National Yellow Bat Day

In order to honor the activation of the 265th Army Security Agency Company (AirBorne) with the support of the 101st Airborne Division in Kentucky, this is the reason for the origin of National Yellow Bat Day on April 21st every year.

Why National Yellow Bat Day?

Celebrating the anniversary of the Army's founding of the 265th Army Security Service Company (Parachute) with the 101st Airborne Division, the national day is truly special. With the motto "Through the Night Below", the official badge or emblem of Army Security Services Company 265 is an image of a bat with outstretched wings over a rising full moon. This bat represents the mystery as well as the secret of this company, given the nocturnal nature of bats. Furthermore, the bat is a perfect description of the intelligence support that the Army Security Service Battalion provides.

Before development, all necessary military vehicles and equipment were painted with a yellow bat, a symbol that makes personal devices visible even from a distance. This is useful in identifying the equipment of individual units.

On November 19, 1967, Army Security Service Company 265 was deployed to Vietnam as Radio Research Company 265 (Parachute). The deployment was intended to provide intelligence support to the 101st Airborne Division. This unit arrived a few weeks before the Viet Cong's Tet Offensive and eventually uncovered the North Vietnamese operation. However, only a handful of commanders truly believed the intelligence.

January 31, Tet is considered the Lunar New Year day in order to mark an extremely special day. In the course of the conflict between North and South Vietnam, there was an armistice that lasted for a very long time. In this armistice, General VO Nguyen Giap, then the commander of North Vietnam, prepared to use the Lunar New Year to initiate a series of coordinated attacks, a violation of the terms of the armistice. Fortunately, personnel from the 265 RRC Squadron (ABN) were talking monitoring the perimeter of their area's defenses towards Bien Hoa Air Base, with very few small units believing the situational reports their newspaper, about 12 hours before the launch of the Tet Offensive.

History of National Yellow Bat Day

The Army Security Administration (ASA) is the signals intelligence branch of the United States Army. From 1945 to 1976, ASA gathered intelligence, provided security for Army communications, and carried out electronic countermeasures operations. In 1977, it merged with an Army component focused on military intelligence, to create the United States Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM). One of the units of the ASA is the Military Security Agency 265 (Airborne). It is part of the 101st Airborne Division and is a unit of the 301st Battalion ASA (Army Corps). After being incorporated on March 2, 1967, it was activated on April 21 today at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

Airborne or the symbol of the 265 ASA Company is the same and the unit's equipment is painted, is a bat with outstretched wings against a yellow moon background. Why a bat? Because bats are nocturnal and they represent secrecy and mystery, they are appropriate symbols for a unit that monitors and provides intelligence support. The qualities associated with bats are the same qualities that members of the unit need to be successful. "Through the night” is chosen as the unit's motto.

On November 19th, 1967, one of the units' forward parties was attacked to Vietnam. The full company arrived less than a month later, on 3 December, as part of Operation Eagle Thrust. They were assigned the 265th Radio Research Company (Parachute) —265 RRC (ABN) —and were stationed at Bien Hoa Air Base, to support the 101st Airborne Division.

On January 31, 1968, Vietnam celebrated Tet, an important holiday marking the lunar New Year. In tradition, it was called as Armistice Day in the war. Instead, North Vietnam, under the command of General Vo Nguyen Giap, launched a large-scale surprise attack - the Tet Offensive. RRC 265 (ABN) received advance information about the operation and informed commanders. The intelligence was not widely accepted, but the unit responded by establishing a defensive encirclement at Bien Hoa Air Base. The unit had redone to Camp Eagle around the outskirts of Hue, at Phu Bai during the attack.

The 265 RRC Squadron (ABN) took part in 13 activities in Vietnam and was decommissioned on 1 April 1972. In 1976, it was decommissioned and later became Company A, Battalion 311. MI. It was deployed during the 2003 Iraq War, and after undergoing subsequent reorganizations, in 2007 became Company B, 1st Special Forces Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Airborne).

The contributions of the 265 Radio Research Company has been kept secret for decades, as their sacrifice is highly ranked. Doug Bonnot, a member of the 265th RRC (ABN) and author of a book about the unit, The Sentinel and the Shooter, created National Golden Bat Day in 2016.

How to celebrate National Yellow Bat Day

• Learn about the Vietnam War

One of the ways to celebrate or celebrate this national holiday is to take the time to learn about the Vietnam War, in order to understand its causes and the units that served in it.

• Get knowledge about the Tet Offensive on 265.

How about reading about the Tet Offensive and the 265? It is so great and funny. This information will help you better understand what the day stands for, and open your eyes to many things. You do not have enough information about that particular unit. Here are some examples about books with clear information about the Tet Offensive and 265t including “The Sentinel and the Shooter” by Douglas W, Bonnot and “The Tet Offensive 1968 Battle Story” by Andrew Rawson.

• Honoring those who served during a controversial time in our country

Another important way to observe this day is to honor the soldiers who served on this particularly fulfilling day. This can be done by visiting the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and volunteering for the veterans' organization and other noble causes.