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The sky was dark as 106 Soldiers began to arrive at their Company Operations Facility (COF) for a formation at two o’clock in the morning on May 17, 2021. Cougar, the call sign given to Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment “No Slack”, 1st Brigade Combat Team “Bastogne”, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), received the call less than 14 hours earlier that they were selected to execute a level three emergency deployment readiness exercise (EDRE).
“Operation Ready Eagle Blitz was a great test for our Soldiers. It’s one thing to talk readiness, it’s quite another to live it,” said Lt. Col. Joseph Da Silva, the commanding officer of 2nd Bn., 327th Inf. Regt., 1st BCT, 101st Abn. Div. (AASLT). “Cougar Company showed everyone what it means to live readiness. They alerted, marshaled, and deployed within 24 hours executing an air assault into a full company operation. We learned some great lessons that will improve the program and our company but the greatest lesson we learned is that our Soldiers have the heart, grit, and desire to execute any mission asked of them. This program will build the culture of readiness this Division is known for and will continue to deliver for the nation.”