Two crossed field guns surmounted by a missile were first used as the insignia for the Artillery branch in 1957, replacing the insignia introduced in 1950 that consisted of just the crossed field guns. In 1968, the Army established the Air Defense Artillery as a branch and assigned it the then-current Artillery insignia (missile plus crossed cannons), and returning the old field guns-only insignia to the Artillery branch.
The use of red, enameled numbers to indicate regimental affiliation was not authorized when the Army introduced this insignia for the “combined” Artillery branch in 1957, but it did not take long for insignia with numbers to be superimposed over the nexus where the cannons and missile intersect. In some instances, a number would appear in the spaces between the two cannons on each side the missile, with the battalion on the left and the regimental number on the right.
This collar insignia for the 204th Air Defense Artillery Regiment under the 66th Troop Command of the Mississippi Army National Guard. It was formerly designated as the 204th Antiaircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion (which was itself descended from the 738th Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion) until it was inactivated in December, 1974. When the unit was activated again in October, 1994, it was given its current designation as a regiment.
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204th Air Defense Artillery Regiment Unit Crest (DUI)