The 35th Artillery Group unit crest, officially called a Distinctive Unit Insignia or a DUI for short, was approved for wear on 6 June 1969. A pot-de-fer in the center was the first iron field piece used by artillery and denotes the unit’s basic operation. Green, white, and red are used in reference to the Italian flag and the unit’s three World War II campaigns, while the green and white are taken from the arms of the Rhineland and are an allusion to that campaign. The arrow reflects an assault landing during the Southern France campaign; the fleur-de-lis is also a nod to France. The legitimacy of the unit motto “Do It Fast Do It Right” is born out in the seven campaign streamers the unit earned in World War II.
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. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.
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The 35th Artillery Group was formed through the redesignation of the Headquarters and Headquarters Battery (HHB), 35th Field Artillery Group on 1 June 1958. According to the crowd-sourced historical Web site U.S. Army in Germany 1945 – 1991, the 35th Artillery Group was initially comprised, in addition to its HHB, of two Field Artillery (FA) battalions equipped with 155mm towed howitzers (287th and 538th), two FA battalions wielding 8-inch towed howitzers, a single FA battalion with 280mm guns, and a single anti-aircraft artillery battalion.
But the composition of the Group changed rapidly and repeatedly over the course of its 13-year existence. In 1963, the Group’s headquarters relocated to Bamberg, where it was an element of VII Corps Artillery. In a 1964 Stars and Stripes article, the composition of the Group is listed as the HHB; 1st Battalion, 36th Artillery (8-inch towed howitzers but converting to self-propelled); 1st Battalion, 75th Artillery (8-inch self-propelled howitzers, first unit in USAREUR equipped with the M-110); 6th Gun Battalion, 10th Artillery (175mm self-propelled gun), and the 5th Missile Battalion, 73rd Artillery (armed with nuclear-capable Honest John rockets).
The 35th Artillery Group was inactivated 15 January 1971 in Germany and its HHB consolidated with two Field Artillery battalions (517th and 519th) to form the 35th Artillery, a parent regiment under the old Combat Arms Regimental System. It was taken from CARS and reorganized under the U.S. Army Regimental System on 18 August 1986.