Assault pioneer
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An Assault Pioneer is a trained infantry soldier who is responsible for:
- The construction of tools for infantry soldiers to cross enemy terrain and natural obstacles
- Supervising the construction of military defence installations
- The use of demolitions, land mines and booby traps
Assault Pioneers normally form a Platoon in infantry regiments, and such platoons can be found in a number of British Army and Commonwealth regiments. Members of the Assault Pioneer Platoon can be identified by a trade badge of two crossed axes sewn on their uniforms.
Canadian Forces Assault Pioneers were distinguished by their permission to wear beards. On formal parades they wore white leather aprons and gloves over their ceremonial scarlets, carried axes, and lead the battalion onto the parade square.
There is no true equivalent in the United States Army, although a similar military occupation is the Engineer.