Flag patches

Lear more about flag insignias

Types of flag patches

A flag insignia is a symbol generally representing a country, state, city, or place. Other common uses of flags have been as emblems of institutions, historical events, and activist movements, among others. Often flags are used as templates to build customized flag insignias embedding logos, adding lettering, and even mixing different flags into one single patch.

Examples of patches representing well-know historical flags are the Gadsden flag patch, the Confederate flag patch, and the Betsy Ross flag insignia. Flags are also used by political movements and to support specific organizations and agencies (Thin Blue Line Flags).

Even pirates used to have their own insignias. Blackbeard flag patch and Jolly Roger flag insignia are among the most known pirate flags.

Many countries make extensive use of flag badges in their militaries although it’s also common to see them being worn by civilians, law enforcement agencies, and other first responders, among others.

Military flag patches.

Military flag insignias are often backed with hook VELCRO® Brand hook fasteners. VELCRO fasteners provide a quick and easy way to remove full color flags and replace them with subdued flag badges prior to entering in combat.

It’s very common to see IR flag badges in use by military units as a system for IFF (Identification Friend or Foe) and to avoid friendly fire when using NVG in low or no visibility conditions.

A military flag insignia is usually worn on the right shoulder of the uniform above all other patches. This prominent position of the flag insignia is because no other patch should be placed above your country flag, otherwise it may be seen as disrespectful. It’s curious to note that when wearing a military flag badge on the right shoulder, the flag should look backwards (reversed), giving the effect that the flag flies in the wind when the wearer moves forward.

Wearing a flag on the left shoulder is also generally accepted, as long as the flag orientation looks like a flag flying in the wind when moving forward. This means that a flag placed on the right shoulder must look backwards (reversed flag) while a flag on the left has to be a regular non-reversed flag.

Endless customization options for your flag patch

You can customize your flag badge in many ways:

• flag orientation: forward vs backwards flag patch.
• size: from mini flag insignias size 1×1 inches to large flags size 3×5 inches.
• more than 800 combinations of backgrounds (colors and camouflages) and vinyls (for texts and images).

Even you can select Infrared Reflective (IR) option should you need a fully working IR flag patch. Our IR patches are true-IR items which have passed several tests made by a number of US military units.

There’re so many options available, that you can easily customize your patch to match your uniform and gear and be compliant with the requirements of your unit (OCP Flag insignias, NWU Type 3 Flag insignias, etc).

Tactical Freaky, your one stop supplier for lasercut flag VELCRO patches

At Tactical Freaky, we strive to offer the largest catalog of flag insignias made with laser cutting technology and VELCRO backed.

Flag VELCRO insignias are among our best-selling lasercut items, and their sizes usually depend on where they will be worn:

• When worn on shoulders, laser-cut flag insignias generally measure 3.5×2 inches. There’s an exception on the US Navy where insignias are slightly bigger. One of the sizes accepted in the USN and which we can make is 2-1/8×4 inches.
• Flag badges for hats usually are 3×2 inches big.
• Flag insignias for chests (e.g. plate carriers or flak jackets) are usually bigger, often measuring 3×5 inches.
• Finally, flag badges for backpacks don’t have a rule when it comes to size, depending basically on the available space on your equipment.

You will also find all-black flags in our store. In fact the black American flag insignia and its sister black and white version are among our best-sellers. What’s the black American flag patch meaning? It started as a declaration that no quarter was going to be given. In other words, enemy soldiers were going to be killed rather than be taken prisoners. Same applies to the black and white American flag patch meaning.

Our catalog includes a large and growing catalog of flag VELCRO insignias:

• country, state, or city flags: American flag patch, Mexican flag patch, Texas flag patch, Chicago flag insignia.
• historical flags: Gadsden Flag and The Pine Tree insignia.
• special flag designs commemorating friendship: UK/USA friendship flag, Israel/USA friendship flag.
• and other flag badges seen on movies or TV: flags including Star Wars logos, Bravo Seal Team Flag as seen on CBS TV Show “SEAL Team”.

Not finding the flag you need? Looking for a custom flag patch?

Don’t hesitate to contact us if you don’t see your country or state flag in the store. We will gladly assess your request.

Please check out the Custom VELCRO Patches category in the store should you need a custom flag design. We’ve been shipping thousands of custom patches around the globe since 2017.