Military organization

The armed forces of a state are its government sponsored defense and fighting forces and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body. In some countries paramilitary forces are included in a nation's armed forces.

In democracies and most other government types, the armed forces are typically linked to the government through a civilian government department. These may be known as a Department of Defense, Department of War, or Ministry of Defense.

Services

The military is divided into several services (also called branches). The three most common are armies, navies, and air forces. Some nations also organize their marines and their special forces as independent services. A nation's coast guard may also be an independent branch of its military (though in many nations the coast guard is actually a law enforcement or civil agency). The French military structure, which is copied in other nations, includes the three traditional services and a fourth service which is the Gendarmerie.

It is worthwhile to make mention of the term joint. In western militaries, a joint force is defined as a unit or formation comprising representation of combat power from two or more branches of the military.

Units, formations, and commands

It is common, at least in western militaries, to refer to the “building blocks” of a military as units and formations. Generally, the unit is the smallest independent operating element within a military. It may take on the form of a battalion or a ship. A typical unit is a homogeneous military organization (pure infantry, pure cavalry, all bombers, et cetera), and its administrative and command functions are organic (self-contained). Anything smaller than a unit is considered a "sub-unit" (or "minor unit" in some nations).

A formation is a grouping of units or smaller formations under a command. Formations include brigades, divisions, wings, etc.

However, different nations (and even different services within a nation) may use the same name to denote different types of organizations. An example is the title "squadron". In most navies this refers to a formation of several ships; in most air forces this refers to a unit; in the U.S. Army it refers to a battalion-sized cavalry unit; and in Commonwealth armies it refers to a company-sized armored sub-unit.

In a military context, a command is a collection of units and formations under the control of a single officer. A command is usually a very high level formation which is responsible to government or the national military headquarters. It is not uncommon for a nation's services to each consist of their own command (such as Land Forces Command, Air Command, and Maritime Command in Canada), but this does not preclude the existence of commands which are not service based.

Hierarchy of modern armies

This gives an overview of some of the terms used to describe army hierarchy in armed forces across the world. Whilst it is recognized that there will be differences between armies of different nations, it seems that a large proportion are modeled on the British and/or American models. Readers interested in the detailed specifics of a national army (including the British and American) should consult the relevant entry for that country.

Symbol	Name	No. of personnel	No. of subordinate units	Officer in command
XXXXXX	region or theater	200,000 +	2+ army groups	general or field marshal
XXXXX	army group	100,000 +	2+ armies	general or field marshal
XXXX	army	50,000-60,000+	2+ corps	general or field marshal
XXX	corps	30,000-50,000	2+ divisions	lieutenant general
XX	division	10,000–20,000	2-4 brigades or regiments	major general
X	brigade	3000–5000	2+ regiments or 3–6 battalions or Commonwealth regiments	brigadier general, brigadier or colonel or major general
III	regiment or group	2000–3000	2+ battalions or U.S. Cavalry squadrons	colonel
II	battalion, U.S. Cavalry squadron or Commonwealth regiment	300–1000	2–6 companies, batteries, U.S. Cavalry troops, or Commonwealth squadrons	lieutenant colonel
I	company, artillery battery, U.S. Cavalry troop or Commonwealth squadron	70–250	2–8 platoons or Commonwealth troops	chief warrant officer 2-4 and captain or major
•••	platoon or Commonwealth troop	25–60	2+ squads, sections, or vehicles	warrant officer and first or second lieutenant
••	section or patrol	8–12	2+ fireteams	corporal to staff sergeant
•	squad or crew	8–12	2+ fireteams	corporal to staff sergeant
Ø	fireteam	4–5	n/a	lance corporal to sergeant
Ø	fire and maneuver team	2	n/a	any

Rungs may be skipped in this ladder: for example, typically NATO forces skip from battalion to brigade. Likewise, only large military powers may have organizations at the top levels.

Army, army group, region, and theatre are all large formations that vary significantly between armed forces in size and hierarchy position. Divisions were the traditional level at which support elements (field artillery, hospital, logistics and maintenance, etc.) were added to the unit structure. For example, regiments and battalions did not have such support assets. Since World War II brigades are having such support units added, and now (since the 1980s) regiments have been receiving support elements. A regiment with such support elements is called a Regimental Combat Team in US military parlance but also known as a Battle Group in other forces eg the UK.

Different armies and countries may also use traditional names, creating considerable confusion: for example, a British or Canadian armored regiment (battalion) is divided into squadrons (companies) and troops (platoons), whereas an American cavalry squadron (battalion) is divided into troops (companies) and platoons.

The Red Army used the same basic organizational structure. However, in the beginning of World War II many units were greatly underpowered and their size was actually one level below on the ladder than usually used elsewhere - for example, a division in the Red Army would be about the size of most nations' regiments or brigades. [1] [2] At the top of the ladder, what other nations would call an army group, the Red Army called Fronts.

Hierarchy of modern navies

Naval organization at the flotilla level up is less commonly abided by as ships operate in smaller or larger groups in various situations that may change at a moment's notice. However there is some common terminology used throughout navies to communicate the general concept of how many vessels might be in a unit.

Navies are generally organized into groups for a specific purpose, usually strategic, and these organizational groupings appear and disappear frequently based on the conditions and demands placed upon a navy. This contrasts with army organization where units remain static (i.e: with the same men and equipment) over long periods of time.

Unit Name	Vessel types	No. of Vessels	Officer in command
Navy or Admiralty	All vessels in a navy	2+ Fleets	Fleet Admiral or Admiral of the Fleet or Grand Admiral
Fleet	All vessels in an ocean or general region	2+ Battle Fleets or Task Forces	Admiral
Battle Fleet or Task Force	A large number of vessels of all types	2+ Task Groups	Vice Admiral
Task Group	A collection of complementary vessels	2+ Task Units / Squadrons	Rear Admiral (upper half) / Rear Admiral
Squadron or Task Unit	Usually capital ships	A small number of vessels	Rear Admiral (lower half) / Commodore / Flotilla Admiral
Flotilla or Task Unit	Usually not capital ships	A small number of vessels, usually of the same or similar types	Rear Admiral (lower half) / Commodore / Flotilla Admiral
Task Element	A single vessel	n/a	Captain or Commander

Auxiliary ships are usually commanded by officers below the rank of Captain. These vessels include Corvettes, Gunboats, Minesweepers, Patrol Boats, military riverine craft, Tenders and Torpedo Boats. Some destroyers, particularly smaller destroyers such as Frigates (formerly known as Destroyer Escorts) are commanded by officers below the rank of Captain as well. Usually, the smaller the vessel the lower the rank of the ship's commander. For example, patrol boats are often commanded by Ensigns, while Frigates are rarely commanded by an officer below the rank of Commander.

Historical navies were far more rigid in structure. Ships were collected in divisions, which in turn were collected in numbered squadrons, which comprised a numbered fleet. Permission for a vessel to leave one unit and join another would have to be approved on paper.

Hierarchy of air forces

The organization structures of air forces vary between nations: some air forces (such as the United States Air Force and the Royal Air Force) are divided into commands, groups and squadrons; others (such as the Soviet Air Force) have an Army-style organizational structure.

Unit Name (USAF/RAF)	No. of personnel	No. of aircraft	No. of subordinate units (USAF/RAF)	Officer in command (USAF/RAF)
Air Force	Entire air force	Entire air force	All Major Commands / Commands	General of the Air Force / Marshal of the Royal Air Force
Major Command / No RAF equivalent	Varies	Varies	By Region or Duty (subordinate units varies)	General / Air Chief Marshal
Numbered Air Force / Command	By Region (subordinate units varies)	Varies	2+ Wings / Groups	Major General / Air Vice Marshal
Wing / Group or Station	1,000-5000	48-100	2+ Groups / Wings	Colonel / Group Captain
Group / Wing	300-1,000	17-48	3-10 Squadrons / 3-4 Squadrons	Lieutenant Colonel / Wing Commander
Squadron	100-300	7-16	3-4 Flights	Major / Squadron Leader
Flight	20-100	4-6	2 Sections plus maintenance and support crew	Captain / Flight Lieutenant
Section	2-20	2-3	n/a	Lieutenant / Flying Officer

See also

• APP-6a military symbols
• Task Force
• Comparative military ranks
• Command (military formation)
• Detachment
• Military rank
• Structure of the British Army
• Structure of the Canadian Army
• Structure of the United States Armed Forces