The 62nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment Distinctive Unit Insignia, a device frequently called a unit crest or a DUI for short, was originally approved when the unit was designated as the 62nd Coast Artillery Regiment and was redesignated several times as the unit underwent changes in designation. Over the decades, this insignia was also approved for wear when the unit was known as the 62nd Antiaircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion (1949), 62nd Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion (1956), and 62nd Artillery Regiment (1958). It was redesignated for the Regiment’s current title on 1 September 1971.
Units in the lineage of the 62nd Coast Artillery Regiment, from which the 62nd ADA Regiment is descended, participated in six wars; this is symbolized by the six embattled sectors on the insignia. When the first of these units was organized, Artillery uniforms were dark blue with scarlet facings and there were only sixteen states in the Union, both facts commemorated by the blue and red color of the shield and the sixteen mullets (stars). Unlike most Distinctive Unit Insignias, 62nd ADA Regiment’s does not feature its motto of NITIMUR IN ALTA, a Latin phrase that translates as “We Aim at High Things.”
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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With a heritage that stretches back to the War of 1812 and a mind-boggling number of redesignations, reorganizations, consolidations, it would be too confusing to follow all the changes the 62nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment has undergone through the decades. But you can get an idea of the unit’s storied past by looking at the various types of designations it has served under—Artillery, Coast Artillery, Antiaircraft Artillery, Antiaircraft Artillery Gun, Antiaircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons, Antiaircraft Artillery Searchlight, and Air Defense Artillery—and the battle honors it has acquired while going through all those changes. As of 2022, the Regiment has 41 campaign streamers spanning eight different war, with the possibility of more being added for its service during the War on Terrorism; it was also awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for its actions at the Inchon landing in 1950.
Currently, the 1st Battalion is the Regiment’s only active unit. It was inactivated in 2005 and reactivated in 2011 at its current location Fort Cavazos, Texas (formerly known as Fort Hood) its current location. As of Summer 2023, the 1st Battalion, 62nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment (1-62 ADA) is assigned to the 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade.