Первый батальон рейнджеров: История и боевой путь.

The 1st Ranger Battalion, currently based at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is the first of three ranger battalions belonging to the United States Army's 75th Ranger Regiment. It was originally formed shortly after the United States' entry into World War II and was modeled after the British Commandos during the war. Members from the unit were the first American soldiers to see combat in the European theater when they participated in the failed raid on Dieppe in France in 1942, during which three Rangers were killed and several more were captured. Later, the 1st Ranger Battalion was sent to North Africa where they participated in the landings in Algeria and the fighting in Tunisia in 1943. Also in 1943 the unit provided training cadre to train up two more Ranger battalions between the campaigns in Sicily and Italy. After World War II, the 1st Ranger Battalion went through a number of changes of name and composition as it has been activated, deactivated, and reorganized on a number of occasions. However, the unit has lived on in one form or another since then, serving in the Korean and Vietnam Wars before being consolidated into the 75th Ranger Regiment of which it is a part today. Deployments have included operations in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan as part of the wider global war on terrorism.

Major General Lucian Truscott, U. S. Army, in liaison with the British General Staff, submitted proposals to General George Marshall that "we undertake immediately an American unit along the lines of the British Commandos" in 1942. A subsequent cable from the U. S. Department of War authorized the activation of the 1st U. S. Army Ranger Battalion. On 19 June 1942, Company A, 1st Ranger Battalion, was officially activated in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland. A select team of four officers toured the existing commando training camps and selected the center at Achnacarry, Scotland for the Rangers. Here they underwent intense training. Coached by the battle seasoned commando instructors (commanded by Lt. Col. Charles Vaughan), the Rangers learned the basics of commando warfare. Five hundred of the 600 volunteers (83.33%) that Darby brought with him to Achnacarry completed the commando training. Many could not endure the exercises; one Ranger was killed, while several others were wounded in realistic training executed under live fire.

The first Americans to see active combat in the European theater of World War II were forty four enlisted men and five officers from the 1st Ranger Battalion. Dispersed among the Canadians and the British commandos, these men were the first American ground soldiers to see action against the Germans in the disastrous Dieppe Raid, officially known as Operation Jubilee. Three Rangers were killed, including Lieutenant E. V. Loustalot (the first American soldier killed in Europe in World War II), and several captured. During the mission, the British Captain leading the assault was killed. Loustalot took command and, with his men, attacked a clifftop machine gun nest. Scaling the steep cliff, Loustalot was wounded three times before being killed by enemy crossfire. As a result of budgetary considerations, the US Army spent much of the 1950s and 1960s consolidating and redesignating units that were on inactive status. This unit was redesignated 24 November 1952 as Company A, 1st Ranger Infantry Battalion, in inactive status and was consolidated on 15 April 1960 with the A Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment, 1st Special Service Force, and the consolidated unit was redesignated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 7th Special Forces Group(SFG), 1st Special Forces. The unit was further consolidated 6 June 1960 with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 7th Special Forces Group, and the consolidated unit was designated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 7th SFG, 1st SF (organic elements constituted 20 May 1960 and activated 6 June 1960).

On 1 January 1969, under the new U. S. Army Combat Arms Regimental System (CARS), U. S. Army Rangers were re formed in South Vietnam as the 75th Infantry Regiment (Ranger). Fifteen companies of Rangers, two of which (A 75 & B 75) were based in the US, were raised from units that had been performing missions in Europe since the late 1950s and in Vietnam since 1966 as Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol and Long Range Patrol companies.

After the Vietnam War, division and brigade commanders determined that the U. S. Army needed an elite, rapid deployment, light infantry, so in 1974 General Creighton Abrams charged General Kenneth C. Leuer with the task of activating, organizing, training, and leading the first battalion sized Ranger unit since World War II. The 1st Battalion was activated under the 75th Infantry Regiment (Ranger) on 31 January 1974. It received its colors and lineage from the Vietnam War Company C, 75th Infantry, which traced back through Company C, 475th back to the 5307th Composite unit, also known as Merrill's Marauders. Because of its success the 2nd Battalion was constituted eight months later. In 1984 the 3rd Battalion and their regimental headquarters were created. On 3 February 1986, the 1st Battalion, 75th Infantry was consolidated with the former Company A, 1st Ranger Battalion (which had been consolidated as the HHC of 7th SFG since 1960) thus gaining the lineage of the World War II era 1st Battalion. As a result, the unit was redesignated the 1st Battalion. Concurrently, the 2nd and 3rd Battalions were also consolidated with other past Ranger battalions and the regiment as a whole was redesignated the 75th Ranger Regiment.

In December 2001, following the events of 9/11, elements of Headquarters Company and Company A deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. In 2002, the entire battalion returned to Afghanistan to support the continuing Global War on Terrorism. In March 2002, during Operation Anaconda, 35 Rangers from the battalion had been assigned as QRF for all Task Force 11 operations, but only half of the platoon was available for the Battle of Takur Ghar. as of March 2019, the battalion has made 22 deployments during the Global War on Terrorism. During these deployments, the battalion took part in 198 combat operations in which 1,900 terrorists were killed or captured.

Sergeant Major Thomas Payne, Medal of Honor recipient for actions during a mission that rescued 70 Iraqi prisoners from an ISIL prison in Kirkuk Province, Iraq, 2015. Previously with Company A, 1st Ranger Battalion, Payne was a member of Delta Force during the raid. He was initially awarded the Distinguished Service Cross which was later upgraded to the Medal of Honor in 2020, making him the first living Delta Force Medal of Honor recipient, and first Medal of Honor recipient for Operation Inherent Resolve. He was also the winner of the Best Ranger Competition in 2012. Captain Nate Self: Former commanding officer of 1st Platoon, Company A, 1st Ranger Battalion. He was deployed to Afghanistan shortly after 9/11. Self commanded a Quick Reaction Force for Operation Anaconda. He and half of his platoon were on 2 Chinooks on the mission to rescue missing DEVGRU Red Squadron Navy SEAL Neil Roberts and USAF Combat Controller John Chapman during the Battle of Takur Ghar. For his actions during the battle he was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star, and Purple Heart. Captain Alejandro Villanueva, retired NFL player. Served with the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment and later 1st Ranger Battalion before starting his career in the NFL, with multiple deployments to Afghanistan. Sergeant Major of the Army Glen E. Morrell, former 1st Ranger Battalion command sergeant major and served as the Sergeant Major of the Army from 1983 to 1987. Sergeant First Class Christopher Celiz, posthumous Medal of Honor recipient. Peter Kassig, a former Ranger with 1st Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment; later became an aid worker in Syria. He was taken hostage by The Islamic State, and ultimately beheaded.