Thread: Shoulder Cords

Originally Posted by Hans

If you want to spice up your uniform, go to Jump School, and request the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg. Your beret will be maroon, you will wear jump boots with your class A uniform with your pants tucked inside the boots, your jump wings will have your battalion's colors behind it, and you will wear the green and red French Fourragere shoulder cord.

I think that's essentially correct. That describes the Class As that I wore. I lot of stuff to keep clean & looking sharp. Maybe too much.

You are correct - only Infantry Soldiers wear a branch shoulder cord, along with plastic discs behind their collar discs identifying their branch - and then (with few exceptions) only while serving as infantrymen. As has been noted, however, local commanders can specify deviations from the reg and commonly do so for honor guards and similar.

Excellent post you found there. Soldiers assigned to the Army Marksmanship unit also wear an identifying shoulder cord (Blue, with smaller red and white bands), and Soldiers designated as Army attachés, assistant Army attachés, and aides wear a gold cord called an Aiguillette.

There are 3 unit awards that are worn as shoulder cords on the left shoulder - the French fourragère (red and green), the Belgian fourragère (green and yellow) and the Netherlands orange lanyard. Additionally, the German Marksmanship Badge (Schützenschnur) is awarded with a cord which is looped and attached to the lapel of the coat - though it may only be worn by enlisted Soldiers.

Here's an example of the Schützenschnur along with the Infantry distinctive items being worn on the 'old style' Dress Blue uniform (not mine!). The new ASU will be almost identical with the addition of Distinctive unit insidnia on the shoulder loops and the CSIB metal 'Combat Patch' worn on the pocket.