Collecting insignia from the Federal Bureau of Investigation since 1999.

This site is not officially sanctioned by the Department of Justice, The Federal Bureau of Investigation, The Louisville Metro Police Department, or any of their entities.

©  Copyright 1999-2006.  All Rights Reserved.

The Hostage Rescue Team was formed in January 1983 under the direction of Director William Webster in preparation for the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles, California.  The team’s first leader was ASAC Danny Coulson and was initially meant to be a part-time unit with an authorized strength of 42 members.  The FBI soon realized this was a full-time position and increased the teams authorized strength to 90 members and made it part of the Critical Incident Response Group, basing it at the FBI Academy just outside of Quantico, Virginia.  Theoretically, the team is equipped and available to respond to any crisis situation within four hours of notification.  The patch shows an eagle carrying a broken chain and has the team’s motto, “Servare Vitas” on it, which is Latin for “Saving Lives”  There have been several variations of the patch over the years, but the team has shied away from having the initials “HRT” on any patch that they wear until recently, when they have employed some vest tabs and strips that identify them as FBI HRT.

Source:  Doug Runyon, SAC Danny Coulson (Ret.) and SA Christopher Whitcomb