304th Signal Battalion (Pret Toujours Pret)

Now worn by personnel in the 304th Expeditionary Signal Battalion, this Distinctive Unit Insignia—a device better known as a “unit crest” or a DUI—was approved for wear on 29 June 1953 for the 304th Signal Battalion. An orange lightning flash is a visual reminder that the organization is a Signal Corps unit: Orange is the Corps’ primary branch color, and a lightning flash is frequently used in Signal Corps insignia to denote the speed and accuracy of modern communications.

The shield portion of the insignia has a blue base with wavy fimbriation (border) to suggest ocean waves, an allusion to the numerous amphibian operations in which the Battalion participated in as part of Eighth Army during World War II. The engrailed line between the silver and black areas of the shield is used to represent the typical shoreline of the islands on which the operations took place, with the gray portion symbolizing the early morning sky that would have been seen during amphibious assaults. PRET TOUJOURS PRET is the unit motto, Latin for “Ready Always Ready.”

A subordinate unit of the 1st Signal Brigade, Eight United States Army, the 304th Signal Brigade is stationed at United States Army Garrison-Humphreys (aka Camp Humphreys). It was originally constituted on 29 July 1921 as the 304th Signal Battalion, Organized Reserves. Redesignated as the 340th Signal Operation Battalion on 8 December 1942 and ordered into active military service the following June 1st, the Battalion was deployed to the Pacific Theater as part of Eighth Army.

It fought in two campaigns, New Guinea and Leyte, with its outstanding service recognized with the award of a Meritorious Unit Commendation and a Philippine Presidential Unit Citation. The Battalion would continue its support of Eighth Army combat operations during the Korean War, taking part in all ten campaigns of that conflict and earning two Meritorious Unit Commendations for its outstanding performance.

The Battalion received the designation of 304th Signal Battalion on 25 January 1953 when it was reorganized, and it was subsequently withdrawn from the Army Reserve just five months later and allotted to the Regular Army. More than five decades later, the Battalion is still affiliated with the Eighth Army as a subordinate unit of the 1st Signal Brigade.

In April 2009, the Battalion’s dedication to providing superior and continuous Signal functions was once again noted with an award, in this case the Army Superior Unit Award for services over the course of the entire calendar year 2007.

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