Requirements for a Combat Infantry Badge

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The Combat Infantryman Badge, or CIB, was created during World War II to highlight the achievements of those tasked to fight in combat zones on the front lines. Changes since then have included the use of stars on the award to denote that the recipient has fought in multiple conflicts, as well as increased eligibility for those serving in Army Special Forces. The award is currently one inch by three inches, with the 1795 Springfield musket over a field of blue, surrounded by an oak branch.

1 MOS Requirements

The recipient must have a military occupational specialty (MOS) of infantry or Special Forces, although that does not have to be the primary designation. As long as the soldier has received infantry training and is involved in overseas ground combat, he remains eligible for the award.

2 Rank Qualifications

The CIB can be awarded to any soldier, non-commissioned officer or warrant officer in the above specialties, although it can only be awarded to commissioned officers ranking colonel or below.

3 Description of Action Meriting a CIB

The recipient of the CIB must be present during an engagement where they enemy is firing upon an Army unit of brigade strength or smaller. Since Sept. 18, 2001, improvised explosive devices and similar explosives are considered to put a soldier in the line of direct fire.

4 Provisions for Non-Infantry and Foreign Soldiers

If a soldier does not have an MOS of infantry but served alongside infantrymen as a medic or as a member of a foreign fighting force, he also may be eligible for the CIB.

5 Eligible Conflicts

The conflicts that currently qualify an infantryman to receive the CIB award include World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, serving in the Korean Demilitarized Zone from January 1969 to March 1994, the Dominican Republic between 1965 and 1966, El Salvador between 1981 and 1992, the First Gulf War, Somalia between 1992 and 1994, Afghanistan from 2001 to present and Iraq from 2003 to present.

Francis Matthews currently write SEO-friendly news articles for websites with topics as varied as military lodging, health supplements, car dealers and health insurance finders. Matthews has worked in corporate communications and as a reporter at a newspaper tasked with late-breaking news stories. He has a Bachelor of Arts in history and Spanish from Eckerd College.

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