Ceremony held for transfer of authority for the Joint Task Force-Southern Border Mission

FORT HUACHUCA, Arizona (KVIA) -- The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) transferred authority of the Joint Task Force – Southern Border (JTF-SB) mission Saturday to the 1st Armored Division in a transfer of authority (TOA) ceremony.

This ceremony was held at Fort Huachuca, Arizona. Gen. Gregory M. Guillot, commander of U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM), presided over the ceremony.

U.S. Army Maj. Gen. David Gardner, the outgoing JTF-SB commander and commander of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), assumed authority from 10th Mountain Division on Oct. 10, 2025.

Gardner turned over authority to U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of the 1st Armored Division, where military officials say this makes him the third commander to lead the JTF-SB’s headquarters.

JTF-SB operates under the direction of USNORTHCOM providing military capabilities to assist in operations on the U.S. Southern border.

“Over the past seven months, through synchronized planning, rapid mobility and persistent presence, we’ve enhanced southern border security with expanded detection and monitoring, improved data sharing, and agile capabilities in coordination with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and other key partners,” said Gardner. “We take great pride in what we accomplished over the last eight months as we pass the colors for this vital mission to our 1st Armored Division teammates.”

Military officials say that since March 2025, more than 20,000 service members have deployed to support Southern Border missions and have conducted over 33,000 enhanced detection and monitoring missions.

Out of the numerous missions, nearly 4,500 were joint patrols alongside CBP agents, and close to 1,100 were joint, mirrored patrols with the Mexican Secretariat of National Defense (DEFENSA) each on their respective sides of the shared border, according to officials.