U.S. ARMY AIRBORNE AND RANGER TRAINING BRIGADE FLASH AND/OR OVAL

While Ranger units legitimately trace their heritage all the way back to the Revolutionary War, it was during World War II that their status was officially codified with the creation of the 1^st Ranger Battalion in June 1942. Ranger training during World War II was based heavily upon the Commando Training regimen which primarily focused on Amphibious tactics and techniques, and between March and September of 1942 were created to simulate Mountain and Desert environments and to teach Airborne tactics. Today, these different environments are reflected in the three parts of the 61-day Ranger Training course: Mountain, Benning, and Swamp.
 
The genesis of today’s Army Ranger School was launched with Ranger training beginning in September 1950 at Fort Benning, Georgia, now known as Fort Moore and home of the Maneuver Center of Excellence and the Army's Infantry School (which includes the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade), Armor School, Ranger School, and numerous other training programs. The training was initially overseen by Ranger Training Command, but this Command was inactivated the following year on 10 October 1951 and replaced by the Ranger Department, a new branch of the Infantry School.
 
The Department’s goal was to develop combat skills in both Enlisted Soldiers and Officers by requiring them to serve effectively small-unit leaders in an environment that was as tactically realistic as possible—the type that would simulate the tremendous physical and mental stress they would face in actual combat. Ultimately, the Army sought to have one Ranger-qualified NCO in each Infantry Platoon and one Ranger-qualified Officer per Company, and in 1954 the Army mandated that all Combat Arms Officers be Ranger/Airborne-qualified.
 
On 2 December 1987, in a ceremony held on York Field at Fort Benning, the Ranger Department became the Ranger Training Brigade—now known as the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade, or ARTB—with an effective date of 1 November 1987 for the redesignation. The Ranger Training Brigade Airborne background trimming, or oval, was approved a little over thirteen months later on 19 January 1989, while the Ranger Training Brigade beret flash worn on the tan beret reserved for personnel serving in Ranger units (as opposed to Ranger-qualified Soldiers) was approved on 26 April 2001.