The 43rd Field Artillery Regiment Distinctive Unit Insignia—often called a "unit crest," or DUI for short—was first approved on 1 February 1937 while the unit was still designated as the 43rd Coast Artillery Regiment. The insignia was redesignated for the 43rd Artillery Regiment on 13 January 1959 and then for the current designation on 1 September 1971.
Scarlet on the shield is used to denote the unit’s status as an Artillery unit. The gold bend (diagonal stripe) is taken from the coat of arms of Lorraine, but with the colors reversed—its bend is scarlet. Also, the alerions on the arms of Lorraine have been replaced with “oozlefinches;” the Oozlefinch was the device on the shoulder patch of the railway artillery reserve in France in which this unit served. The locomotive in the crest, as well as the motto SUSTINEMUS (“We Support”), are both allusions to the unit’s past service as a railway artillery unit.The 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. 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 constituted in the now-defunct Coast Artillery Corps as the 43rd Artillery on 29 June 1918, the 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment was not designated as an Air Defense Artillery unit until 1 September 1971. While in the Coast Artillery Corps, the unit (and units that were annexed later into the Regiment) fought in three World War I campaigns and eleven World War II campaigns spanning both the Asiatic-Pacific and European-African-Middle Eastern Theaters, earning a Presidential Unit Citation. While designated as the 43rd Field Artillery Battalion, the unit took part in all ten Korean War campaigns, with its service being recognized with the award of three Presidential Unit Citations.
During the First Gulf War, the Regiment was credited with participation in all three campaigns and was tapped for the Valorous Unit Award. It was around this time that it earned the first of its three Army Superior Unit awards (1992-1993, 1998-1999, 2014-2015), not counting an ASUA awarded to the 2nd Battalion for 1998-1999. Since the launch of the War on Terrorism, the Regiment has notched four Meritorious Unit Citations, the most recent for service between 2013-2014.
As of Summer 2023, all three of the Regiment’s active battalions—the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd nicknamed “Cobra Strike,” “Warriors,” and “The Legion,” respectively—are assigned to the 11th Air Defense Artillery Brigade.