Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Instructional”
It’s an issue that has never been formally addressed before and the time has come to take care of the issue and give the US military guidance for all services. That means DoD Instruction 5410.19 Volume 4 needs to be updated. In this article I provide some suggestions for that.
All military departmental and organizational colors dip only in specific instances. The instances are fully explained for the departmental colors and many do not understand that the restrictions to dip colors applies to all military organizational flags.
This is an interesting aspect of flag display outside on a flagpole. What is required? Aesthetics is going to be your guide, but there is a bit more to it.
For POW/MIA Recognition Day, the third Friday in September, the US flag is not lowered to half-staff.
Initially, the issue of US Navy and Coast Guard flagstaff finials can be complicated, but we will go through this systematically. A finial is the ornament or topper that is on the top of a flagstaff or mast. A flagstaff is only for static indoor display and to be carried by a color guard and a flag mast (flagpole) is …
Apparently, the Flag Code and military manuals are not enough for Americans to understand that the flag is special and needs to be treated with honor at all times.
For American Regulation Drill, we must follow the standards that is outlined in TC 3-21.5, MCO 5060.20, and AFPAM 34-1203. Arm swing has changed slightly since the early days of our armed forces. Let’s take a close look and see how we actually swing our arms the same way, no matter the service.
Not long ago I received a private message, one that I have received, in essence, a few times before over the years. However, this time it was from an O-10 (Colonel/Captain).
Marching band and drum corps directors, color guard instructors, and flag printing companies have a very big responsibility to not violate Title 4 of the US Code, the Flag Code.
The US military did not consider the hands until the early 1900s and at that time the description has an open hand curved inward. Below, you can see the development of the cupped hand from the earliest writings to the fully cupped hands of today.