26.2 Respect for the Flag (AFH-1 Section 24B)
Key Takeaways
- There is no official meaning for the folds of the flag and, per DAFI 90-1202, no official flag folding script; interest-group folding ceremonies are not official.
- In uniform, salute an uncased United States flag six paces before it passes and hold the salute until it has passed six paces; a folded flag is cased, so a salute is not necessary.
- When flown at half-staff, the flag is hoisted to the peak for an instant, then lowered to half-staff, and raised to the peak again before lowering at the end of the day; Memorial Day is half-staff until noon.
- The United States flag is never dipped to any person or thing, and a foreign national flag is never dipped; the U.S. flag’s own right is the observer’s left.
- Service flags display by service date with the senior on the far right: National Guard (13 December 1635) precedes Army, Navy, Marine, Coast Guard, Air Force, and Space Force.
ADTC and the flag as a tested object
Section 24B is B (Understanding) for SSgt and TSgt on the 15 February 2025 ADTC. Airmen treat the flag with respect similar to that shown to the highest military and public officials. Governing law: Title 4, Title 10, and Title 36.
History that is—and is not—official (24.11)
There is no official meaning for the folds and, per DAFI 90-1202, no official flag folding script. Interest-group folding ceremonies are not official. Figure 24.3 is not for official ceremonial use. Within it: the flag was born 14 June 1777 (Second Continental Congress)—13 stripes, seven red and six white, a union of 13 white stars in a blue field. Stripes = original colonies; stars = 50 states. Colors: red = hardiness and valor; white = purity and innocence; blue = vigilance, perseverance, and justice. Also in that narrative: Francis Scott Key, Fort McHenry, 1814; Francis Bellamy’s Pledge, 1892; flag on the Moon, July 1969.
Eight types and sizes (24.12)
| Flag | Material and size | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Installation | Lightweight nylon bunting, 8 ft 11 3/8 in × 17 ft | Fair weather; typical USAF installation flag |
| All-purpose | Rayon bunting, 3 × 4 ft | Foreign flags, international arrival ceremonies, joint occupancy |
| All-purpose (all-weather) storm | Lightweight nylon, 5 ft × 9 ft 6 in | Alternate for the installation flag in inclement weather |
| Ceremonial | Rayon or synthetic, 4 ft 4 in × 5 ft 6 in, 2 in yellow fringe | Ceremonies |
| Organizational | Rayon or synthetic, 3 × 4 ft, 2 in fringe | Organizational display |
| Retirement | 3 × 4 ft or 3 × 5 ft | Presentation flag for retiring USAF members |
| Garrison | 20 × 38 ft | Holidays and special occasions; installation flag may substitute |
| Interment | Cotton, 5 ft × 9 ft 6 in | Closed casket; deceased military and veterans; VA Form 27-2008 |
Garrison is the largest. Storm (nylon) and interment (cotton) share 5 × 9 ft 6 in. Installation flies only in fair weather.
Display, half-staff, and geometry (24.13–24.14)
Universal custom: sunrise to sunset on buildings and stationary flagstaffs; 24 hours if properly illuminated after dark. Installations fly one installation flag from reveille to retreat.
On a stage or in a parade the flag is on its own right (audience’s left). The union is uppermost, on the right side of the flag itself.
Half-staff is halfway between top and bottom. Other flags with it also go to half-staff, except foreign national flags unless that country permits. Procedure: peak for an instant, then half-staff, peak again before lowering. Memorial Day is half-staff until noon. Juneteenth is on the 15 February 2025 holiday list.
Flag-display and anthem honors
| Event or configuration | What AFH 1 requires |
|---|---|
| Uncased flag passing in a procession (in uniform) | Salute six paces before; hold until six paces beyond |
| Folded flag | Treated as cased; salute is not necessary |
| Half-staff | Peak → half-staff → peak before lowering at day’s end |
| Closed casket | Lengthwise; union at the head and over the left shoulder; do not lower into the grave |
| Stage or parade position | Flag’s own right = observer’s / audience’s left |
| Speaker’s platform | Honor at the speaker’s right facing the audience |
| With other nations | Equal-height staffs, equal-size flags, alphabetical, U.S. flag at own right |
| Crossed staffs | U.S. flag on its own right; its staff in front of the other staff |
| Radiating / elevated line (no foreign flags) | U.S. flag center and highest |
| Anthem or To the Colors, outdoors, uniform | Salute first note to last note (24A) |
| Anthem / To the Colors in a vehicle on a USAF installation | Pull over if safety allows; sit quietly until the last note (24A) |
| Dipping | Other U.S. state/organizational flags are dipped to the U.S. flag; USAF flags may be dipped; U.S. flag never dipped; foreign national flag never dipped |
Care, prohibitions, and disposal (24.15)
Never display the flag union down except as a signal of dire distress. Never let it touch anything beneath it. Carry it aloft and free. Do not use it as apparel, bedding, drapery, a ceiling cover, a receptacle, or advertising, and do not festoon or mark it. A flag patch may go on military, fire, police, and patriotic-organization uniforms; a lapel pin is worn on the left lapel near the heart. No other flag flies above it or, at the same level, to its right, except a church pennant during naval chaplain services at sea. When it is no longer a fitting emblem, destroy it in a dignified way, preferably by burning, or retire it through honor guard or protocol.
Service flags (24.16)
Under Title 10, service flags display by order of service date, most senior on the far right. From their own right (observer’s left):
| Order | Service | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Guard | 13 December 1635 |
| 2 | U.S. Army | 14 June 1775 |
| 3 | U.S. Navy | 13 October 1775 |
| 4 | U.S. Marine | 10 November 1775 |
| 5 | U.S. Coast Guard | 4 August 1790 |
| 6 | U.S. Air Force | 18 September 1947 |
| 7 | U.S. Space Force | 20 December 2019 |
National Guard precedes Army. After the services: NORAD, USSPACECOM, MAJCOMs (alphabetically), FOAs, ANG, AFR, DRUs, NAFs and wings (descending), then personal/position flags.
What does AFH 1 say about the meaning of the folds of the United States flag?
How is the United States flag handled when it is to be flown at half-staff?
When service flags are displayed by order of service date, which flag holds the position of honor on the far right?
When in uniform, how is respect shown to a United States flag passing in a parade, and what is the rule for a folded flag?