Special Troops Battalion , 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team ( United States ) The Special Troops Battalion , 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team is a special troops battalion of the United States Army headquartered at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza , Italy . It is the organization for the command elements of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team . The battalion contains the brigade ' s senior command structure , including its Headquarters and Headquarters Company , as well as communication and support elements . Activated in 2000 from inactivating support units , the Special Troops Battalion deployed with the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team to Afghanistan in 2007 until 2008 and again in early 2010 . Organization . The Special Troops Battalion is subordinate to the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team and is a permanent formation of the brigade , as the 173rd ' s command elements are all contained in the STB . The battalion consists of three companies and the brigade ' s Headquarters and Headquarters Company . Company A is a Combat Engineer company , Company B is a Military Intelligence company , and Company C is a Signal company . These companies provide services for the other battalions of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team , and as such , all of the companies are Airborne qualified . History . The Special Troops Battalion was formed as part of a reorganization of the 173rd Airborne Brigade into a modular brigade . The battalion was designed to be the self - contained command component of the brigade , allowing it to function independently of any higher command . The battalion was activated on 8 June 2006 . Most of its components were drawn from the 82nd Engineer Battalion , which inactivated on 30 March 2006 . On 21 April 2006 , a coat of arms and a distinctive unit insignia were approved for the battalion . On 11 October 2006 , the 173rd Airborne Brigade was redesignated as the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team ( ABCT ) , as part of the Army ' s " Unit of Action " modularized unit force restructuring that General Eric Shinseki had originally envisioned . This was a significant change as it signified the ability for the brigade to deploy its forces and sustain itself with its newly integrated support teams . By integrating these support elements , the unit became able to maintain its fighting forces with all that is required to keep the ground soldiers supplied and moving . While most of the brigade remained in Vicenza , Italy through the transition , four of the battalions had to relocate to Bamberg and Schweinfurt , Germany until additional facilities were constructed in the Vicenza area . The 1st Battalion , 508th Infantry was reflagged as 1st Battalion , 503rd Infantry to resume the Vietnam - era lineage of the 503rd Infantry battalions under the 173rd Airborne Brigade . The 1st Battalion , 508th Infantry colors were moved to Ft . Bragg , North Carolina to serve under the 82nd Airborne Division . Immediately after its transformation , the brigade began intensive training in both Germany and Italy to prepare itself for future deployments . In 2006 , the brigade was notified for a second tour of duty in Iraq during 2007 – 2008 , but its deployment plan was changed to Afghanistan in February 2007 when the Pentagon announced that it would relieve the 3rd Brigade Combat Team , 10th Mountain Division along with the 4th Brigade Combat Team , 82nd Airborne Division . In the spring of 2007 , the 173rd ABCT again deployed to Afghanistan , as Task Force Bayonet , in support of Operation Enduring Freedom ( OEF 07 – 09 ) , their first deployment as a fully transformed brigade combat team . The brigade was dispersed throughout the east of the country , with units operating in Nangarhar , Nuristan , Kunar , and Laghman Provinces . The 173rd ABCT officially relieved the 3rd Brigade Combat Team , 10th Mountain Division on 6 June 2007 . The 173rd participated in various operations with the objective of ensuring security and subduing Taliban insurgents in the mountainous regions along Afghanistan ' s border with Pakistan , one of these being Operation Rock Avalanche near the Hindu Kush . Throughout their 15 - month deployment , the brigade participated in more than 9 , 000 patrols throughout the region . Only two weeks before the brigade was to return to Italy , a platoon of 45 soldiers from the brigade stationed in the Dara - I - Pech district was caught in an ambush by 100 – 200 insurgents , the Battle of Wanat . Though the platoon was able to drive the insurgents back with air support , the fight resulted in 9 soldiers killed and 16 wounded ; the deadliest attack on troops in the country since 2005 . The brigade repositioned the base three days later . The 173rd ' s tour ended in July 2008 , and the entire brigade returned to Italy by the end of that month . The brigade began its fourth deployment to Afghanistan in early 2010 . Honors . Unit decorations . The Special Troops Battalion , 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team has never received a unit decoration from the United States military .