In 1973, as the division's 1st Brigade jump status was ending, a new unit with the designation of 3rd Battalion (Airborne), 509th Infantry (bearing the lineage of WW II's Co C, 509PIB) was activated to form an Airborne battalion combat team (ABCT) from elements of the existing Airborne forces within the brigade. After a brief training period at Rhine Casern barracks in West Germany, the unit moved to Vicenza, Italy, as a separate Airborne Battalion Combat Team and composed of a headquarters and headquarters company (HHC), a combat support company (CSC), three light infantry companies and one 105 mm towed field artillery battery, commanded by LTC Ward M. Lehardy. The colors of 1-509th and 2-509th were reflagged as 2-28th and 2-87th. Shortly after its arrival in Italy, 3-509th was reflagged as 1-509th.

On 1 July 1975 the lineage of Co C, 509PIB was reactivated at Fort Rucker as the separate Co C (Pathfinder), 509th Infantry. The company was created by reflagging the existing 5th Infantry Detachment (Pathfinder), which had served at the post since 24 June 1963. (A pathfinder presence at Fort Rucker can be traced back to about 1960 with the activation of the Pathfinder Team, Company A, 2nd Battle Group, 31st Infantry, to support the Aviation Center.) Contrary to some erroneous accounts, C-509th was not created by transferring C-1-509th from Italy to Fort Rucker. There had already been a pathfinder presence at Fort Rucker for 15 years. Even if the 5th Infantry Detachment had not existed, the Army would not have reduced the strength of its only forward-deployed Airborne battalion in Europe when sufficient manning was available in CONUS. Additionally, the organization and manning of a line Airborne infantry company is different from that of a pathfinder company conducting training support.