The 848th Signal Training Battalion, composed of men who had been "washed out" as Flying Cadets, adopted an insignia with a pair of wings being snipped by a scissors, and the words, "Thou Shalt Not Fly."

"During World War II the role of the Signal Corps was perfected, but the structure it operated under still left something to be desired. One can see this if one looks closely at the chaos that ensued in Signal Corps personnel management when, after the North Koreans crossed the 38th parallel, it suddenly became a top priority to recruit and train a ton of new personnel.

In a recent research project for the grandson of a WWII Signal OCS graduate (Class 43-25) we discovered that the 848th Signal Training Battalion was created to hold the wash-outs from AAF (Army Air Force, a division of the Signal Corps at that time) training. That is, Signal Corps personnel that were to become Officers once they completed AAF flight training were reassigned to the 848th, a unit created specifically to "house" them if and when they failed to complete their AAF training. That left the question of what to do with them once they got into the 848th, especially since the men involved were already well along on their way to becoming Signal Officers by the time they washed-out.

The answer was to define the purpose of the 848th as being to provide some other form of specialized Signal training for these wash-outs. After which, once this new specialized training was successfully completed, the men would then and only then be sent on to complete their OCS training, and receive their commission as a Second Lieutenant. As you'll see, while it was a good idea, it didn't work well in practice, even to the point of uncovering a basic flaw in how all Signal Corps Officers were being trained back then.

With so many men filling the 848th’s rosters at the start of the Korean War, it was decided to send them off to Camp San Louis Obispo, where an Artillery and Infantry training center operated, preparing men in those branches for service in Korea. Thus the wash-outs from AAF school left Camp Crowder in Missouri for the sunny climes of California. There they were taught the role of a Signal Officer in supporting Infantry and Artillery operations. After finishing their training in Camp San Louis Obispo, they were then sent on to Ft. Monmouth, to complete their officer training, from whence they would then receive their commission and their final unit assignments."

(quoted from THE UNITED STATES ARMY SIGNAL CORPS

OFFICER CANDIDATE SCHOOL ASSOCIATION web page

http://www.armysignalocs.com/veteranssalultes/sig_corps_korean_war.html)