U.S. ARMY 346TH TRANSPORTATION BATTALION UNIT CREST (DUI)

Although the 346th Transportation Battalion began its service life as unit in the Quartermaster Corps, its use of a brick-red annulet and golden-yellow (gold) text for the unit motto “Action On Wheels” seen on its Distinctive Unit Insignia reflects the fact that it was redesignated as a Transportation Corps unit at the time the insignia’s design was approved on 9 September 1969. A pair of lighting flashes on either side of a sentry tower stand for the World War II battle honors the unit received for participation in the Central Europe and Rhineland campaigns; the grape leaf below them is a visual reference to the region.

The flashes are also a symbol of the speed at which the Battalion carried out its mission, and the annulet serves as more than just an appropriately colored backdrop for text: it also simulates a wheel, a direct reference to the unit’s mobility that is reinforced by the motto. The sentry tower is inspired by one found at Morro Castle in San Juan that’s used on many insignia for units stationed at San Juan.

Also known as a unit crest or DUI, a 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.

More guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1, Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e), "Beret" and "Garrison Cap," respectively.

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Originally constituted in the Army of the United States as HQ and HQ Detachment (HHD), 587th Quartermaster Battalion, Mobile on 13 July 1944, the Battalion was activated later in July and service in the aforementioned European campaigns before it was inactivated on 19 October 1945 in Oklahoma. Between this date and 1 October 1959, it would be redesignated an astonishing eight times, with the final redesignation resulting in its current title of HHD, 346th Transportation Battalion.

The Battalion has been an Army Reserve unit since 27 January 1948, when it was allotted to the Organized Reserves (which were renamed Organized Reserve Corps in March 1948 and Army Reserve in July 1952). It was also relocated to Puerto Rico at the same time it was made a Reserve unit, and as of Autumn 2023 it is still headquartered at the small Puerto Rican town of Ceiba.

It is assigned to the 166th Regional Support Group, 1st Mission Support Command. Interestingly, the unit is referred to as the 346th Transportation Company Battalion on the United States Army Reserve Web site, while the U.S. Army Center of Military History refers to it as the 346th Transportation Battalion.

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$11.99

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USPHS

Merchant Marine

AUXILIARY

U.S. ARMY 346TH TRANSPORTATION BATTALION UNIT CREST (DUI)