30TH HEAVY BRIGADE COMBAT TEAM GUIDONS

UNITED STATES ARMY

30th HEAVY BRIGADE COMBAT TEAM, NORTH CAROLINA ARNG
INITIAL UEx ORGANIZATION • 2006-14

Heavy brigade combat teams (HBCTs) of the Army National Guard were organizationally identical to their Regular Army counterparts and were subordinate to division headquarters, but many of them retained their identity as separate brigades so as to preserve the lineage and honors of previous organizations. The 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, for example, descended from the former 30th Infantry Division and used the old divisional shoulder sleeve insignia (SSI). The brigade's peacetime higher headquarters was the 29th Infantry Division (Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina and Florida).

As originally conceived the US Army's heavy brigade combat team (HBCT) was built around two combined arms battalions, each with a headquarters company, two mechanized infantry companies (A and B) and two armor companies (C and D). Guidons for these companies were of the standard, traditional pattern for the Infantry, Cavalry and Armor branches. HQ companies of combined arms battalions belonging to infantry or armor regiments had either an Infantry or Armor guidon. The mechanized infantry companies had Infantry guidons and the armor companies had Armor guidons. For combined arms battalions belonging to cavalry regiments, all companies had Cavalry guidons. Military intelligence, signal and combat engineer companies were grouped in a brigade special troops battalion (BSTB). The headquarters company of the BSTB used a branch immaterial guidon and the other three companies had branch-oriented guidons. The cavalry squadron and the field artillery battalion had guidons of the standard branch pattern. The headquarters company and forward support companies of the brigade support battalion (BSB) had buff guidons with scarlet letters and numerals but no branch insignia; the other three companies had branch-oriented guidons.

The 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team ("Old Hickory") had an organizational flag and guidon of the standard pattern for separate armored brigades: vertical stripes of yellow and green, the Armor branch colors, with the brigade SSI centered. This Organizational Flag was always carried or displayed with the National Color. Both were made of heavyweight rayon banner cloth, 3 feet at the hoist by 4 feet on the fly, with 2 1/2-inch yellow fringe. The CABs were affiliated with either armor, cavalry or infantry regiments. Their organizational colors and the guidons of their headquarters companies reflected the regimental identity, while the other companies had branch-oriented guidons. The cavalry and FA battalions had traditional branch-oriented guidons. The headquarters company of the brigade special troops battalion (BSTB) used a branch immaterial guidon and the other three companies had branch-oriented guidons. The headquarters company and forward support companies of the brigade support battalion (BSB) had buff guidons with scarlet letters and numerals but no branch insignia; the other three companies had branch-oriented guidons.