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The Glider Badge was a special skills badge of the
Department of the Army, dated 5 March 2019, last accessed 4 February 2020 Following the close of the
A cloth circular Airborne (Glider) Insignia, similar to the Airborne (Parachute) Insignia, was worn on the garrison cap of active glider units until the Army combined the parachute and glider insignias into one Airborne Insignia worn by all airborne and glider-born units.The 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, Unit History
an
Group Photograph of the 505th PIR, circa 1942
ww2-airborne.us, last accessed 3 July 2018Army Regulation 670-1, Wear and Appearance of Army Uniforms and Insignia
Headquarters Department of the Army, dated 22 May 2000, last accessed 3 July 2018 Glider-borne soldiers wore a background trimming (a.k.a. a cloth oval) behind their Glider Badge to signify assignment to glider units. The color pattern of the background trimming varied depending upon the unit. In 1944 the separate parachute and glider insignias with infantry blue or artillery red background were merged into a combined parachute and glider on a blue base with a red circle. (Note: During World War II the term "Airborne" included parachute, glider, and air-landing units. With the elimination of glider and air-landing units from the force structure in the post-war years, Airborne became synonymous with parachute units only.)
Eight Missions
, National WWII Glider Pilots Association, Inc; last accessed 1 July 2012 * Invasion of Sicily (
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...
. According to the U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry
The Institute of Heraldry, officially The Institute of Heraldry, Department of the Army, is an activity of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army solely responsible for furnishing heraldic services to President of the Unite ...
, the badge was awarded to personnel who had "been assigned or attached to a glider or airborne unit or to the Airborne Department of the Infantry School; satisfactorily completed a course of instruction, or participated in at least one combat glider mission into enemy-held territory.
History
The badge was authorized on 2 June 1944 and discontinued on 3 May 1961 but may continue to be worn on U.S. Army uniforms.Army Regulation 600–8–22, Military AwardsDepartment of the Army, dated 5 March 2019, last accessed 4 February 2020 Following the close of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, the Glider Badge was authorized to any service member who had completed glider unit training at the Airborne School.
In the post-World War II years, the US Army converted its remaining glider units to parachute. For example, the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment of the 82d Airborne Division was reorganized and redesignated on 15 December 1947 as the 325th Infantry Regiment
The 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment is a light infantry parachute insertion fighting force of the United States Army. The subordinate units of the regiment constitute the bulk of the infantry elements assigned to the 2nd Infantry Brigade C ...
(no longer glider infantry), and then reorganized and redesignated again on 15 December 1948 as the 325th Airborne Infantry. Likewise, the 319th Glider Field Artillery Battalion, also part of the 82d Airborne Division, was reorganized and redesignated on 15 December 1947 as the 319th Field Artillery Battalion, and then reorganized and redesignated on 15 December 1948 as the 319th Airborne Field Artillery Battalion. Although glider units had ceased to exist, the badge was not formally rescinded until 3 May 1961; however, it remained authorized for wear by those who earned it.
Glider training was included in the United States Army's basic Airborne course until 1949, which at that time lasted five weeks. The first week of the course covered air transportability training, which included glider training. During late summer of that year, a glider crashed, killing many of those on board, and glider training came to an end.
Garrison cap insignia
A cloth circular Airborne (Glider) Insignia, similar to the Airborne (Parachute) Insignia, was worn on the garrison cap of active glider units until the Army combined the parachute and glider insignias into one Airborne Insignia worn by all airborne and glider-born units.The 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, Unit Historyan
Group Photograph of the 505th PIR, circa 1942
ww2-airborne.us, last accessed 3 July 2018Army Regulation 670-1, Wear and Appearance of Army Uniforms and Insignia
Headquarters Department of the Army, dated 22 May 2000, last accessed 3 July 2018 Glider-borne soldiers wore a background trimming (a.k.a. a cloth oval) behind their Glider Badge to signify assignment to glider units. The color pattern of the background trimming varied depending upon the unit. In 1944 the separate parachute and glider insignias with infantry blue or artillery red background were merged into a combined parachute and glider on a blue base with a red circle. (Note: During World War II the term "Airborne" included parachute, glider, and air-landing units. With the elimination of glider and air-landing units from the force structure in the post-war years, Airborne became synonymous with parachute units only.)
Glider Operations during World War II
U.S. Army glider units participated in eight glider-airborne operations during World War II:, National WWII Glider Pilots Association, Inc; last accessed 1 July 2012 * Invasion of Sicily (
Operation HUSKY
Operation or Operations may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity
* Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory
* ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...
) July 9-13, 1943
* 1st Air Commando Group in Burma (Operation THURSDAY
The Chindits, officially as Long Range Penetration Groups, were special operations units of the British and Indian armies which saw action in 1943–1944 during the Burma Campaign of World War II.
The British Army Brigadier Orde Wingate fo ...
) March-May 1944
* Invasion of Normandy (Operation NEPTUNE, airborne phase of Operation OVERLORD
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...
) June 6-8, 1944
* Invasion of southern France (Operation DRAGOON
Operation Dragoon (initially Operation Anvil) was the code name for the landing operation of the Allied invasion of Provence ( Southern France) on 15August 1944. Despite initially designed to be executed in conjunction with Operation Overlord ...
) August 15, 1944
* Invasion of Netherlands (Operation MARKET, airborne phase of Operation MARKET GARDEN
Operation Market Garden was an Allied military operation during the Second World War fought in the Netherlands from 17 to 27 September 1944. Its objective was to create a salient into German territory with a bridgehead over the River Rhine, ...
) September 17-23, 1944
* Re-supply of Bastogne (a flight on December 25, 1944 and Operation REPULSE) December 26-27, 1944
* Rhine River crossing at Wesel (Operation VARSITY
Operation Varsity (24 March 1945) was a successful airborne forces operation launched by Allied troops that took place toward the end of World War II. Involving more than 16,000 paratroopers and several thousand aircraft, it was the largest ai ...
) March 24, 1945
* Aparri, Luzon, PI (Operation GYPSY) June 23, 1945
See also
* Obsolete badges of the United States military *Badges of the United States Army
Badges of the United States Army are military decorations issued by the United States Department of the Army to soldiers who achieve a variety of qualifications and accomplishments while serving on active and reserve duty in the United States Arm ...
* United States Army Airborne School
The United States Army Airborne School – widely known as Jump School – conducts the basic paratrooper (military parachutist) training for the United States Armed Forces. It is operated by the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 507th Infantry, Un ...
* Parachutist Badge (United States)
The Parachutist Badge, also commonly referred to as "Jump Wings" is a military badge of the United States Armed Forces. The United States Space Force and United States Coast Guard are the only branches that do not award the Parachutist Badge, bu ...
* United States Army Air Assault School
* Air Assault Badge
* Military glider
Military gliders (an offshoot of common gliders) have been used by the militaries of various countries for carrying troops ( glider infantry) and heavy equipment to a combat zone, mainly during the Second World War. These engineless aircraft wer ...
References