Commonly referred to as a unit patch, the Shoulder Sleeve Insignia worn by United States Army personnel assigned to the Department of Defense’s United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) approved on 12 August 1997. USSTRATCOM was formed on 1 June 1992 when it was created to replace the Strategic Air Command and the Joint Strategic Target Planning Staff.
Its design is adapted from a small portion of the official emblem of U.S. Army Forces Strategic Command (STRATCOM), which has a mailed fist clutching two lightning flashes and a stylized ballistic missile; on the patch, however, the mailed fist is black with three gold stripes and three gold dots and is holding two lightning flashes and a laurel wreath instead of an ICBM. (This same imagery is found on the U.S. Army Element, U.S Strategic Command unit crest (Distinctive Unit Insignia). The background color on the Army patch is medium blue (DoD blue), a tone that has been used traditionally by organizations associated with the Department of Defense.
USSTRATCOM is one of the Department of Defense’s eleven unified combatant commands and is headquartered at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska. Like other unified combatant commands, USSTRATCOM’s operations are handled by components of the four military branches directly under DoD command and control: Army Space and Missile Defense Command, Fleet Forces Command, Marine Corps Forces Strategic Command, and Air Force Global Strike Command.
Related Items
U.S. Army Element, United States Strategic Command Unit Crest (DUI)
United States Strategic Command Identification Badge