During Operation Desert Storm, after breaching the Iraqi defensive positions, the 1st Light Armored Infantry Battalion attacked north to locate and destroy enemy forces.

On May 1, 1992, the 1st Light Armored Infantry Battalion deployed to Los Angeles on a four-hour notice and assisted the Long Beach Police Department in quelling civil disturbances and looting.

After a successful deployment as part of the Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Los Angeles, the battalion returned once again to Camp Pendleton.

Due to its unique mobility and reconnaissance capabilities, the battalion left Regimental Combat Team Five and was assigned to Task Force Tripoli.

As part of Task Force Tripoli, the battalion advanced further north, ultimately securing former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit.

The battalion conducted security and stability operations in the Al Anbar province of western Iraq as part of Regimental Combat Team Seven.

1st LAR performed a wide range of critical missions, including key roles in regimental size operations, in order to capture or kill terrorist and insurgent forces.

Additionally, the battalion was vital in patrolling the western borders of Iraq in order to prevent the infiltration of arms and insurgents from Ar Rutba in the south to Al Qaim further north.

1st LAR conducted security and stabilization operations around Camp Korean Village and Ar Rutba before turning over the battlespace to 2nd Battalion, 25th Marines.

Operating out of Combat Out Post (COP) Payne as the Battalion CP, the unit controlled a swath of 750 square kilometers in southern Helmand Province.

Concurrently, Echo Company (Enormous Co), separated from the rest of the battalion, relying on British and Danish support, operated near Gereshk in central Helmand province and took part in hundreds of engagements and IED strikes in an attempt to control the only highway through Afghanistan at the time.

A substantial raid was conducted on Baghram Cha, a border town and chief logistical hub for Taliban activity in late October 2010, named Operation Steel Dawn.