extensively in Grafenwoehr , West Germany , West Berlin , West Germany , throughout Italy , etc . Blue Falcons were also an accomplished MOUT ( Military Operations in Urban Terrain ) unit . Whether inserting into a firefight on snow skis behind a snowcat or scaling a multi - story building to methodically clear buildings from the top down , paratroopers from the 3 / 325 Airborne Battalion Combat Team were highly trained and motivated to accomplish the task . The primary missions of SETAF during the 1980s were the defense of the eastern Alpine passes in anticipation of a Soviet invasion , and command / control of the nuclear weapons stockpiles still located in northern Italy . Also stationed here was the 45th Field Hospital , US Army Medical Activity ( USAMEDDAC ) , part of the 7th Medical Command . The 45th Field Hospital was a 26 - bed hospital supporting the troops stationed at Caserma Ederle . The health clinic at Camp Darby , Livorno , was supported by the 45th Field Hospital as well as the health clinic at Sinop , Turkey . 1990s – Present . The 1st Battalion , 508th Infantry Regiment served in Vicenza ( on Caserma Ederle ) from April 1996 until it was reflagged as the 1st Battalion , 503rd Infantry Regiment in June 2006 . Until 1992 , USASETAF was considered a logistical command . In addition to the infantry units , SETAF operated a major depot at Camp Darby in conjunction with the 8th Area Support Group . With its designation as a support command and later a theater army area command , USASETAF was to be responsible for the reception , preparation for combat , and onward movement of forces entering the southern region for general war . The political reorientation of Europe in 1989 and 1990 resulting from the end of the Cold War caused major revision of U . S . and NATO military priorities . With the drastic reduction of the threat of general war , SETAF received new missions for regional tactical operations as command and control headquarters for U . S . Army and joint units . Its three artillery groups were inactivated and the two support groups became support groups with unique missions . The 8th Area Support Group ' s depot operation developed into the maintenance and issue of theater reserve stocks organized in unit sets sufficient to fully equip a heavy brigade . The 3rd Battalion of the 325th Regiment also served during this period and were successful in the campaign of " Operation Provide Comfort " , during the first Gulf War in Iraq . They were commanded by Lieutenant Colonel ( later General ) John P . Abizaid , who later commanded U . S . Central Command ( CENTCOM ) from July 2003 - March 2007 . A reorganization to command structure created USAG ( United States Army Garrison ) - Vicenza to handle the ( non - combatant forces ) installation activities of Caserma Ederle . Dal Molin / Del Din Planned Post Annex . In 2004 , the U . S . military announced plans to extend the military footprint in Vicenza to include all elements of the 173rd ABCT . The new base annex was planned to be located on the disused civilian Dal Molin airport , roughly two miles from Caserma Ederle . The plan was first agreed by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi ' s administration . The succeeding government , led by Romano Prodi , initially opposed the expansion , but eventually agreed to the extension plan . The Italian Ministry of Defense has announced the redesignation of the installation from Dal Molin to Caserma Del Din upon transfer to the Italian Army . The work is managed by the Transition Construction Management Office and construction oversight is by the Naval Facilities Engineer Command , Resident Officer in Charge of Construction . On Oct . 30 , 2012 during a special ceremony in Rome honoring Paolo Costa , the U . S . Ambassador David Thorne credited the success of Del Din to the strong support that the United States received from the highest levels of the Italian government , including the executive , legislative and judicial branches over several years and by several different governments . As the construction nears compeletion , more than 50 top construction firms toured the newest and greenest site . This facility will be the first DoD installation to obtain the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ( LEED ) Silver certification with the potential to achieve gold certification . Vicenza is eventually slated to be home to the 173rd Airborne Brigade and the United States Army Africa headquarters . Currently , only two infantry battalions and portions of the brigade ' s two support battalions are in Vicenza , and the move would bring the total number of stationed troops in Vicenza to 5 , 000 . Camp Darby . In 2012 the US Army announced that USAG Livorno / Camp Darby will be downgraded from a US Army Garrison ( USAG ) to a sub - Garrison called Darby Military Community reporting to USAG Vicenza at Caserma Ederle .