US ARMY TRAINING CENTERS

ORGANIZATIONAL FLAGS  •  COLD WAR ERA

The manpower requirements of the Cold War-era US Army, particularly during the Vietnam War, demanded a large training infrastructure and this requirement was met by a system of Training Centers. There were five types:  Infantry, Field Artillery, Armor, Engineer and (mostly responsible for conducting basic training) Branch Immaterial. The end of the Vietnam War and the abolition of the draft eliminated the need for these Training Centers and they were gradually inactivated. None exist today and they are unlikely to reappear unless the United States should fully mobilize for war. Organizational flags for Training Centers were 3 feet at the hoist by 4 feet on the fly with 2 1/2-inch fringe. Older versions were made of bunting; newer versions were made of heavyweight rayon banner cloth. Insignia and numerals were applied to appear properly on both sides of the flag. For all but Infantry, the field of the flag was in the primary branch color, the canton and fringe were in the secondary branch color, and the branch insignia in the canton was in the primary branch color. Infantry Training Center flags had a national flag blue field, a white canton with national flag blue branch insignia, and white fringe. Non branch-oriented Training Centers had flags with a teal blue field, a yellow canton and the insignia for Branch Immaterial. Brigades and battalions of Training Centers had flags of the same pattern with their numerical designations added in the secondary branch color. These flags were always carried or displayed with a National Color of the same material and dimensions, as shown for the Infantry Training Center. The Branch Immaterial flags remain in use with certain training activities that are not oriented to a particular branch.