U.S. ARMY 112TH SIGNAL BATTALION UNIT CREST (DUI)

PENETRA LE TENEBRE, Italian for “Penetrate The Shadows,” is the motto of the 112th Signal Battalion, whose full designation is 112th Signal Battalion (Special Operations) (Airborne) or 112th Special Operations Signal Battalion (Airborne). Based at Fort Liberty (formerly Fort Bragg), the unit was originally constituted on 14 July 1944 as the 512th Airborne Signal Company in the Army of the United States and activated in North Africa. Between that time and the German surrender in May 1945, the Company would take part in five campaigns, starting with Rome-Arno and then taking part in an assault landing in the Southern France campaign, earning the unit an Arrowhead device.

After being disbanded on 10 February 1945 in France, the unit was reconstituted on 5 April 1945 and consolidated with the 112th Airborne Army Signal Battalion, keeping the latter unit’s designation. Working in the front lines and at times behind enemy lines, personnel of the Battalion linked up with the Russians in early May before being assigned occupation duty in Berlin. Returning to the United States, the Battalion was inactivated on 12 December 1945.

It would be dormant for nearly forty-one years before reactivation and redesignation as the 112th Signal Battalion in the Regular Army. During the Southwest Asia conflict (First Gulf War), the Battalion served in two of the three campaigns and was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation. In the mid-1990s, its non-wartime service was recognized with two Army Superior Unit Awards between 1994 and 1996. In the War on Terrorism, the Battalion deployed to both Afghanistan and Iraq in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, with its outstanding service recognized with two Meritorious Unit Commendations in the period between 2001 and 2003.

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Also known as a unit crest or DUI, the Distinctive Unit Insignia is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (ASU, Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.

The 112th Signal Battalion Distinctive Unit Insignia was approved on 15 August 1986. It features an upright dagger, a common symbol associated with Special Operations organizations; its black and white coloration alludes to covert and overt operations. The dagger is winged to denote the unit’s ability to deploy rapidly by air. A black background is used to reinforce the motto, which is an Italian phrase for “Penetrate The Shadows,” and lightning flashes beside the dagger symbolize modern electronics technologies and their speed.