Start with the current status
The hero status answers the immediate question: full-staff or half-staff for the selected location. If an order is active, Mast shows the active order card and source link before the calendar.
How to Use a Half-Staff Calendar
The Mast calendar is designed for planning and verification: it shows known federal and state half-staff events alongside informational federal holidays and national observances.
Use the calendar for context
The calendar can show orders that already ended, orders active today, upcoming orders, and informational civic observances. Federal orders use blue bars, state orders use amber bars, and civic observances use teal bars. A teal bar does not by itself direct the flag to half-staff.
Open the timeline for details
The timeline groups orders and informational observances by date. Order entries include their status details and sources; civic entries state whether the day changes the flag position. It is often easier to scan than a month grid when several entries overlap.
Do not treat every observance as an order
Most federal holidays and national observances do not change the flag position. Mast keeps them visually distinct and labels their flag effect. Memorial Day is handled through its half-staff order entry because federal flag guidance calls for half-staff until noon.
Watch for local time
Half-staff orders often use local sunrise, sunset, or noon. Mast stores times in a standardized format but displays them in the relevant location where possible.
Planning with Mast
CalendarIf a calendar entry matters for an event, ceremony, school, business, or public building, open the source link and confirm the order's scope. The calendar is a guide, not a substitute for the official notice.