The 82nd Airborne Division, 2nd Brigade Combat Team’s flash and oval—the latter officially referred to as Airborne background trimming—were approved for wear on 8 March 2006.
An embroidered, shield-shaped patch with a semi-circular bottom, the flash for the Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team is technically dubbed an “organizational flash” because it is worn by a specific unit or organization. The 2nd BCT organizational flash is worn on a maroon beret, the color authorized for berets issued to Airborne-designated units, with either rank of insignia (Brigade Officers, excluding Chaplains) or the wearer’s Distinctive Unit Insignia (Enlisted). Enlisted personnel in units lacking Distinctive Unit Insignia wear their Regimental Distinctive Insignia. Officers and Enlisted wear these devices centered on the flash, which itself is centered on the stiffener of the beret.
Airborne background trimming is authorized for wear by the Brigade’s personnel who have earned a Parachutist or Air Assault badge. The badge is centered atop the oval and the combination positioned on the coats of the AGSU and ASU, the Class B ASU shirt, or the green or blue Army Maternity Tunic (female Soldiers only).
Guidance on the wear and placement of the flash and oval, including device placement on the flash, is found in
Chapter 21-32, subsections (a) and (b), of January 2021 edition of DA PAM 670-1. Placement of Parachutist and Air Assault badges varies between the various uniforms on which they may be worn; detailed instructions for their wear are found in DA PAM 670-1,
Chapter 22-16, subsection (b), “Wear of nonsubdued combat and special skill badges and special skill tab metal replicas.”
Nicknamed “Falcon Brigade,” the 2nd BCT, 82nd Airborne was constituted as HQ , 155th Infantry Brigade in the National Army on 5 August 1917. Its battle honors include three campaigns in World War I and another three in World War II, two Armed Forces Expeditions (Operation Power Pack in the Dominican Republic in 1965 and Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada), and two of three campaigns of the First Gulf War in 1990-1991.
The Falcon Brigade has deployed on numerous occasions since the launch of the Global War on Terrorism. While it’s unclear which and how campaign participation credits the Brigade will receive, its record of outstanding service is much less murky. In just the first 18 months of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Brigade’s courage and professionalism under fire was recognized with an Army Presidential Unit Citation and a pair of Valorous Unit Awards.
In 2009 and 2012, it was tapped for Meritorious Unit Citations for outstanding service between January 2007 – March 2008 and May – December 2011 respectively. Its most recent deployment came in 2020 when it replaced the 25th Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade in Baghdad, where its presence served as a deterrent to further attacks following the New Year’s Eve attack on the U.S. Embassy in 2019.