Army patch question

[Immy]

Was sitting in a food court today and saw an Army soldier in full fatigues also having lunch. I've kinda become sensitive to military gear since my nephew's serving in Afghanistan right now.

So I was observing the various patches and insignia on his uniform and I figured out (thru Google research) that the emblem on his upper right sleeve was 4th Infantry.

But what puzzled me was the small US flag patch. The 50 stars were in the upper right corner instead of the upper left where they normally are.

There must be a significance to this. Any insight?

When it's not intrusive, I take the opportunity to thank soldiers when I see them. In this case he was texting for most of his meal and I chose not to bother him. My nephew says the "random acts of thanks" (as he calls them) takes getting used to, but he now really appreciates it.

Thank your vets! And thanks to all the vets on T-Net!

[CaptainRobin]

Hey Immy... the flag displayed on his upper right shoulder is faced so the blue field and stars are leading in his direction of movement (always forward) as it would be viewed from his right side by an observer... our National Colors have two sides, mirror images. If he had a 4th Infantry Division patch on his right shoulder, he is has served at least one tour in a hostile fire zone in the current hostilities. His current unit of assignment patch will be on his left shoulder. There are numerous rules/regulations as to how our National Colors are displayed. Hanging as a banner, the blue field is to be to the left. However, our military wears them on the right shoulder (or did when I was active) therefore the field will appear as you would view a flag passing you. Hope this helps.
Robin

[Immy]

Very interesting Robin. Never knew about Old Glory's "mirror" images like that. A lot of symbolism behind the placement I see. The only patch I saw on his left shoulder was US Army. Thanks for the info!

[CaptainRobin]

Hey Immy... we may have a minor misunderstanding here... US ARMY should be placed above the left breast pocket of the battle dress uniform. His/Her current unit of assignment would be on the shoulder (deltoid muscle group area) of the left sleeve of the jacket. A patch on the right sleeve indicates the soldier's unit of assignment while serving in a hostile fire zone. Unless Army Regulation 670-1, Wear and Apperance of the Uniform, has changed since I retired.
Robin

[Jerry68W]

Hey I'm new here. Served US Army honorably 2006-2011, 100% disabled Veteran.

Anyway CaptainRob is right about the flag patch, it symbolizes the US and the US Military always moving forward, and never in retreat.

The "US Army" patch on the left shoulder is a pretty new thing. It's worn by Soldiers who don't necessarily belong to a particular unit ... like recruiters and maybe some students? I'm not exactly sure what the deal on them is, but I have seen some recruiters wear them.