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The Red Crossflag is flown in lieu of the commission pennant by hospital ships of theNavy in commission. Ashore, it may be flown at naval medical facilitieson a separate pole from that at which the ensign is hoisted, or it maybe flown at the gaff or the signal yard of a staff flying the ensign, butit is not flown on the same halyard as the ensign. It is also displayedon a staff in the bow of a boat devoted to medical uses.
The Red Cross flag originated in the 1864 Geneva Convention for theAmelioration of the Wounded in Armies in the Field, which provided that"a distinctive and uniform flag shall be adopted for hospitals, ambulancesand evacuations," and that "the flag and the arm-badge shall bear a redcross on a white field." This design, the Swiss national flag withthe colors reversed, was selected in recognition of the pioneering workof Swiss citizens in establishing internationally recognized standardsfor the protection of wounded combatants and military medical facilities. A convention signed at the Hague in 1899 extended the use of the Red Crossflag to naval use, requiring that "all hospital ships shall make themselvesknown by hoisting, together with their national flag, the white flag witha red cross provided by the Geneva Convention."
The church pennant and theJewish worship pennantare the only two flags that ever fly above the national ensign. Theyare hoisted above the ensign, either at the flagstaff (in port) or thegaff (under way) during the conduct of religious services by a naval chaplainaboard ship. This usage is expressly authorized by law. U.S.Army directives also provide for use of this pennant above the ensign duringservices aboard Army vessels, but the legal authority for this would appearto be questionable. Although these pennants may be flown ashore,they may not be flown above the ensign except aboard ship. The useof a pennant to signal that divine services were in progress aboard shipis traditionally said to date from the Anglo-Dutch wars of the 17th century. The first mention of such a pennant in the U.S. Navy is in a manuscriptsignal book dated circa 1827. The earliest depiction, from the journalof a midshipman aboard USSOhio in the early 1840s, looks very muchlike the pennant used today.
The Jewish worship pennant, depicting the tablets of the Law given toMoses on Mt. Sinai inscribed with the Hebrew letters signifying the numbersone through ten for the Ten Commandments, was approved by the Secretaryof the Navy in December 1979. It is flown during Jewish worship servicesunder the same conditions prescribed for thechurch pennant.
The Prisonerof War-Missing in Action (POW/MIA) flag was created in 1971 by Mrs. MichaelHoff, wife of an officer who was missing in action in Vietnam, and subsequentlyadopted as the emblem of the National League of Families of POWs and MIAs. In 1985, the Secretary of the Navy released ALNAV 105/85, which authorizedits display in the Navy and Marine Corps on Memorial Day, National POW-MIARecognition Day, and Veterans Day, as prescribed by the senior officerpresent. Navy ships that are not under way display the POW/MIA flagfrom 8:00 a.m. to sunset at the inboard halyard of the port signal yardarm. It must not be flown when under way. When displayed at shore installationsit flies beneath the national ensign at the same point of hoist.
The POW/MIA flag was officially recognized as a national patriotic symbolin 1990 by Public Law 101-355 (36 USC 189), which referred to the flagas "the symbol of our Nation’s concern and commitment to resolving as fullyas possible the fates of Americans still prisoner, missing and unaccountedfor in Southeast Asia, thus ending the uncertainty for their families andthe Nation." Its display was made mandatory in the 1998 Defense AuthorizationAct, which required that "the POW/MIA flagshall be displayed" ata series of specified federal facilities, including all major militaryinstallations, not only on the days for which it was previously authorizedbut also on Armed Forces Day, Flag Day, and Independence Day. Thenew law also expanded the symbolism of the flag to represent other POWsand MIAs, past, present, and future. NAVADMIN 200/98, released bythe CNO on September 16 of that year, defined "major installations" inthe Navy as four-star headquarters, regional coordinators (naval basesand the headquarters of Submarine Group TWO), making display of the flagon the designated dates mandatory at those locations. The messagewent on to encourage all Navy flag commands to support the cause by flyingthe flag on the designated days. For the Marine Corps, MARADMIN 212/99,issued on May 12, 1999, directed that the flag be displayed at all buildingsand grounds under Marine Corps jurisdiction on the days specified in thelaw.
The following flags are or have been flown on U.S. Navy ships under certain circumstances, explained in the section on each. It should be noted thatunder no circumstances do these flags take the place of the United States national ensign, nor does their display as described imply that a U.S. warship comes under the sovereign control of the international organizationconcerned.
In 1951, the NavalAcademy was presented a United Nations flag that had flown from the foretruck of the battleship USSMissouri on four occasions in September-October1950 during the naval bombardment of Samchok and other targets in supportof UN Command operations in Korea. In 1952, however, Department ofDefense Directive 1005.1 stipulated that the UN flag would be flown atDepartment of Defense installations only when honoring senior officialsof the United Nations during visits. NTP 13(B) applies this principleto shipboard use, providing for the display of the UN flag aboard shipin the same manner as a foreign ensign is displayed for the visit of aforeign head of state. Otherwise, U.S. forces display the UN flagonly when directed by the President. For its part, the United Nationsplaces similar restrictions on the use of the flag. Specifically,the UN flag may be used in military operations only upon the express authorizationof a competent United Nations organ.
U.S. Navy vesselsparticipating in NATO's permanent multinational naval forces, StandingNaval Force Atlantic and Standing Naval Force Mediterranean, regularlydisplay the NATO flag from a yardarm.
For a brief periodin 1995, the destroyer USSJohn Rodgers functioned as the flagshipfor the Italian general commanding WEU relief operations in Bosnia. During this time, when no U.S. flag officer was aboard,John Rodgersdisplayed the WEU flag.
The Naval ReserveMerchant Marine pennant is flown at a signal halyard in port aboard shipsthat have been warranted by the Secretary of the Navy to be suitable forwartime use as naval auxiliaries. The master of the ship and at leasthalf of its licensed officers must be members of the U.S. Naval Reserve. The pennant was originally prescribed by Navy Department General Order285, dated April 14, 1917. The current statutory authorization forthe pennant is contained in Title 10, U.S. Code, section 7225.
The Naval Reserve yacht pennant may be flown by yachts warranted bythe Secretary of the Navy as suitable for wartime use as naval auxiliaries. In addition, either the captain or the owner must be a member of the U.S.Naval Reserve. The pennant is authorized by Title 10, U.S. Code,section 7226.
The Naval Reserveyacht owner's distinguishing pennant was adopted following World War IIas personal recognition to yacht owners who had made their craft availableto the Navy during the war. Such owners could then display the pennantaboard any vessel they owned, whether or not it was the yacht that hadbeen provided to the Navy.