The Combat Action Badge (or CAB) is a military badge worn in the U.S. Army. The emblem features both a M9 bayonet and M67 grenade. The Combat Action Badge may be awarded to any soldier after the date of September 18, 2001 performing duties in an area where hostile fire pay or imminent danger pay is authorized, who is personally present and actively engaging or being engaged by the enemy, and performing satisfactorily in accordance with the prescribed rules of engagement. Award is not limited by one's branch of service or military occupational specialty, but is only authorized for wear on U.S. Army uniforms. A silver badge 2 inches (5.08cm) in width overall consisting of an oak wreath supporting a rectangle bearing a bayonet surmounting a grenade, all silver. Stars are added at the top to indicate subsequent awards; one star for the second award, two stars for the third award and three stars for the fourth award. In comparison to the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB), the CAB has a silver rectangle backing rather than blue, and the CAB is 1 inch shorter in length than the CIB. Combat Action Badge File links The following pages link to this file: Badges of the United States Army Combat action badge ... The United States Army is the largest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ... is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Combatants United States Canada Australia United Kingdom Netherlands Philippines (in the Philippines theatre only) Northern Alliance GUAM Poland Italy Visegrad Group Hungary Ethiopia Somalia Estonia Latvia Lithuania Slovakia Vilnius group Croatia Albania Macedonia Romania Bulgaria Taliban al-Qaeda Abu Sayyaf Jemaah Islamiyah Islamic Courts Union Commanders General Tommy Franks Brig. ... For other uses of the term, see Iraq war (disambiguation) The 2003 invasion of Iraq (also called the 2nd or 3rd Persian Gulf War) began on March 20, 2003, when forces belonging primarily to the United States and the United Kingdom invaded Iraq arguably without the explicit backing of the... The Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) is an award of the United States Army which is presented to those officers, warrant officers and enlisted soldiers, in the grade of Colonel and below, who participate in active ground combat while assigned as a member of an infantry or special forces unit, brigade... Combat Medical Badge The Combat Medical Badge is a decoration of the United States Army which was first created in January 1945. ... Expert Infantryman Badge. ... The Expert Field Medical Badge is a decoration of the United States Army which was first created in 1965. ... Badges of the United States Army are military decorations of the U.S. Army which are displayed on Army uniforms to denote a variety of qualifications and accomplishments to military service members. ... The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... M9 bayonet and scabbard The M9 Bayonet is a multi-purpose knife and bayonet officially adopted in 1984 by the U.S.. It is issued with a special sheath designed to double as a wire cutter, developed by Qual-A-Tec (later development and production by Phrobis III) from the... The M67 grenade is a fragmentation hand grenade used by the US armed forces and Canadian forces - where it is referred to as the C13. ... This article is about a military rank. ... This article describes the military term of the rules of engagement. ... The Military of the United States, also known as the United States Armed Forces, is structured into five branches consisting of the: United States Army United States Marine Corps United States Navy United States Air Force United States Coast Guard Reserves United States National Guard United States Army Reserve United... A Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) is a job classification in use in the United States Army and Marine Corps. ... The Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) is an award of the United States Army which is presented to those officers, warrant officers and enlisted soldiers, in the grade of Colonel and below, who participate in active ground combat while assigned as a member of an infantry or special forces unit, brigade...

History

Throughout the Vietnam Conflict and afterward, troops serving in armored units clamored for their own version of the EIB/CIB. Despite numerous staff studies and recommendations, the request never gained the support of senior army leadership. However, as soldiers from across the spectrum of Military Occupational Specialties (MOS) engaged in direct contact with enemy forces in the Global War on Terror, the proposal gained new traction. A Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) is a job classification in use in the United States Army and Marine Corps. ...

The CAB was originally planned as a ribbon which was to have been known as the "Combat Recognition Ribbon". However, as ribbons are generally seen as less prestigious than medals and badges, the CAB was then proposed as the "Close Combat Badge" (or CCB), thus granting the award badge status vice ribbon. This was to be a combat award only for soldiers who did not hold the infantry military occupational specialty (MOS), but who were deployed specifically to fulfill an infantry duty. This was in response to the large number of non-infantry (tank crews, for example) who were deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and whose units were reorganized to function as infantry (motorized or light) due to the lack of need for tanks and shortage of infantry. The Combat Recognition Ribbon is a tentative military award of the United States Army which was first proposed in the mid 1980s as an Army equivalent to the United States Navy’s Combat Action Ribbon. ... Awards and decorations of the United States military are military decorations which recognize a service members service and personal accomplishments while a member of the United States armed forces. ... Infantry of the Royal Irish Rifles during the Battle of the Somme in World War I. Infantry are soldiers who fight primarily on foot with small arms in organized military units, though they may be transported to the battlefield by horses, ships, automobiles, skis, bicycles, or other means. ... For other uses of the term, see Iraq war (disambiguation) The 2003 invasion of Iraq (also called the 2nd or 3rd Persian Gulf War) began on March 20, 2003, when forces belonging primarily to the United States and the United Kingdom invaded Iraq arguably without the explicit backing of the...

The change from the CCB to the CAB may have come about thanks to a question put to Donald Rumsfeld in an April 2005 Afghanistan townhall meeting by a female military police soldier as to why the CCB would not include military police soldiers in its awarding criteria despite the combat nature of the military police's job in Afghanistan and Iraq's 360-degree battlefield. Also, it is conceivable that, since Germany issued a Close Combat Clasp during World War II (also with a bayonet and hand grenade) this name may have been seen as unacceptable. Donald Henry Rumsfeld (born July 9, 1932) is a U.S. politician and businessman, who was the 13th Secretary of Defense under President Gerald Ford from 1975–1977, and the 21st Secretary of Defense under President George W. Bush from 2001–2006. ... Branch insignia of the Military Police Corps The Military Police Corps is the law enforcement of the United States Armed Forces. ... Close Combat Clasp (German: Nahkampfspange) is a German military award instituted on November 25, 1942 for achievement in hand to hand fighting in close quarters. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

The CAB creation was approved by the U.S. Army on May 2, 2005 and can be retroactively awarded to soldiers who engaged in combat after September 18, 2001. Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker awarded the Army's new Combat Action Badge for the first time to a Sergeant April Pashley and four other soldiers on June 29, 2005.[3] May 2 is the 122nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (123rd in leap years). ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... September 18 is the 261st day of the year (262nd in leap years). ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... General Peter J. Schoomaker General Peter Jan Schoomaker (born February 12, 1946) became the 35th Chief of Staff of the United States Army, on August 1, 2003. ... is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In spite of the criteria established by the Army, most commanders do not issue this award to qualified soldiers unless this they are directly engaged in combat. Army leaders treat the CAB as an "award" subject to rigorous quotas.^{[citation needed]}

External links

• Army Combat Badges
• "Afghanistan townhall meeting"
• https://www.hrc.army.mil/site/active/tagd/awards/index.htm