Officially known as Airborne background trimming, the embroidered insignia commonly called an oval that is worn by members of the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment was approved on 25 June 2002. According to the reference book U.S. Army Patches, Flashes and Ovals by insignia authority Barry Jason Stein, this is the second oval designed for the Battalion, and primarily differs from the first by the use of red instead of white “notches” on the left and right sides that denote the Battalion’s numerical status.
As its official designation suggests, this insignia is worn as a background—in this case, for Parachutist and Air Assault badges—that also creates a “trim” or border around the badge. The effect is achieved by centering the main portion of the badge (i.e., excluding the star and wreathed star atop the Senior and Master Parachutist badges, respectively) before the combination is attached to an authorized uniform component.
In the most recent uniform regulations, published January 2021, these include the AGSU and ASU coats (including the ASU coat when worn as part of the ASU Dress variation), the Class B ASU shirt, and the Army Maternity (female Soldiers only). The two items are considered a single device when calculating the number of badges on a uniform, with the outer edge of the oval (and the top of the Senior and Master Parachutist badges) used to measure distance between the device and other badges, ribbons, pocket flaps, and so forth.
Full guidance on the wear of the 187th Infantry Regiment, 1st Battalion oval can be found in Chapter 21-32 (b) and Chapter 22-16 (b) of the January 2021 edition of DA PAM 670-1.
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