Half-staff

The American Flag at Half-Staff and Half-Mast

DrillMasterAsk DrillMaster, Commentary, Honor Guard, Instructional 20 Comments

Staff = a flagpole on land. Mast = a flagpole on a ship at sea or on a Marine Corps, Navy, or Coast Guard installation or other maritime location. Halyard = the rope used to raise and lower the flag. Never fly a fringed flag on a stationary or mounted (on a wall or post) flagpole. These flags are only …

Folded American Flag

How Should Multiple Flags be Folded When Taken Down?

DrillMasterAsk DrillMaster, Honor Guard Training, Instructional 4 Comments

This is for outside flags (attached to a halyard and flown from a pole), not indoor/outdoor flags (for color guard flagstaffs for carrying only). The American Flag The American flag must always be folded into a triangle (ref: Flag Code). If it is wet from rain or snow, it is taken down, folded, and brought inside where it is unfolded …

Avoiding Flag Fold Problems

DrillMasterHonor Guard, Honor Guard Training, Instructional Leave a Comment

Here are two ways to avoid potential problems Cutting the First Stripe The method of “cutting” the first stripe, used when a flag has been folded many, many times and is now stretched out to where it will not end up positioned properly for the tuck at the end, creates a very small initial triangle helping create more cloth for …

Flag Fold “Helps”

DrillMasterColor Guard/Color Team, Honor Guard Training 2 Comments

In my theology degree studies, I use several books and online resources that are all called “helps” and they are extremely helpful. Well, we all need “helps” in all kinds of situations and folding the American flag is definitely one of them. Here is one of the videos I made explaining how to fold the flag using just two people. In …

When to Raise and Lower the American Flag

DrillMasterHonor Guard, Honor Guard Training, Instructional Leave a Comment

I received these questions just a short time ago. 1. At the beginning of the work day (duty day) when raising the U.S. flag in conjunction with a state flag which one is flown first? I believe it to be the U.S. flag. Answer: Per the Flag Code, the American flag is always raised first. 2. When lowering the flags …

Angle Port with a Color

Navigating Flagstaffs Through Low Clearance Areas

DrillMasterColor Guard/Color Team, Honor Guard, Honor Guard Training, Instructional 2 Comments

Port When a rifle is in front of your body at an angle with the muzzle dissecting the left shoulder and butt stock over the right hip, that is the Port Position. If both of your hands are in the proper place, that is called Port Arms. There are different versions of Port Arms, depending on what you are doing (ceremonial, …

Flag Pole Height Chart and Maritime Flag Arrangements

DrillMasterHonor Guard Training, Instructional 3 Comments

For our purposes, flagpole means a permanent pole in the ground and flagstaff is one that is carried. For flagpoles a general rule of thumb is the height of the flag should be 1/3 or 1/5 the height of the flagpole (the pole should be three or five times the height of the flag). Here is an example. For a twenty-five …