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 (ASU, 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.
The design of the 126th Aviation Regiment Distinctive Unit Insignia, approved on 16 February 1966 while the unit was still an Aviation battalion, recalls the unit’s past service in the Infantry branch with the inclusion of two unique images. Most striking is a caltrop, a weapon dating back to ancient times that is placed on the ground with a spike sticking upward to impale the feet of advancing Infantry or the hooves of galloping Cavalry. Remarkably, the caltrop also resembles a modern aircraft (an F-117A comes to mind). The powder horn is taken from the arms of the 181st Infantry, the organization under which its predecessor units were an element during World War II. “Faith Flight Fidelity” is the unit motto.
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.
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Originally organized in the Massachusetts National Guard as HQ and HQ Company, 1st Battalion, 181st Infantry in February 1922, the 126th Aviation Regiment would spend the next 40-plus years as an Infantry or Transportation organization in the 26th Division (the 26th Infantry Division after February 1942), not becoming an Aviation unit until its redesignation as the 26th Aviation Battalion on 1 March 1963.
When it was redesignated as the 123rd Aviation Regiment in October 1987, it was organized in the Army National Guard of three states: Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. With its reorganization in 2006, the number of states and territories in which it was organized rose to a dozen states ranging geographically from California to the Virgin Islands. As of Summer 2023, the 1st Battalion, 126th Aviation Regiment (1-123 AVN) is assigned to 56th Troop Command, Rhode Island Army National Guard and the 3rd General Support Aviation Battalion, 126th Aviation Regiment (3-126 AVN) is headquartered in the Massachusetts Army National Guard,
Regimental battle honors include four World War II campaigns (Northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe) and the Global War on Terrorism, with additional campaigns from the War on Terrorism yet to be determined. Four of the Regiment’s companies—B from the 1st Battalion, C and F from the 3rd Battalion, and Company D—have received individual military decorations, and three of its companies (C from 1st Battalion, HQ and D from 3rd Battalion) were credited with additional campaign participation, including ten from the Civil War. These credits are listed in detail at the U.S. Army Center of Military History’s
126th Infantry Regiment Lineage and Honors page.