Enlisted personnel in the U.S. Air Force wear the U.S. lapel insignia halfway up the seam between the collar and lapel of the Service Dress Coat, with the bottom of the insignia resting on the seam but not covering it. The insignia is positioned so that the letters “U.S.” are parallel to the ground.
Circled collar insignias for Enlisted personnel were introduced in 1918 when the United States Army Air Service first proposed collar devices. The tradition of Enlisted Airmen wearing collar insignia with a circle around the device continued for over seven decades until 1991, when the decision was made to eliminate collar insignia for all ranks as part of a major uniform overhaul. That edict was partially overturned in 1995 with the announcement that both Officers and Enlisted personnel would once again wear U.S. lapel insignia with no circle.
In July 2006, the Air Force announced that the Uniform Board was bringing back the circled U.S. insignia for Enlisted Airmen with an implementation date of 1 January 2007. At the same time, the Board also announced that Senior NCOs would no longer have the option to wear shoulder marks for their insignia of grade on the Blue uniform, making sleeve chevrons mandatory with an effective wear date of 1 October 2006.
More Insignia and Devices for Enlisted Airmen