The Army’s Mountaineer badge, better known as the Ram’s Head Device, has been around for decades. However, only those assigned to the Vermont National Guard were authorized to wear it on their uniforms after earning it.
That was the decades-long standard until an announcement on the Army’s LinkedIn account in March stated that a design was approved, authorizing all active duty, Army Reserve, and Army National Guard soldiers who earn the badge to wear it. Though the new Ram’s Head Device won’t be available for several months, the design is in production with a policy inbound.
A Vermont National Guardsman and Army Mountain Warfare School instructor of seven years who asked not to be identified said he never realized how many active-duty soldiers were denied the ability to wear the badge. He has heard from many of them as talks about the Ram’s Head Device redesign and across-the-service authorization became a reality following Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Weimer’s announcement during the 2024 Association of the U.S. Army conference in Washington.
Weimer’s announcement of the redesign — during which he referred to the Ram’s Head as a “goat head” and said it wouldn’t be a part of the new badge — insulted many who had earned it, the instructor said.
“People were pissed, but they were still, at least, like, All right, at least I can flex what I earned,” he said. “And it’s interesting — the new Ram’s Head, everyone was upset that they were changing it, me included, but as soon as people realized it was another Ram’s Head, all the active-duty guys were like, ‘You know what? Whatever. A win’s a win. We have a Ram’s Head. We can wear it this year, and we’re all stoked.’”
Similar to the original Ram’s Head Device, the new badge shows a side view of a ram’s head paired with a crossed bayonet and ax. The badge symbolizes completion of the two-week Army Mountain Warfare School, where soldiers are instructed on land navigation in extreme weather, high-angle marksmanship, first aid, casualty evacuation, and ascending and descending techniques.
“The majority of active-duty guys are beating the drum of enjoying the training so much and understanding the importance that it is not an easy school, per se. So it’s an earned badge,” the instructor said. “Then, when they roll up to New England and see guardsmen in Army uniforms wearing the badge, they’re pretty butthurt that they can’t go back and wear it. So, yeah, to say people were excited is an understatement.”
The instructor, who was assigned to a mountain infantry unit at the time, earned his Ram’s Head Device after completing the basic course in 2014.
“That was very early in my military career, so other than boot camp, that was definitely the hardest thing I’d ever done,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a super challenging school. I will say, back then we had to wear IOTVs (Improved Outer Tactical Vests) — not to pull up back in my day — but we carried a fair amount of weight in our rucks.”
Those who pass the training are awarded the Skill Qualification Identifier – E “Military Mountaineer” and the Ram’s Head Device. It’s a rite of passage for mountain infantry, and now everyone who earns it will be authorized to wear it.
