HEADQUARTERS, 11TH AIRBORNE DIVISION, JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska (Sept. 14, 2024) – Elements of the 11th Airborne Division and the 1st and 3rd Multi Domain Task Forces landed on Shemya Island, Alaska, Sept. 12, 2024.

The soldiers were deployed to the island as part of a power projection operation, working with the U.S. Air Force to transport soldiers and equipment to the remote location in the North Pacific.

“As the number of adversary exercises increases in Alaska and throughout the region, including the joint Russian-Chinese bomber patrol in June, the operation on Shemya Island demonstrates the division’s ability to respond to events in the Indo-Pacific or anywhere else in the world and provide a ready, lethal force within hours,” said Maj. Gen. Joseph Hilbert, commanding general of the 11th Airborne Division.

The division is based at Joint Bases Elmendorf-Richardson and Fort Wainwright in Alaska. It defends not only the northernmost and westernmost areas of the United States, but also the Arctic, an area that is increasingly competitive as it becomes more accessible due to the increasing effects of climate change.

In addition, the 11th Airborne Division is also assigned to the U.S. INDOPACIFIC Command, the U.S. Department of Defense’s primary theater of operations and an area that represents more than 50 percent of the world’s population.

“Testing our capabilities with this and similar operations is critical to defending our country and maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Hilbert said. “Our ability to quickly and effectively deploy combat-ready forces to any location, no matter how remote, is critical to supporting our country and our strong relationships with allies and partner nations.”