Other than a slightly shorter, receded central tail feather (rectrix) – which was perhaps inadvertent – all of the differences are in coloration.

The relative length of the flag varies; each military service typically defines several sizes and dimensions depending on use.

When in either small boats or automobiles, the flag is 1 ft. by 1 ft. 3 in., and on airplanes, a version 11 by 14 inches can either be printed on each side of the plane or on a detachable metal plate.

[5] The vice president's color (with fringe, tassels, and ornamental flagstaff) is displayed in her or his office, usually along with the flag of the United States and sometimes others,[6] and sometimes as a backdrop when he or she speaks.

[10][11] Therefore, Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels and Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt (who was also going, to represent Daniels) decided to create one, and chose to use a version of the president's flag (which had a depiction of the Great Seal of the United States) with a white background instead of blue.

The design was to be the same as the president's flag, except with a white field (background) instead of blue, and asked for delivery before March 20 (about when Marshall would arrive).

[13] The basic design was therefore a full-color version of the obverse side of the Great Seal of the United States, i.e. the eagle grasping an olive branch and thirteen arrows, with a constellation of stars surrounded by a ring of clouds over it, on a white background.

HALO: White muslin stars planted on field of light blue bunting, outlined with rays of yellow worsted.

In the halo or "glory" on this flag, the stars are white, placed on a field of light blue, outlined with rays of yellow worsted.

This part of the crest, i. e. the halo, is outlined with yellow worsted, so that practically almost the same effect is produced as that on the President's flag.The Secretary of the Navy's flag is blue with a white anchor and stars on it; the flag of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy uses the same design with the colors reversed (blue stars and anchor on a white background).

[18] On March 22, he attended a ceremony in San Francisco Harbor aboard the heavy cruiser USS Colorado,[21] at the time serving as Admiral Thomas B. Howard's flagship for the Pacific Fleet.

At 3:15 in the afternoon, Marshall boarded the ship, and the vice president's flag was raised at the mainmast.

[13] A flag of this design, presumably either from 1915 or 1919, is housed at the Scottish Rite Masonic Cathedral in Fort Wayne, Indiana (Vice President Marshall's hometown).

The design was the same as the president's flag of the time, as specified in Executive Order 2390 from 1916, except with the colors reversed (much like the 1915 concept).

The shield was in color, with its blue chief over white and red stripes; the eagle's beak and talons were yellow, and the olive branch was green.

Dern also said the War Department thought there should be one, and would prepare drawings of possible flags and submit them for Nance's approval.

At least one design was rejected, one made by Arthur E. DuBois on January 25 which depicted an eagle, columns, and the sun on a purple field.

Truman accordingly asked for sketches of possible designs, but since the vice presidency was vacant at the time there was no immediate need to make the change and it was delayed.

The executive order had an attachment which had a set of color specifications more detailed than the written definition: Like the current flag, the dimensions of the elements were given relative to the hoist (vertical size), and the fly (horizontal size) of the flag varied per the differing customs of the military services.

When Nelson Rockefeller, who was particularly critical of it, was nominated to the office under President Gerald Ford in 1974, he received permission to redesign the seal (and therefore the flag).

After several months of work, where about twenty models were rejected,[31] a design was finally accepted and Ford issued Executive Order 11884 on October 29, 1975, which redefined the coat of arms, seal, and flag of the vice president.

The written description (blazon) as well as the actual drawings were essentially identical to the presidential coat of arms, except for some differences in the colors, meaning that the eagle was now much fuller with the wing tips pointed up, holding a larger olive branch and the full complement of thirteen arrows.