The 7th Transportation Battalion was originally constituted 17 June 1943 as HQ and HQ Detachment, 7th Quartermaster Troop Transport Battalion and activated 25 August 1943. Redesignated in November 1943 as 7th Quartermaster Battalion, Mobile, the unit took part in the Rhineland and Central Europe campaigns during World War II. After several redesignations following the war, the unit was given the HQ and HQ Company, 7th Transportation Battalion designation in 1952; this was changed HQ and HQ Detachment, 7th Transportation Battalion in June 1959.
The Battalion deployed to Long Binh, Vietnam on 2 August 1966, and over the next six years took part in 13 of the 17 named campaigns of the war, earning two Meritorious Unit Commendations before returning the U.S. to be inactivated at Fort Lewis, Washington on 30 March 1972. It was reactivated just two years later on 21 July 1974, and would remain on active status until its final inactivation on 19 August 2011.
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Approved on 4 June 1968, the 7th Transportation Battalion Distinctive Unit Insignia, also known as a DUI or unit crest, features the motto/nickname “Orient Express,” reflecting the nearly two years of service the Battalion had already logged during the Vietnam War (the prominent dragon’s head is also a reference to the Battalion’s service in Southeast Asia). Above the inscription is a wheel, a reference to the motor transportation the Battalion had long provided. The hub recognizes the Battalion’s World War II service, with a wavy band representing the Rhine River for the Rhineland campaign and the silver-gray hub a symbol for the Central Europe campaign.
The golden cloud is an Eastern symbol of favorable prospects and portends success; the color red used on gold/yellow is a sign of loyalty. Brick red and yellow, the predominant shades used in the insignia, are the branch colors for the Transportation Corps.
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.