What is the protocol for displaying a flag at half-mast?
Again, there is no single protocol covering all flags. Each nation or organization has its own rules. For example, the flag of Sa’udi Arabia is never to be half-staffed. There are a few general rules of thumb for most other countries and groups, however. At the order of an authority or at a time proscribed by law, the flag is lowered to a position further down the staff, usually slowly and with great solemnity. Some Europeans lower it one flag width (to respect the invisible “flag of death”), Australians lower it one-third of the way, and most others — including Maltans, Americans, and Portuguese, as examples — will literally fly the flag halfway up the staff. The U.S. military regards flying the flag anywhere other than at the top of the pole as “half-staff”. If a flag cannot be half-staffed, it should be taken down. When raising a flag under half-staff, the flag is first raised to the top of the pole, then lowered to its position. When the flag is taken down, again, the flag should
