Posted on Oct 31, 2014
Why don't officers wear marksmanship badges?
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The day I turned my chevrons in for gold bars I noticed something. All the officers I've ever seen never wore marksmanship badges in dress uniforms. I just assumed they were unauthorized for officers and removed it voluntarily. I honestly never desired to wear the badge (probably because I was only ever a sharpshooter), but I haven't found any documentation specifically preventing officers from wearing them. Do you think officers should wear them?
Officer
Uniforms
Marksmanship
Badges
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 764
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Yes, I think officers should wear them. I’m a retired LTC now, but when I was a 1LT in the 82nd Airborne Division, I learned that the 75th Ranger Regiment requires officers to wear marksmanship badges (and they’d better be Expert Marksman badges). So I decided to go ahead and wear one as well. I was required to qualify with my assigned weapon(s) every year, and I always scored Expert, so why not wear it?
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I earned my Expert marksmanship badge in basic training. After nine years of enlisted service I received my commission, served another 20 years, ad always wore my Expert badge. No one ever questioned me about it. As long as there is no regulation forbidding wearing the badge, if youearned it, then wear it..
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As a Navy Chaplain I was a non-combatant. Although I was permitted to qualify with pistol and rifle, I was not permitted to wear the ribbons.
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CW3 Harvey K.
I once coached an Army chaplain on the pistol range during the Cold War. He told me that being armed was optional for chaplains. He chose to be armed because Russian policy was to categorize chaplains as "political officers", not entitled to the protection of any rights extended to captured troops. They were to be summarily shot if captured.
He did not mention any Army rule about chaplains not permitted to wear marksmanship badges.
He did not mention any Army rule about chaplains not permitted to wear marksmanship badges.
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When I traded my stripes for Gold bars, i did not stop realizing that the troops expect their leaders to be good at their job and the leaders expect the troops to be good at their job. I consistently qualified as expert with the service rifle (M-1) and pistol (Colt .45 cal) and I was proud to display the badges. Leadership means excelling in your job and that includes use of weapons!
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670-1 has guidelines for the wear of officers awards just as it does in the enlisted side... A person can choose to so pride I. Their accomplishment if he or she chooses.. While I was in the honor guard it was our commanders policy that all persons of our unit while in dress uniform will wear all awards earned..so if an officer chooses not to wear there awards i.e. Marksmanship badges then let them me personally when I get the new 2lt I'm showing him or her the right way to do things so when they are in charge of troops and standing in front of troops they are the standard to regulation not what is popular cause that is not my place but to enforce army regs is so if my joes have to wear their marksmanship badges I feel they leaders should too just my thoughts
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1LT Rich Voss
Good on you, SFC ! I wore and still own every badge I earned as an EM AND officer. Believe me, I was not embarrassed to wear my machine gunner expert tag on that badge. My fellow junior tanker officers (ROTC & West Point) would look at my three separate marksmanship badges and have to ask me how long I had been in. Answer: a year longer in active duty and I started out as an 11B draftee ! LOL. THEN I went to Armor OCS. Demoted to wearing a Colt pistol (or 2). Oh, well, I had that tank ! (Actually 5 tanks). Congratulations on the Honor Guard duty !
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BECAUSE AN OFFICER CAN NOT SHOOT WORTH A DARN ONLY GIVE ORDERS THAT IS WHY I WAS AN NON COMMISSIONED OFFICER, I WAS ONE OF THE BEST WHILE IN COMBAT. I COULD FIGHT, SHOOT, SMELL, EAR AND BE ALERT TO HOSTILE FORCES. I AM ONE PROUD VET WHO WAS ALLOWED TO COME HOME BY THE GRACE OF GOD.
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I NEVER NOTICED THAT AND WOULD LIKE TO SEE ALL OFFICERS WEARING THEM. LEAD BY EXAMPLE. GO AND QUALIFY WITH YOUR UNIT AND BE PROUD. I ALSO UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE IN POSITION AND AN OFFICER IS NOT GOING TO BE ON THE FRONT LINE AS A SNIPER, BUT IT WILL BE GOOD FOR THE UNIT TO SEE THE OFFICERS WEARING MARKSMANSHIP BADGES.
DIFFERENT SUBJECT, BUT I ALSO THINK ALL BRANCHES SHOULD HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE CRUCIBLE LIKE THE MARINE CORPS....SHIP OR PLANE GOES DOWN YOU BETTER KNOW HOW TO FIGHT.
DIFFERENT SUBJECT, BUT I ALSO THINK ALL BRANCHES SHOULD HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE CRUCIBLE LIKE THE MARINE CORPS....SHIP OR PLANE GOES DOWN YOU BETTER KNOW HOW TO FIGHT.
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SSG William Egan
INJURED IN IRAQ AND SUFFER BAD MIGRAINES. IT IS EASIER FOR ME TO SEE WITH ALL CAPS. MY GLASSES DON'T ALWAYS WORK WELL BECAUSE WHEN I AM HAVING A CLUSTER THE PRESCRIPTION IS NOT QUITE CORRECT.
BACK IN THE DAY WE WROTE ALL OUR REPORTS IN THE FIELD WITH ALL CAPS :) SO I CAN USE THAT AS AN EXCUSE TOO, BUT IT IS REALLY JUST BECAUSE IT IS EASIER FOR ME TO READ.
BACK IN THE DAY WE WROTE ALL OUR REPORTS IN THE FIELD WITH ALL CAPS :) SO I CAN USE THAT AS AN EXCUSE TOO, BUT IT IS REALLY JUST BECAUSE IT IS EASIER FOR ME TO READ.
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Seems that during my service (71-91, 3 years of that a Drill Sergeant) I observed Officers wearing the marksmanship badges. Understand, when I first entered, we wore fatigues, black boots, khakis and poplin shirts with our Class A Greens. OK, I know......that was Neanderthal days.
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