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The U.S. Army has cancelled All American Week, the 82nd Airborne Division's signature annual celebration at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, citing operational demands as nearly 1,000 paratroopers from the base receive deployment orders to the Middle East amid the ongoing U.S. military campaign against Iran.
The four-day event, scheduled for May 18-21, will not take place this year. "All American Week will resume in 2027," Maj. Joe Bush, a spokesperson for the division, said in a statement, describing the cancellation as the result of "competing requirements."
The 82nd Airborne Division Association, which organizes the event, echoed the reasoning in a Facebook post, writing that it was shifting its focus to "supporting deployed paratroopers and their families."
A Defense Department official confirmed on March 25 that the deployment encompasses significant portions of the division, including headquarters elements, division enablers, and the 1st Brigade Combat Team, all bound for the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. "Due to operations security we have nothing additional to provide at this time," the official said.
The deployments are taking place against the backdrop of Operation Epic Fury, which the Pentagon launched on Feb. 28. U.S. Central Command says American forces have struck more than 12,300 targets in Iran since the campaign began.
Pentagon officials have not offered a timeline for the conflict's end and have not ruled out the use of ground troops. In recognition of the heightened risk, the Pentagon has authorized special combat pay for troops deployed across the region, and the Army has approved the wearing of combat patches by soldiers in the war zone.
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All American Week is one of the Army's most distinctive community celebrations, drawing active-duty soldiers, veterans, and civilians from across the Fayetteville region each spring.
The event typically features a division run, memorial ceremonies, a veterans' breakfast, military flyovers, Hall of Fame inductions, technology showcases, and a concluding division review.
Last year, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth addressed the assembled paratroopers, using the occasion to outline Pentagon priorities including reductions in general officer billets, the elimination of diversity and equity programs, and quality-of-life investments such as barracks upgrades and increased jump pay.
The event takes its name from the division's storied nickname. When the 82nd was first organized in August 1917 at Camp Gordon, Georgia, its ranks were drawn from all 48 states then in the union, earning it the "All-American" designation that has defined its identity ever since.
The division, which specializes in rapid parachute assault operations and is mandated to deploy within 18 hours of notification, has served in virtually every major U.S. military engagement since World War II.
President Donald Trump sought to frame the conflict in broader historical terms in an address to the nation on Wednesday. Citing the duration of previous American wars, from World War I through Iraq, he argued that the campaign against Iran had achieved exceptional results in a compressed timeframe.
"We are in this military operation, so powerful, so brilliant against one of the most powerful countries for 32 days," Trump said, adding that Iran "has been eviscerated and essentially is really no longer a threat." He described the operation as "a true investment in your children and your grandchildren's future."
U.S. officials have not publicly confirmed whether ground forces will ultimately be required to achieve Washington's stated objectives, leaving the full scope of the 82nd Airborne's eventual role in the region an open question.
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