Can you wear your Marine unit patch as an Army combat patch if you deployed with the Marines? Policy appears to say no.

My best friend spent something like three and a half years in Nam with the 3rd Marine Division. After returning and a break in service he decided to re-up with the Army. The question of his Marine combat patch came up. Now this was in the mid-70s right after Nam ended. Our chain of command looked it up; the conclusion they came to was if the Marines and authorized the wear of patches - either for his time in combat or even at the time, it would be okay. However, as the Marines didn't then (and to my knowledge still don't - and the reason given to me by more than one Marine has been "just being a Marine is enough honor" without a unit patch) to allow him to wear the Marine patch would be to allow him to wear an unauthorized decoration or uniform item. At the time there was no malice or inter-service jealousy, just an honest attempt to adhere to the regulations of both services.

An interesting side story. My buddy had to take a bust because of his break in service. He left the Marines as a Gunnery Sergeant and lost two stripes to Sergeant/E-5. He'd been Force Recon in Nam and has racked up a slew of awards, many for valor. He got into a Pee-ing contest with our new First Sergeant on morning over a trash can that hadn't been emptied when Top came in; my buddy had been CQ the night before and Top had a nasty habit of screwing with CQs before relieving them of duty. My buddy had sent his runner on to chow and figure to get the can emptied when the runner got back.

In the course of the butt-chewing (which I though was kind of petty, but I might be biased); Top told my buddy he wasn't "crap for an NCO." There was a war after that. Later on that morning my buddy, after sleeping a few hours, got dressed up in his Class A's with his numerous awards and made a point of stopping by the Orderly Room. Top immediately questioned all his Marine and Naval Awards. My buddy produced orders for each one and patiently explained how he got this one or that one in Nam.

After that, he made a point of wearing his class As every chance he got so Top could see what a "Crappy NCO" looked like in Class As.

I thought some folks would find the story amusing.

Dept. of the Army personnel working in the "Not" square building in Arlington Va. with nothing better to do than write confusing uniform regulations need tighter supervision while they're on the clock; maybe remove their access to writing implements, with instructions that all proposed uniform regulations must be written with crayons first for review.

Quite a few of former marines in the 11th SF Group wore the respective WW II USMC division patches as their get back patch. As imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I wore the Far East Air Force whilst in the 11th. No flack ever given. It more rightly should have been the 7th AF Patch.....but I liked the FEAF PATCH. See top left photo.

Maybe the Army Guard is different but when I was in (retired in 93), initially Nam vets wore the MAC-V patch if service with USMC or other service. Later on the Regs must have been relaxed, because I saw 1st, 3rd, and 5th MARDIV patches, as well as one Seebee patch!

1SG John Millan - So -- if you were in combat WITH the Army, but not IN the Army, it would be a different call than being in combat WITH the Army and IN the Army? Just trying to be sure, some of these "fiddly details" can be very important!

I had a former Marine who was now in the Army with me in Afghanistan (173rd ABCT) - he had served in combat with Marine recon during first gulf war - scud hunting. He wore a Marine patch on his right shoulder - plus the Ranger tab on his left (a school he attended while serving as a recon Marine) over his current Army unit patch. I did see his DD 214. He received a Purple Heart and Bronze Star while serving with me - we were in the same HUMV. At that point in the deployment - I saw no need to correct anything. He was a stud.

I did Medic training with a guy who wore a "1 Guadal Canal Patch" on right memory serves correctly.

LCpl Christopher Pickett
Like Artillery General Ott & the wearing of Red Berets.

I mean the army has determined that transgender soldiers will not be eligible to join and not for some bigoted reason it’s as simple as the medication they need for hormon treatment isn’t available in certain deplorable environments so they put the transitioning soldier in a non deploy status. It’s the military you should be required to be deplorable at all times unless you are in a period of recovery for an injury personal life choices doesn’t constitute the army adjusting because you Wana play guess my genetics

Deployable* SGT (Join to see)

SPC (Join to see) mental illness is a disqualifier for service. Not to mention thier 40% suicide rate. They deserve our pitty, not our uniform.

SGT (Join to see) - I dunno--in this case, I find deplorable rather fitting. Just saying. . . .

Marines don't, but the patches are still authorized and active - but the Marines ont have any uniform orders they wear them on anymore.

But if you transfer to the Army, the Army *does* allow former wartime unit patches to be worn, even if they aren't from Army units.

GySgt Jon White - "Former Marines who are in the Army can and do wear the patches of the Marine units they served with in combat as a Marine on their right shoulder. I've seen Army personnel whose units were assigned to one of the Marine Divisions in combat wear that unit's patch on their right sleeve."

If you are in the Army you shouldn't wear a Marine patch. Peroid.

Walt

Capt Walter Miller - The Gunnery Sergeant is mistaken. AR 670-1 does not allow any soldiers who were in a different service to wear a combat patch from that service. However since some Army units that were not authorized a SSI on their own were attached to Marine units during combat, they would not have any patch to designate their combat service if the Marine patch was not authorized.

I don’t think anyone in any branch should. All the effort gets put into looking the same, the uniforms are all starting to look similar again. I’d be entirely happy with no more Velcro period on any uniform, no patches, no badges, no unspoken judgement because one doesn’t have a CAB or FWTS (deployment patch). If we’re all Soldiers, Marines, Airmen, Sailors, etc, quite frankly who cares about specific uniforms, patches, and nonsense. We provide a service to the nation, deeper than, “looking uniform.”

I care more about things like: job proficiency, pt, and not looking like a fat slob. Where's the pride in those things, hence why I said there's better things to complain about than a piece o cloth on their right sleeve. :/

Thanks there sfc neidow that was my last dutie assignment 2nd armor I didn't realize how long it's been when I got out there was definitely a higher standard then there is now in almost all aspects of military from marching or double timing every where you went to climbing your ass on a bus if it was over a mile away. Uniforms were a sign of what kind of soldier you were and what kind of unit u came from esprit de Corp for those that don't remember or just don't know that means pride in and loyalty to a unit shown by its members

USMLM (Which consisted of all branches of the service) wore the USMLM patch on their left sleeve so why not. I see no conflict.

All the nice pretty colored things one wears on their uniforms is only for their benefit, for their self justification that they have done a good job, or maybe to impress and young lady or two...

SFC Joseph Weber - yes we were, I was attached to that bde. We ended up with three army unit patches and two marine ones

As a combat infantryman with the big red 1, then later a Marine I was authorized to wear the combat action ribbon in place of my CIB. I feel a Marine who joins the Army after being a Marine if he's awarded the combat action ribbon, he/she should be allowed to wear the award that they would be authorized to wear if they had been with a similar unit. I.e. Infantry CIB.

Them they have changed the regs. Not surprising, but I went through this with one of my sergeants, and we had to point out that according to the then current 670-1, his Marine combat unit assignment from DESERT STORM authorized him to wear it as his FWTS SSI. He didn't even realize the patch was still around.

(14) Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF): between 19 March 2003 and 31 August 2010, both dates inclusive, for Soldiers assigned to units participating in OIF. Soldiers must have been deployed in the CENTCOM area of operations, or participated in OIF while deployed in Turkey, Israel, or on Aegis cruisers. Soldiers who served with the 1st Marine Division between 19 March 2003 and 21 April 2003 during combat operations in support of OIF are authorized to wear the 1st Marine Division SSI as their SSI–FWTS. Soldiers who were deployed in the area of operations on training exercises or in support of operations other than OIF not authorized the SSI-FWTS, unless those exercises or operations became combat or support missions to OIF.

To CPT: All combat patches come with official orders. It's an award so it cannot be taken away. Your interpretation of regulation does not dismiss the fact, you can wear it. As far as your official photo goes, that's on you. If an I deployed or well educated board member does not understand why you are wearing a marine patch, they should not be on your board.

Similar story here with my unit in 2006; MG Zilmer, commander of I MEF Forward signed a memo asking the Army to approve an exception to policy and allow the Army units assigned to him permanent wear of the I MEF patch, which the Chief of Staff approved (we were later awarded the NUC, like many others here).

There in lies the difference, you were authorized, not a former Marine wearing it on an army uniform who is not authorized.

MAJ (Join to see) Well apparently a lot of “no ones” around those soldiers wearing it didn’t care. And for a DA Photo I would hope that the NCO would know enough about the board process to not shoot them selves in the foot by wearing it, but if they did, GOOD FOR THEM.

SSgt Alex Torres - As you were! Fifth and sixth Marines. My bad.

Remember, we had the pride of being Marines, they don't. That is why they need patches.

Right on, Staff Sergeant. The zooms can wear them on flight gear only. Patches have not been worn on service "A" since just after the end of WWII. Semper Fi, Drill Instructor!!!

Sgt Edward Allen - And all this time I thought it got down to the heritage of those units, some of which can trace their lineage back to pre-revolutionary war days? What a concept...not

CPL Daniel Schwinge - True

SPC Patrick Chandler - It is called a break down in discipline. When people come over and assume they can wear something not authorized, then that should be the end of it. But we know that is not always the case, is it?

SSG Mike Busovicki] - I have a copy of the memorandum that was put into our files while were stationed at Al Asad Iraq in 2006. The memorandum was directed to the commanding general at MNF-W and signed by Dennis W. Dingue, COL, GS Director of HR Policy Directorate. Attached was a listing of the units authorized to wear the 1st MEF logo as the SSI-FWTS. The 1-506 IN is listed as a unit that is eligible to wear there logo. If you would like to have a copy of this memorandum, please contact me via Rally Pont.

MSG (Anonymous) Exactly. Everyone wants to be special.

me too

Maybe along with which merit badge ranks highest in the BSA.