Special Air Service 2.0

Special Air Service or SAS is a corps constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces (UKSF) and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world. The SAS together with the Special Boat Service (SBS), Special Reconnaissance Regiment (SRR), and the Special Forces Support Group (SFSG) form the UKSF under the command of the Director Special Forces.
While the SAS traces its origins to 1941 and the Second World War, it was reformed in 1947, and named the 21st Battalion, SAS Regiment, (Artists Rifles). The 22 SAS later gained fame and recognition worldwide after successfully assaulting the Iranian Embassy in London and rescuing hostages during the 1980 Iranian Embassy Siege, lifting the regiment from obscurity outside the military establishment.
The Special Air Service presently comprises 22 Special Air Service Regiment, 21 Special Air Service Regiment and 23 Special Air Service Regiment. It is tasked with special operations in wartime, and primarily counter-terrorism in peacetime.


As always, the artworks featuring the insignia are available via my “Military Insignia” galleries from FineArt America and RedBubble. You can just follow the links in the article to get to the corresponding galleries.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations. Please, contact for any other intended use.



The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

The Corps of Royal Marines (RM)

The Corps of Royal Marines (RM) is the United Kingdom's amphibious light infantry force, forming part of the Naval Service, along with the Royal Navy. The Royal Marines were formed in 1755 as the Royal Navy's infantry troops. However, the marines can trace their origins back to the formation of the English Army's "Duke of York and Albany's maritime regiment of Foot" at the grounds of the Honourable Artillery Company on 28 October 1664.
As a highly specialised and adaptable light infantry force, the Royal Marines are trained for rapid deployment worldwide and capable of dealing with a wide range of threats. The Royal Marines are organised into a light infantry brigade (3 Commando Brigade) and a number of separate units, including 1 Assault Group Royal Marines, 43 Commando Royal Marines formerly Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines (previously the Comacchio Group), and a company strength commitment to the Special Forces Support Group. The Corps operates in all environments and climates, though particular expertise and training is spent on amphibious warfare, arctic warfare, mountain warfare, expeditionary warfare, and its commitment to the UK's Rapid Reaction Force.
Throughout its history, the Royal Marines have seen action in a number of major wars often fighting beside the British Army – including the Seven Years' War, the Napoleonic Wars, the Crimean War, World War I and World War II. In recent times the Corps has been largely deployed in expeditionary warfare roles such as the Falklands War, the Gulf War, the Bosnian War, the Kosovo War, the Sierra Leone Civil War, the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan. The Royal Marines have close international ties with allied marine forces, particularly the United States Marine Corps and the Netherlands Marine Corps (Dutch: Korps Mariniers). Today, the Royal Marines are an elite fighting force within the British Armed forces, having undergone many substantial changes over time.

As always, the artworks feturing the insignia are available via my galleries at FineArt America and RedBubble. You can just follow the links in the article to get to the corresponding galleries.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations. Please, contact for any other intended use.


The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

Special Boat Service (SBS)

The Special Boat Service (SBS) is the special forces unit of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. The SBS can trace its origins to the Second World War to the Army Special Boat Section formed in 1940. After the Second World War, the Royal Marines formed special forces with several name changes with Special Boat Company adopted in 1951 which was re-designated as the Special Boat Squadron in 1974 and on 28 July 1987 to the Special Boat Service after assuming responsibility for maritime counter terrorism.
The Special Boat Service is the maritime special forces unit of the United Kingdom Special Forces and is described as the sister unit of the British Army 22 Special Air Service Regiment (22 SAS) with both under the operational control of the Director Special Forces. In October 2001, full command of the SBS was transferred from the Royal Marines to the Royal Navy whilst retaining the Green beret. On 18 November 2003, the SBS was given their own cap badge with the motto "By Strength and Guile". This follows opening recruitment from only the Royal Marines to all three services of the British Armed Forces. The SBS has traditionally been manned mostly by Royal Marines Commandos.


As always, the artworks feturing the insignia are available via my “Military Insignia” galleries from FineArt America and RedBubble. You can just follow the links in the article to get to the corresponding galleries.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations. Please, contact for any other intended use.



The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

Special Operations Command Korea - SOCKOR 2.0

Special Operations Command Korea or SOCKOR, the United States (U.S.) Theater Special Operations Command (TSOC) in the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a Sub-Unified Command assigned under the Combatant Command (COCOM) of United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), who delegated Operational Command (OPCON) of SOCKOR to the U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM) Commander, who further delegated OPCON of SOCKOR to the United States Forces Korea (USFK) Commander.

SOCKOR focuses on readiness and the ability to fight in defense of the Korean peninsula and the U.S.-ROK Alliance. This is accomplished through several means, ranging from individual and unit readiness and training to continuous updates and validation of operational plans, and participation in Joint Chiefs of Staff and other exercises. During armistice, crisis, and conflict, SOCKOR serves as the headquarters for command and control of all U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) assets in Korea, develops supporting plans, and works together with the Republic of Korea Special Warfare Command (ROK SWC) and United Nations (U.N.) SOF in support of the Commander, United Nations Command (UNC)/ Combined Forces Command (CFC)/ United States Forces Korea (USFK) in order to deter aggression and promote stability in the region. On order, SOCKOR combines with ROK SWC to form the Combined Unconventional Warfare Task Force (CUWTF) and the Commander, SOCKOR also becomes the United Nations Command Special Operations Component (UNCSOC) Commanding General to conduct special operations in support of the Commander, UNC/CFC/USFK efforts to defeat external threats and restore stability.


As always, artwork featuring the insignia can be found in my FineArt America and RedBubble galleries. You can just follow the links in the article.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations.

The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

U.S. Army Security Agency (ASA)

The United States Army Security Agency (ASA) was the United States Army's signals intelligence branch. The Latin motto of the Army Security Agency was Semper Vigilis (Vigilant Always), which echoes the declaration, often misattributed to Thomas Jefferson, that "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." The Agency existed between 1945 and 1976 and was the successor to Army signals intelligence operations dating back to World War I. ASA was under the operational control of the Director of the National Security Agency (DIRNSA), located at Fort Meade, Maryland; but had its own tactical commander at Headquarters, ASA, Arlington Hall Station, Virginia. Besides intelligence gathering, it had responsibility for the security of Army communications and for electronic countermeasures operations. In 1977, the ASA was merged with the US Army's Military Intelligence component to create the United States Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM).
Composed of soldiers trained in military intelligence, the ASA was tasked with monitoring and interpreting military communications of the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China, and their allies and client states around the world. The ASA was directly subordinate to the National Security Agency and all major field stations had NSA technical representatives present.
All gathered information had time-sensitive value depending on its importance and classification. Information was passed through intelligence channels within hours of intercept for the lowest-priority items, but in as little as 10 minutes for the most highly critical information.

ASA personnel were stationed at locations around the globe, wherever the United States had a military presence – publicly acknowledged or otherwise. In some cases, such as Eritrea, it was the primary military presence. One former Field Station, outside of Harrogate, England, in what is now North Yorkshire, was a primary listening post that was subsequently turned over to the British and became an RAF station. It is called RAF Menwith Hill and has been the site of peace protests.

As always, the artworks feturing the insignia are available via my “Military Insignia” galleries from FineArt America and RedBubble. You can just follow the links in the article to get to the corresponding galleries.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations.

The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency - DTRA

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is an agency within the United States Department of Defense and is the official Combat Support Agency for countering weapons of mass destruction (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high explosives). DTRA's main functions are threat reduction, threat control, combat support, and technology development. The agency is headquartered in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. DTRA (and its co-located partner organizations the SCC-WMD and SJFHQ-E) employ approximately 2,000 civilians and uniformed service members at more than a dozen permanent locations around the world. The majority of personnel are at DTRA headquarters on Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Approximately 15% of the workforce is located on Kirtland Air Force Base and the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and the Nevada National Security Site (formerly called the Nevada Test Site), where they do testing and support the U.S. military's nuclear mission. Another 15% of the workforce are stationed in Germany, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Ukraine, Armenia, Kenya, South Korea, Japan, and Singapore. DTRA also has liaisons with all of the U.S. military’s Combatant Commands, the National Guard Bureau, the FBI and other U.S. government interagency partners.
 DTRA was officially established on October 1, 1998, by consolidating several DoD organizations, including the Defense Special Weapons Agency (successor to the Defense Nuclear Agency) and the On-Site Inspection Agency as a result of the 1997 Defense Reform Initiative. The Defense Technology Security Administration and the Nunn–Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction program office in the Office of the Secretary of Defense were also incorporated into the new agency.
In 2005, the Secretary of Defense made the decision to designate the Commander, United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) as the lead Combatant Command for the integration and synchronization of DoD’s Combating WMD efforts in support of U.S. government objectives. To fill this requirement, the USSTRATCOM Center for Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction (SCC-WMD) was co-located with DTRA. That responsibility was moved from USSTRATCOM over to U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), with the transition of responsibility wrapping up in early 2017.

In 2012, the Joint Elimination Coordination Element was reorganized, renamed the Standing Joint Force Headquarters for Elimination (SJFHQ-E) of Weapons of Mass Destruction, and relocated to the DTRA/SCC-WMD headquarters on Fort Belvoir. This centralized the DoD's Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction operations, a move recommended in the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review.
On September 30, 2016, the Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Agency (JIDA) became part of DTRA and was renamed the Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Organization in accordance with the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). In Section 1532 of the NDAA, Congress directed the DoD to move JIDA to a military department or under an existing defense agency.
According to the DTRA/SCC-WMD/SJFHQ-E Strategic Plan for 2016–2020, the three organizations' shared mission is to "Safeguard the United States and its allies from global WMD threats by integrating, synchronizing, and providing expertise, technologies, and capabilities.


As always, the artworks feturing the insignia are available via my “Military Insignia” galleries from FineArt America and RedBubble. You can just follow the links in the article to get to the corresponding galleries.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations.

The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

On-Site Inspection Agency - OSIA

On January 15, 1988, President Ronald Reagan directed the Secretary of Defense to establish the On-Site Inspection Agency (OSIA), its mission was to carry out the on-site inspection and escort responsibilities of the United States under the provisions of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (lNF) Treaty. Signed on December 8, 1987, by President Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, the INF Treaty enjoined the two countries to eliminate all ground launched missiles (approximately 2.700 missiles) with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers. National teams of inspectors would monitor and report on the elimination of these missile systems and other significant provisions of the treaty. On-site inspections were a major component of this and all subsequent phases of the treaty. They had immediate significance, both as a barometer for measuring adherence to the treaty and as a precedent for entering into future arms control treaties and agreements. Consequently, the purpose of President Reagan's January 15, 1988, directive was to define the INF Treaty mission and to fix responsibility for the U.S. government's on-site inspection and escort mission in a new Department of Defense organization: the On-Site Inspection Agency. Eleven days after the President's directive, on January 26, 1988, William H. Taft I V, the Deputy Secretary of Defense, established OSIA as a separate operating agency in the Department of Defense.

The new agency would have three deputy directors-a Principal Deputy Director, a Deputy Director for International Negotiations, and a Deputy Director for Counterintelligence. The new organization's first charter stipulated that OSIA would have two principal responsibilities:

• To manage and coordinate the U.S. INF Treaty on-site inspection activities in the USSR, Czechoslovakia, and East Germany, and

• To manage and coordinate all United States activities associated with the Soviet Union's on-site inspections of United States' INF facilities in the United States, Belgium, Federal Republic of Germany, Italy, Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.

On February l, 1988, Brigadier General Roland Lajoie, U.S. Anny, became the first Director, On-Site Inspection Agency. The INF Treaty mission largely determined the new agency's initial organizational structure. Responsibility for planning, operational training and conducting on-site inspection and escort missions was lodged in OSIA's operations directorate. The directorate had two components: an inspection division, which prepared for and conducted U.S. on-site inspections at the 130 Soviet INF missile sites in the Soviet Union, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia: and an escort division, which was responsible for coordinating the escorting of Soviet on-site inspection teams at the 31 U.S. INF missile sites located in Western Europe and the United States. The new agency’s portal monitoring directorate had responsibility for conducting and managing the continuous on-site portal inspections.


As always, artworks featuring the insignia are available via my “Military Insignia” galleries from FineArt America and RedBubble. You can just follow the links in the article to get to the corresponding galleries.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations.

The above information was exerpted from the book by Joseph P. Harahan called ON-SITE INSPECTIONS UNDER THE INF TREATY.

Marine Force Reconnaissance (FORECON)

ForceReconnaissance (FORECON) are one of the United States Marine Corps's special operations capable forces (SOC) that provide essential elements of military intelligence to the command element of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF), by supporting their task force commanders, and their subordinate operating units of the Fleet Marine Force (FMF).

Historically, the Force Recon companies, detachments and platoons performed both deep reconnaissance and direct action (DA) operations. Some missions are now shared by the Marine Special Operations Teams (MSOT), due to the establishment of the U.S. Marine Special Operations Command (MARSOC) in 2006. MARSOC was formed from Force Recon's direct action platoons, and now are capable of performing many of the same mission sets for USSOCOM. This dual existence now allows the FORECON companies to focus on excelling in their primary intelligence-gathering mission, as well as the Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure (VBSS) side of the specialized raid mission.

FORECON is responsible for operating independently behind enemy lines performing unconventional special operations, in support of conventional warfare. The unit's various methods of airborne, heliborne, submarine and waterborne insertions and extractions are similar to those of the Navy SEALs, Army Special Forces, 75th Ranger Regiment, or Air Force Combat Controllers, although Force Recon's missions and tasks do differ slightly with a focus on primarily supporting Marine expeditionary and amphibious operations.

As always, the above artworks are available via my 'USMC' galleries, part of the  “Military Insignia & Heraldry” galleries from FineArt America. You can just follow the links in the article to get to the corresponding galleries.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations.

The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

Toronto Police Service

The Toronto Police Service (TPS) is the police force servicing Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Established in 1834, it was the first municipal police service created in North America and one of the oldest police services in the English-speaking world. It is the largest municipal police service in Canada and third largest police force in Canada after the Ontario Provincial Police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

At a budget of over $1 billion, it ranks second only to the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) in the budgetary expenses of the municipal government of Toronto. The Toronto Police Service was founded in 1834 when the city of Toronto was first created from the town of York. The Toronto Police is one of the English-speaking world’s oldest modern municipal police departments; older than, for example, the New York City Police Department which was formed in 1845 or the Boston Police Department which was established in 1839.

Today, the Toronto Police Service is responsible for overall local police service in Toronto and works with the other emergency services (Toronto Paramedic Services and Toronto Fire Services) and other police forces in the GTA. 

For fine art pieces and other items with my law enforcement artwork, please visit my 'Law Enforcement Insignia & Heraldry' galleries at FineArt America and RedBubble. Upon request, artwork in those galleries can be customized with ranks and, wherever appropriate - individual badge numbers. 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the largest federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security. It is charged with regulating and facilitating international trade, collecting import duties, and enforcing U.S. regulations, including trade, customs, and immigration. CBP is the largest law enforcement agency in the United States. It has its headquarters in Washington, D.C.

While its primary mission is preventing terrorists and terrorist weapons from entering the United States, CBP is also responsible for apprehending individuals attempting to enter the United States illegally, including those with a criminal record, stemming the flow of illegal drugs and other contraband, protecting United States agricultural and economic interests from harmful pests and diseases, and protecting American businesses from intellectual property theft.

The United States Border Patrol (USBP) is an American federal law enforcement agency. Its mission is to detect and prevent illegal aliens, terrorists and terrorist weapons from entering the United States, and prevent illegal trafficking of people and contraband. It is the mobile, uniformed law enforcement arm of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), a component of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The U.S. Border Patrol Agent (as opposed to Officer) is a federal law enforcement agent actively patrolling a U.S. border to prevent persons from entering or leaving the United States without government permission. Agents detect and prevent the smuggling and unlawful entry of aliens into the United States, along with apprehending those people found to be in violation of immigration laws. Agents work to lower crimes and improve the quality of life in border communities. In some areas, Agents are deputized or have peace-officer status and use it to enforce local and state/territory laws. More than 20,000 Border Patrol Agents safeguard nearly 6,000 miles of land border the United States shares with Canada and Mexico, and more than 2,000 miles of coastal waters.

One of the most important activities for a United States Border Patrol Agent is "line watch". This involves the detection, prevention and apprehension of terrorists, illegal aliens and smugglers of both aliens and contraband at or near the land border by maintaining surveillance from a covert position, following up leads, responding to electronic sensor television systems, aircraft sightings, and interpreting and following tracks, marks and other physical evidence. Some of the major activities are farm and ranch check, traffic check, traffic observation, city patrol, transportation check, administrative, intelligence, and anti-smuggling activities.

 For fine art pieces and other products with my law enforcement artwork, please visit 'Law Enforcement Insignia & Heraldry' galleries at FineArt America and RedBubble. Upon request, artwork in those galleries can be customized with ranks and, wherever appropriate - individual badge numbers. 

U.S. Armed Forces - Service Branches, Special Edition

'Military Insignia & Heraldry' turned seven years today. To commemorate this little anniversary, behold the 'Special Edition'.

The above artworks are available via my “Military Insignia” galleries exclusively at FineArt America. 

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above image to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations. 

Canadian Provost Corps - 'C Pro C' Badge

The Canadian Provost Corps (C Pro C) was the military police corps of the Canadian Army. The Canadian Provost Corps was authorized on 15 June 1940. The Canadian Provost Corps was amalgamated into the Canadian Forces in 1968.

In mid June 1940, the Canadian Provost Corps was officially born out of 1 Provost Company. For most of 1940, 1 Provost Company was stationed in England, but was involved in the battles during the fall of France (Brest, Laval, Sable and Chateaubriant).
The Canadian Provost Corps Training Centre operated from November 1942 to May 1946, training a total of 1,897 all ranks. During World War II, most of the Canadian Army in England was stationed at Aldershot.
Canadian MPs wore red-topped caps and were armed with .38 revolvers carried in a holster on the left hip together with white pattern 1937 web belt, brace and brace attachment in the same manner as the British Corps of Military Police (CMP).
The corps saw action for the first time on 18 August 1942 in the Dieppe Raid. Of the 41 members who took part, 22 returned to England, one was killed, eighteen were taken prisoner (seven of them being wounded). During 1943, 1 Provost Company became involved in operations in Sicily (Pachino, Valguarnera, Assoro, Agira, Adrano and Regalbuto) and after the crossing into Italy on 3 September 1943, the company continued its support of the I Canadian Corps as part of the Eighth Army as Allied forces crept northwards from the toe of Italy. Places where 1 Provost Company saw action included: Campobasso, Torella, Motta Montecorvino, San Leonardo, The Gully, and Ortona in 1943; San Nicola, San Tommaso, Cassino II, the Gustav Line, the Liri Valley, the Hitler Line, and Got Lamone Crossing in 1944; and Misano Ridge, Rimini Line, San Martino, San Lorenzo, and Fosso Vecchio in 1945. In the Cassino area of Italy, the Canadian Provost assisted the British CMP on "Highway 6", where 11,000 vehicles were handled every day. The Canadians were part of twenty-four provost and traffic control companies and two Special Investigation Branch sections that were attached to the Eighth Army.
Shortly after the Normandy landings in June 1944, the 2nd Canadian Line of Communications (LoC) Provost HQ and six sections were deployed in Northern France on traffic control duties. 1 Provost Company also saw action at Apeldoorn in the Netherlands.
On 18 October 1945, 1 Provost Company was de-activated when it was repatriated to Canada. By September 1945, the C Pro C numbered 6,120 men.
The Canadian Provost Corps School was formed at Camp Borden in the late 1940s, and by 1948 there were at least ten Provost Companies, including five Militia Provost Companies, in the Canadian Army.
25 Provost Detachment headed to Korea in 1950, where it formed part of 1 Commonwealth Division Provost Company ("1 COMWEL Div Pro Coy"). It was stated in the Standing Orders of this unit that it was the only integrated unit of its kind in the Allied Forces. In 1955, the Provost Detachment was disbanded after a total of 264 Canadian MPs had served in Korea.
From 23 November 1951, the 27th Brigade Provost Detachment was located in Hanover, West Germany with NATO. In November 1958, the 4 Canadian Infantry Brigade Group rotated into Germany and the Provost Platoon in Germany was renamed No.4 Provost Platoon.
During 1968, the platoon was renamed 4 Military Police Platoon and was located at Canadian Forces Base Lahr until the pull out of 4 Canadian Mechanised Battle Group (CMBG) in 1992.
In March 1964, the United Nations authorized a force to serve on the island of Cyprus. Members of the Military Police served on Cyprus from that time until Canada pulled out in 1992.
On 1 February 1968, the Provost Corps ceased to exist, when all branches of the Canadian military were unified into the Canadian Forces and security became the responsibility of the Canadian Armed Forces Security and Intelligence Branch.
The Canadian Military Police Heritage Hall at Canadian Forces Base Borden is a museum dedicated to the memory of the Canadian Provost Corps, Royal Canadian Air Force Service Police and Royal Canadian Navy Naval Shore Patrol Veterans in the Canadian Forces.


To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations.

The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

Pararescue (PJs)

Pararescuemen, also known as PJs (Pararescue Jumpers), are Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) and Air Combat Command (ACC)

operatives tasked with recovery and medical treatment of personnel in humanitarian and combat environments. These special operations units are also used to support NASA missions and have been used to recover astronauts after water landings. They are attached to other SOF teams from all branches to conduct other operations as appropriate. Of the 22 enlisted Air Force Cross recipients, 12 are Pararescuemen. They wear the maroon beret as a symbol of their elite status, and to symbolize the blood shed by past PJs, as well as the blood current PJs are willing to shed to save lives. Part of the little-known Air Force Special Tactics community and long an enlisted preserve, the Pararescue service began commissioning Combat Rescue Officers early in the 21st century.

Combat Rescue Officer (CRO) is a career field in the United States Air Force. Its Air Force Specialty Code (AFSC) is 13D and it was created to strengthen USAF personnel recovery capabilities by providing commissioned officer leadership that possessed an operational skillset paralleling that of the enlisted pararescuemen (PJ). The CRO specialty includes direct combatant command and control of Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) operations. They plan, manage and execute the six tasks of CSAR: prepare, report, locate, support, recover, and reintegrate isolated personnel and material. CROs conduct strategic, operational and tactical level planning, provide battle staff expertise, manage theater personnel recovery operations and conduct combat operations.

CROs command day-to-day activities to organize, train and equip assigned personnel to conduct Personnel Recovery operations. They deploy as a direct combatant commander of operations. CROs provide subject matter expertise to command battle staffs and theater command and control structure.

CRO duties and responsibilities include planning missions and leading CSAR assets, pararescue and Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape operations, including aerospace interface in the recovery objective area. Supporting joint and combined forces engaged in conventional and special operations air, ground, and/or maritime personnel recovery operations. Advising on readiness of forces based on force status reports, inspections, training exercise and evaluation results. Developing plans and coordinating activities to report, locate and support isolated personnel or material. Planning and conducting missions to recover personnel and material, coordinating evacuation of isolated personnel to friendly control. Developing plans and executing the debriefing and reintegration of recovered personnel. Ensuring CSAR activities are organized, and teams/units are trained and equipped to perform the full military spectrum of CSAR and Coalition/Joint PR. Inspecting and evaluating CSAR activities, functions, and personnel.

As always, the above artworks are available  via my “Military Insignia” galleries from FineArt America and RedBubble. You can just follow the links in the article to get to the corresponding galleries.

To active duty or reserve military personnel, veterans and their family members: I grant an explicit permission to download the above images to be used for non-profit/non-commercial and charitable causes, benefiting troops and their families, as well as for non-commercial internal duty-specific purposes, such as unit website design, training materials and presentations. 

The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

U.S. Army Special Forces Groups

1st Special Forces Group

The 1st Special Forces Group is a U.S. Army Special Forces unit subordinate to the United States Pacific Command (USPACOM) and the Special Operations Command, Pacific (SOCPAC). The group was activated on 24 June 1957 at Camp Drake, Japan. It was among the first groups of the Special Forces to be officially formed. The group is responsible for operations in the Pacific. Currently, the First Battalion is stationed at Okinawa while the 2d, 3d, and 4th Battalions are stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington with a 4th Battalion standing up in the summer of 2009. 1st Special Forces Group holds the distinction of having the first, Captain Harry Cramer killed 21 October 1957, and last, SGT Fred Mick killed 12 October 1972, Special Forces men killed in Vietnam, as well as the first man, SFC Nathan Chapman killed 4 January 2002, in Afghanistan. Captain Cramer's name was left off the Vietnam Memorial when it was opened in 1982 due to the secretive nature of his mission and that the extent of America's involvement in Southeast Asia was not known in 1957. However, his son appealed to the National Parks Service and in 1983 Captain Cramer's name was added to the Memorial.

Throughout 2003–2004, the 1st SFG (A) deployed many soldiers in support of OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM and OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM in Afghanistan. By November 2004 the unit deployed an entire battalion to Afghanistan as part of the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force- Afghanistan (CJSOTF-A).

Today, 1st SFG (A) continues to support the Global War on Terrorism with operations in the Philippines, Iraq and Afghanistan as well as maintaining US security relationships with partner nations throughout the Pacific.

3rd Special Forces Group

The 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) – abbreviated 3rd SFG(A) and often called simply "3rd Group" – is a U.S. Army Special Forces (SF) unit active in the Vietnam Era (1963–69) and reactivated in 1990. It is subordinate of the United States Central Command (USCENTCOM) and the United States Special Operations Command Central (USSOCCENT or SOCCENT). Its area of operations (AO) is now Sub-Saharan Africa. 3rd Group was first activated on 5 December 1963 at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The four colors of the quadrants of 3rd Group's distinctive unit flash derive from the flashes of the pre-existing SF units from which members were initially drawn. These colors are (clockwise from upper left): yellow (1st SFG (A)), red (7th SFG (A)), black (5th SFG (A)), and white (Special Forces Training Group (A)).

3rd Group had a Mideast and Africa orientation during the 1960s. It also supported 5th Group operations in Vietnam, losing the 403rd Army Security Agency Special Operations Detachment and the 19th PSYOP Company to 5th Group in 1966. With the "vietnamization" of the conflict in Southeast Asia, 3rd Group was deactivated in 1969 and members transferred back to various other SF groups. 3rd Group was reactivated in 1990 and, until the mid '90s, was given responsibility for the Caribbean as well as the western part of Africa. At the outbreak of the Persian Gulf War (August 1990), 3rd Group had only one functioning battalion (1st BN). This battalion deployed to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, for three months, during which time it sent detachments forward into denied areas of Iraq and Kuwait for reconnaissance and sabotage missions. Ultimately, in late February 1991, it was given the mission of securing and occupying the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait City. The 2nd BN and 3rd BN of 3rd Group were reactivated in 1991 and 1992, respectively. 3rd Group took part in the restoration of democracy in Haiti in 1994. Since the mid 2000s 3rd Group's area of responsibility has primarily been Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Central Asia.

5th Special Forces Group

The 5th Special Forces Group is a United States Army Special Forces unit that was activated on 21 September 1961 during the Cold War. It is subordinate to USCENTCOM and SOCCENT. The 5th SFG was first deployed as a battlefield advisory group for the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN). By February 1965, it was deployed as a mainstay battle force once the war was in full swing.

The 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) added to its combat history during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. In August 1990 the Group was called upon to conduct operations in Southwest Asia in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. During this crisis the Army's First Special Operations Task Force, (ARSOTF), consisting of elements of the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) comprising 106 special operations teams performing missions of  support to coalition warfare; conducting foreign internal defense missions with the Saudi Arabian Army, performing special reconnaissance, border surveillance, direct action, combat search and rescue missions; and advising and assisting a pan-Arab equivalent force larger than six U.S. divisions, as well as conducting civil-military operations training and liaison with the Kuwaitis. By 13 September 2001, the 5th Special Forces Group was ordered to stand up a forward headquarters to conduct operations in Afghanistan. On 19 October, Operational Detachment Alpha 555, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) was the first of several 5th Group teams to infiltrate into Afghanistan, and work with the Northern Alliance to bring down the Taliban government. During Operation Iraqi Freedom 5th SFG(A) assisted in the capture of Saddam Hussein, and were deployed throughout Iraq as part of Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force – Arabian Peninsula (CJSOTF-AP). They were responsible for the capture of many terrorist leaders in Iraq. The Tom Clancy's "Ghost Recon" series features U.S. Special Forces Group 5, 1st Battalion, Delta Company, known in the games as "The Ghosts."

6th Special Forces Group

The 6th Special Forces Group (Airborne) or 6th SFG (ABN)(also 6SFGA) has been active from 1963 to 1971. It was based at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina and assigned to Southwest Asia (Iraq, Iran, etc.) and Southeast Asia. Many of the 103 original Son Tay raider volunteers were from 6SFGA.

7th Special Forces Group

The 7th Special Forces Group, an operational unit of the United States Army Special Forces, was activated on 20 May 1960. It traces its lineage to the 1st Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Special Service Force. It is subordinate to USSOUTHCOM and SOCSOUTH. Its main mission is to conduct guerrilla operations and train friendly governments' armed forces in Central and South America. 7th Special Forces Group participated in Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada in 1983, as well as in Operation Just Cause in Panama in 1989. Since early 2002, the 7th SFG has deployed almost nonstop in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. 7th SFG along with the 3rd Special Forces Group are the two SFGs responsible for conducting operations in Afghanistan. The Group has also deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom numerous times, but not as often as Afghanistan. The 7th SFG has lost more SF soldiers in the Global War on Terrorism than any other SFG.

8th Special Forces Group

The 8th Special Forces Group of the United States Army was established in 1963 at Fort Gulick, Panama Canal Zone. The primary mission of the 8th Special Forces Group (Airborne) [(SFG(A)] was counter-insurgency training for the armies of Latin America. Some training was performed under the sponsorship of the School of the Americas, also located at Fort Gulick.

In May 1962, the advance party from Company D, 7th SFG(A) departed from Ft. Bragg, NC to Fort Gulick, Panama, at that time in the Panama Canal Zone, to establish the 8th SFG(A). Three months later, in August 1962, Major Melvin J. Sowards, Commander of Company D, 7th SFG(A) moved the main body of the company to the Canal Zone. They would be followed by augmentation detachments. Upon their arrival, the basic organization of the Special Action Force (SAF) was completed and Lieutenant Colonel Sawyer assumed command. The legendary Lieutenant Colonel Arthur D. Simons, aka "Bull", then took command of Company D, 7th SFG(A) 18 January 1963 and LTC Sawyer became the Executive Officer. On 12 April 1963, under the command of LTC Simons, the SAF elements of the 7th SFG(A) were officially redesignated, as authorized by the Department of the Army and the 8th SFG(A) was activated.

The 8th's full designation was 8th Special Forces Group (ABN), Special Action Force (SAF), Latin America. The 8th was the US Army's only full SAF. In addition to the two line Special Forces companies, the SAF included a Military Intelligence detachment, a Medical detachment, a Military Police detachment, an Engineer detachment, an Army Security Agency detachment, and a Psychological Operations battalion.

Special Forces at this time didn't use designators like "battalion". A Special Forces company (which later became a battalion) was commanded by a Lt. Colonel and was designated as a "C" team. The 8th had 2 "C" teams. Each "C" team had 3 "B" teams and each "B" team had 5 "A" teams. The 8th SAF also operated the NCO Academy, Airborne School and Underwater Operations School for the US Army Southern Command (USARSO). They also provided support for the Jungle Warfare School at Fort Sherman, later renamed the Jungle Operations Training Center to be politically correct.

10th Special Forces Group

The 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) (10th SFG(A) or 10th Group) is an active duty United States Army Special Forces (SF) Group. The 10th Group is responsible for operations within the EUCOM area of responsibility, as part of the Special Operations Command, Europe (SOCEUR). 10th Group has also been involved in parts of Africa and the Middle East. In 2009, as part of a new SOCOM directive, the group is now also responsible for operations within the AFRICOM area of responsibility.

10th SFG(A) was formed on 19 June 1952, at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, under the command of Colonel Aaron Bank. The group was split in 1953, with one half being sent to Germany, while the other half remained at Fort Bragg to form the core of the 77th Special Forces Group. In 1968, the majority of the unit transferred to Fort Devens, Massachusetts, with the exception of 1st Battalion, which remained in Germany. Between 1994 and 1995, 10th SFG(A) moved to Fort Carson, Colorado, which remains its current home.

10th Group began training with unconventional warfare groups from friendly countries in the 1960s, beginning with NATO allies. The group has also trained various components of the militaries of several Middle Eastern countries, including Lebanon, Jordan, Yemen, Iran, as well as Kurdish tribesmen. Units of the 10th SFG(A) have participated in humanitarian missions to the Congo, Somalia, and Rwanda. 10th SFG(A) was deployed to Saudi Arabia in 1991 during the First Persian Gulf War. The 10th SFG has been heavily involved in the War on Terrorism, deploying to Georgia, North Africa, Afghanistan, and consistently to Iraq.

11th Special Forces Group

The 11th Special Forces Group (Airborne), US Army Reserve was attached to the 97th Army Reserve Command at Fort Meade, Maryland. For a number of years in the late 1960's, Miller Field, Staten Island, New York was home to the headquarters of the Army's 11th Special Forces Group.

In November 1990, the Department of Defense developed budget guidance that directed the inactivation of 3 Army National Guard and 3 Army Reserve Special Forces battalions. The Department of Defense subsequently rescinded the inactivation plans for the 3 Army Reserve battalions pending the results of the Command's joint mission analysis. Conferees for the 1993 Department of Defense Appropriations Act included in their report the expectation that the Army Special Operations Command would maintain existing Army National Guard Special Operations units through Fiscal Year 1993 and rejected any plan or initiative to expand the active component special operations forces to replace these National Guard units. The conferees further noted that in the Fiscal Year 1992 Defense Appropriations Act, Congress had limited any conversion of National Guard missions to the active components. The Command's analysis validated the need to inactivate the 6 battalions, in the 11th Special Forces Group (US Army Reserve) and 19th Special Forces Group (Utah Army National Guard). Instead, the 11th and 12th Special Forces Group (Airborne), both US Army Reserve units, were inactivated on 15 September 1995.

12th Special Forces Group

12th Special Forces Group was a US Army Reserve unit. In 1981 Soldiers with 1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, jumped into Fort McCoy from 3 US Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft. The 85 active-duty Green Berets were there to advise, assist and evaluate the reservists from 12th Special Forces Group.

In November 1990, the Department of Defense developed budget guidance that directed the inactivation of 3 Army National Guard and 3 Army Reserve Special Forces battalions. The Department of Defense subsequently rescinded the inactivation plans for the 3 Army Reserve battalions pending the results of the Command's joint mission analysis. Conferees for the 1993 Department of Defense Appropriations Act included in their report the expectation that the Army Special Operations Command would maintain existing Army National Guard Special Operations units through Fiscal Year 1993 and rejected any plan or initiative to expand the active component special operations forces to replace these National Guard units. The conferees further noted that in the Fiscal Year 1992 Defense Appropriations Act, Congress had limited any conversion of National Guard missions to the active components. The Command's analysis validated the need to inactivate the 6 battalions, in the 11th Special Forces Group (US Army Reserve) and 19th Special Forces Group (Utah Army National Guard). Instead, the 11th and 12th Special Forces Group (Airborne), both US Army Reserve units, were inactivated on 15 September 1995.

19th Special Forces Group

The 19th Special Forces Group is one of two National Guard groups of the United States Army Special Forces. Headquartered in Draper, Utah, with detachments in Washington, West Virginia, Ohio, Rhode Island, Colorado, California and Texas, the 19th SFG shares responsibility over Southwest Asia with the 5th Special Forces Group, and the Pacific with the 1st Special Forces Group. It is subordinate to USCENTCOM and SOCCENT. In April 2007, the 5th Battalion of 19th SFG and troops from the 2nd Battalion were called to Operation Iraqi Freedom. On September 2008, several units of the 19ths SFG were called to active duty (Operation Enduring Freedom XIII).

20th Special Forces Group

The 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne) or 20th SFG (ABN) is one of two Army National Guard groups for the United States Army Special Forces. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama (and is thus part of the Alabama Army National Guard) and as part of the United States Southern Command has an area of responsibility covering 32 countries, including Latin America south of Mexico, the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the southwestern Atlantic Ocean. The area is shared with the Eglin Air Force Base-based 7th Special Forces Group, which is the active Special Forces group responsible for the same region.

The 20th Special Forces Group has battalions from Alabama (1st Battalion), Mississippi (2nd Battalion), and Florida (3rd Battalion), with detachments in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina; Chicago, Illinois; Glen Arm, Maryland; and Chicopee, Massachusetts. There is also a MI company located in Louisville, Kentucky.

Following the start of the Global War on Terror the 20th has been actively deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan.

The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.

Military Assistance Command, Vietnam - Studies and Observations Group - MACV-SOG

Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group (aka SOG, MACSOG, and MACV-SOG) was a highly classified, multi-service United States special operations unit which conducted covert unconventional warfare operations prior to and during the Vietnam War.

Established on 24 January 1964, the unit conducted strategic reconnaissance missions in the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam), Laos, and Cambodia; carried out the capture of enemy prisoners, rescued downed pilots, and conducted rescue operations to retrieve prisoners of war throughout Southeast Asia; and conducted clandestine agent team activities and psychological operations.
The unit participated in most of the significant campaigns of the Vietnam War, including the Gulf of Tonkin incident which precipitated increased American involvement, Operation Steel Tiger, Operation Tiger Hound, the Tet Offensive, Operation Commando Hunt, the Cambodian Campaign, Operation Lam Son 719, and the Easter Offensive. The unit was formally disbanded and replaced by the Strategic Technical Directorate Assistance Team 158 on 1 May 1972.


The above information provided in part by Wikipedia, The Institute of Heraldry, Global Security, and the official websites of the corresponding units and formations.