United States Army Operational Units

The following is the basic structure of operational units in the U.S. ground forces. Memorize the names, approximate size, and rank of the commander; there will be a short quiz on this next Friday.

Unit	Size (soldiers)	Components	Commanded by
Squad	4 - 10		Sergeant
Platoon	16 - 40	3 -4 squads	Lieutenant
Company	100 -200	3 - 4 platoons	Captain
Battalion	500 - 900	3 - 5 companies	Lt. Colonel
Brigade	3000 - 5000	3 or more battalions	Colonel
Division	10,000 - 18,000	3 brigades	Maj. General
Corps		2 -5 division	Lt. General
Field Army		2 -5 corps	General

Source: http://www.army.mil/organization/unitdiagram.html

Notes:

1. In historical accounts you will encounter a "regiment" -- this was typically around 500 to 1000 soldiers. The regiment remains the largest permanent organizational unit in the British army; this is also used in the Canadian and Australian military. The oldest surviving regiment in the British Army is the Honourable Artillery Company, chartered on 25 August 1527 by Henry VIII. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honourable_Artillery_Company)