U.S. ARMY ASYMMETRIC WARFARE GROUP PATCH (SSI)

The Asymmetric Warfare group patch, officially referred to as the Shoulder Sleeve Insignia–Military Operations in Hostile Conditions (SSI–MOHC) insignia, was approved for wear on 16 October 2006. Patches come in colored (Service uniform) and subdued versions (Combat and utility), with two types of camouflage available for the latter: the Operational Camouflage Pattern and the now-discontinued Universal Camouflage Pattern.

For the color version, a black circle symbolizes the worldwide operations of the Asymmetric Warfare Group, with black—which is the total lack of light and thus the total lack of knowledge—standing for the unknown aspects or nature of future threats. A red arrow symbolizes archery, which was one of the earliest ways that the battlefield was expanded from two to three dimensions.

The arrow also recalls the Indian Wars, one of the very first examples of an asymmetric threat our nation faced. When worn on the left sleeve to denote the wearer’s current unit, the arrow is oriented so that it points forward, suggesting forward vision, thinking, and action.

Created in 2004, the Asymmetric Warfare Group was tasked with discovering and creating tactics to mitigate the types of threats Soldiers face when fighting an enemy who relies heavily on asymmetric warfare methods. It is headquartered at Fort Meade, Maryland, with a training facility at Fort Walker in Virginia (formerly known as Fort A. P. Hill). The Group is made up of Senior active-duty Soldiers, Department of the Army civilian experts, and veteran contractors whose combat experience has made them experts in a variety of functional areas.

According to the Group, it has crafted two dozen materiel solutions, over ninety non-materiel solutions, and almost three dozen that combine both materiel and non-materiel approaches.

In October 2020, the Army announced that the Group would be disbanded in September 2021, but the Group’s Web site was still up and active in early November 2021, with no mention of its imminent closure.

Related Items
Asymmetric Warfare Group Unit Crest (DUI)
Asymmetric Warfare Group Combat Service ID Badge (CSIB)

Style

Pattern

Price

$5.99

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USPHS

Merchant Marine

AUXILIARY

U.S. ARMY ASYMMETRIC WARFARE GROUP PATCH (SSI)