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 (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.
For Enlisted personnel, the insignia is centered on a shoulder loop by placing it an equal distance from the outside shoulder seam to the outside edge of the shoulder-loop button. Officers (except Generals) wearing grade insignia on the shoulder loops center the DUI by placing it an equal distance between the inside edge of the grade insignia and the outside edge of the button.
Full 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.
The Institute of Heraldry does not have a listing for the 444th Personnel Battalion Distinctive Unit Insignia, nor does The U.S. Army Center of Military History have a listing for the Battalion’s Lineage and Honors. However, reliable sources
indicate the unit was allotted to the U.S. Army Reserve, and there are also two entries for the 444th Personnel Services Battalion in the Army General Orders Unit Award Index.
The first indicates that the Battalion was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation for service in support of both Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom while assigned or attached to HHC, 3rd Personnel Command from 25 August 2002 to 8 April 2004. The original announcement of the Battalion’s selection and a general description of the achievement warranting the award is found in
Permanent Orders 224-29, while the final confirmation of the award is found in
Army General Order 2009-30.
The second entry indicates that Detachment A, 444th Personnel Services Battalion was selected for a Meritorious Unit Commendation for service in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom while assigned to HQ and HQ Detachment, 556th Personnel Services Battalion from 9 October 2006 to 24 September 2007. The original announcement is in
Permanent Orders 180-06, while official confirmation is found in
Army General Order 2016-14 issued in December 2016.
Please email us here at The Salute Uniforms if you have any information on the lineage and/or history of the 444th Personnel Services Battalion so we can share it with others seeking information on the unit.