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 145th Chemical Battalion Distinctive Unit Insignia was originally approved on 2 October 1970 while the unit was still in the Engineer branch. It was redesignated for the 440th Ordnance Battalion, with revised symbolism to properly reflect the unit’s mission, in October 1984. It was redesignated for the 145th Engineer Battalion (again) on 24 December 1997, and it was redesignated for the 145th Chemical Battalion on 20 September 2002.
A scarlet saltire (“X”) and white plumb bob incorporate the colors of the Corps of Engineers, the branch of the 145th Chemical Battalion at the time this Distinctive Unit Insignia was first approved. The plumb bob, the blue spade, and the red saltire (used to symbolize crossbeams) all refer to the Engineer mission; the red saltire is also taken from the state flag of Alabama, the Battalion’s home state. “We Can Adapt” is an especially apt motto for an organization that was reorganized between three times in a dozen years.
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One of two Chemical Battalions in the Alabama Army National Guard’s 31st CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) Brigade, the 145th Chemical Battalion is headquartered at Centreville and as of 2023 consists of a Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment and two Chemical companies. It was originally organized as the 145th Engineer Battalion, but was redesignated as the 440th Ordnance Battalion in the mid-1980s. It was redesignated to its current title and role in 2002.