The number of people in the Russian army department. How many people are in a company, battalion, platoon, etc.

The word platoon comes from the Russian word "cock", used in the command "to cock a weapon" and replaced foreign word plutong (derived from the French peloton), used as a designation for a small detachment of soldiers, introduced by Peter the Great.

Initially, the word platoon meant only a small infantry rifle detachment, indicating the type of unit and how many people there were in it, and not an army staffing and organizational unit as it is currently.

How many people are in a platoon of soldiers?

A platoon is a military unit, most often consisting of 2-4 sections, part of a company or battalion (in some cases it exists independently). Usually there are from 9-12 to 45-50 people in a platoon, depending on the type of troops, country or purpose of the platoon. Platoon commanders are sergeants, warrant officers, junior lieutenants, lieutenants or senior lieutenants, that is, they can be either an officer or a non-commissioned officer.

How many people were in a platoon in Tsarist Russia?

At the beginning of the 20th century, assault platoons began to appear in all infantry and grenadier regiments of the army of the Russian Empire. The platoon consisted of 48 privates, divided into four sections, and command was exercised by four sergeants and one officer, who was the platoon commander. The assault platoons were armed with carbines (officers had revolvers), bebut daggers and grenades. The equipment also included steel shields and “Hadrian’s helmets.” There were two bomb launchers per platoon.

Motorized rifles

Motorized rifle units were divided according to the type of equipment used. For example, in platoons on the BTR-50 there were three sections of 12 people, total number was 37 (together with the commander). The BMP-2 platoon consisted of 28 people. In addition to the riflemen, each squad usually had one machine gunner and a grenade launcher. The entire platoon was assigned one orderly and 1-2 snipers. The armament consisted of AKM assault rifles, PM pistols (for an officer), RPK machine guns, RPG-7 grenade launchers, SVD rifles and hand grenades.

Paratroopers and Marines

In a platoon of parachute troops on a BMD-1 and a platoon Marine Corps the BTR-70 had a staff of 28 people, but when carrying out reconnaissance missions, the number was reduced to 15-18 people. The weapons used were AKMS, RPG-7D, PM pistols, RPKS machine guns, sniper SVD-S rifles and hand grenades.

Tank troops

A tank platoon could be part of a tank battalion that was part of a tank regiment and then it had three tanks, or it could be part of a tank battalion that was part of a motorized rifle regiment and then it had 4 tanks. Since a section of a tank platoon is the tank crew, depending on the type of tank it could have 3 people (T-72) or 4 people (T-54). The total number of personnel ranged from 9 to 16 people, depending on the type of troops and type of tanks.

Special Forces Units

In Special Forces units, a military unit equivalent to a platoon was called a group, which also included 3 squads, with a total number of 9 to 18 people. Due to the specific nature of reconnaissance and sabotage missions, requiring increased mobility and secrecy, squads of 3-4 people could act completely independently. There are often cases when special forces groups are staffed exclusively by officers and warrant officers, which once again emphasizes the elitism of these units. A wide range of infantry weapons were used various types, from AKS-U assault rifles and Stechkin pistols with a silencer, to ATGMs, MANPADS or long-range sniper rifles, depending on the nature of the mission.

Artillery units

The number of sections (crews) in an artillery platoon and its total strength varied depending on the type of guns. Most often, mortar (2S4) platoons had 2 fire crews of 5 people each, and howitzer platoons (2A36) had 3 fire crews of 8 people each. The total number ranged from 10-12 to 25-27 people. The exception was the anti-tank platoon, whose total strength reached 42 people. The standard equipment was 6 9K11 ATGMs, 3 SPG-9M grenade launchers, 5 armored personnel carriers.

How many people are in a platoon in the army of modern Russia?

The organizational structure of platoons in the Russian Army has practically not undergone significant changes in relation to Soviet period after the 60s. The weapons used have changed somewhat, generally corresponding to the late Soviet period. In modern platoons, a section near the board has begun to stand out in terms of size and composition.

The motorized rifle platoon on the BTR-80 now has 32 soldiers, and on the BMP-2 - 30 soldiers. Greater attention has been paid to sniper fire, with a sniper often present in every squad. Now soldiers are equipped with individual communications equipment, and the range of automatic grenade launchers has been expanded.

The organization of Special Forces platoons (groups) has undergone virtually no changes. Tank platoons have a strength of 9-12 people (depending on the type of troops), all tank crews now have 3 people each.

The equipment of soldiers of the Russian Army began to include the promising Ratnik equipment. It includes special frost- and heat-resistant clothing, armor protection covering up to 80-90% of the surface of the soldier’s body (including 6B47 body armor, which provides protection from bullets of modern assault and sniper rifles with a caliber of 5.56 and 7.62 mm), communications equipment and positioning sensors physical condition, sighting systems with optical and thermal imaging channels, night vision devices, eye monitors (allowing shooting from behind cover while transmitting a television image from a sight), friend-or-foe sensors, wearable field computers (field tablets) for exchanging tactical information and orders.

According to its characteristics, Ratnik equipment meets the most modern requirements and is similar to the uniform of soldiers in the most advanced armies of NATO countries.

How many people are in a Marine platoon in the US Army?

A US Marine platoon consists of three rifle squads and a headquarters. The headquarters consists of 3 people, a platoon commander (usually a first lieutenant or second lieutenant), a platoon sergeant and a medic. Each rifle squad includes 3 fire groups of 4 people (a group commander with the rank of corporal, armed with M4/M16, one machine gunner with M249 and 2 machine gunners with M4\M16). Squads are commanded by sergeants or staff sergeants. The total strength of the platoon is 39-48 soldiers (with additional staffing of the platoon headquarters with snipers, machine gunners and machine gunners).

The main weapon is the M4\M16 assault rifle, the main machine gun used is the M249, various sniper rifles are used (including foreign production), M72 LAW grenade launchers, TOW ATGM. HMMWV, MRAP armored vehicles and LAV-25 armored personnel carriers are used as transportation and support vehicles.

This will be my first blog post. It’s not a full-fledged article in terms of the number of words and information, but it’s a very important note, which can be read in one breath and has almost more benefits than many of my articles. So, what is a squad, platoon, company and other concepts known to us from books and films on the screen? And how many people do they contain?

What is a platoon, company, battalion, etc.

• Branch
• Platoon
• Battalion
• Brigade
• Division
• Frame
• Army
• Front (district)

These are all tactical units in the branches and types of troops. I have arranged them in order from least number of people to most to make it easier for you to remember them. During my service, I most often met with everyone up to the regiment.

From the brigade and above (in number of people) during the 11 months of service, we didn’t even say. Perhaps this is due to the fact that I do not serve in a military unit, but in an educational institution.

How many people do they include?

Department. Numbers from 5 to 10 people. The squad is commanded by the squad leader. A squad leader is a sergeant's position, so commode (short for squad leader) is often a junior sergeant or sergeant.

Platoon. A platoon includes from 3 to 6 sections, that is, it can reach from 15 to 60 people. The platoon commander is in charge of the platoon. This is already an officer position. It is occupied by a minimum of a lieutenant and a maximum of a captain.

Company. A company includes from 3 to 6 platoons, that is, it can consist of from 45 to 360 people. The company is commanded by the company commander. This is a major position. In fact, the commander is a senior lieutenant or captain (in the army, a company commander is affectionately and abbreviated as a company commander).

Battalion. This is either 3 or 4 companies + headquarters and individual specialists (gunsmith, signalman, snipers, etc.), a mortar platoon (not always), sometimes air defense and tank destroyers (hereinafter referred to as PTB). The battalion includes from 145 to 500 people. The commander of the battalion (abbreviated as battalion commander) commands.

This is the position of lieutenant colonel. But in our country both captains and majors command, who in the future may become lieutenant colonels, provided they retain this position.

Regiment. From 3 to 6 battalions, that is, from 500 to 2500+ people + headquarters + regimental artillery + air defense + fire-fighting tanks. The regiment is commanded by a colonel. But maybe also a lieutenant colonel.

Brigade. A brigade is several battalions, sometimes 2 or even 3 regiments. The brigade usually has from 1,000 to 4,000 people. It is commanded by a colonel. The abbreviated title for the position of brigade commander is brigade commander.

Division. These are several regiments, including artillery and, possibly, tank + rear service + sometimes aviation. Commanded by a colonel or major general. The number of divisions varies. From 4,500 to 22,000 people.

Frame. These are several divisions. That is, in the region of 100,000 people. The corps is commanded by a major general.

Army. From two to ten divisions of different types of troops + rear units + repair shops and so on. The number can be very different. On average from 200,000 to 1,000,000 people and above. The army is commanded by a major general or lieutenant general.

Front. IN peacetime- military district. It’s difficult to give exact numbers here. They vary by region, military doctrine, political environment and the like.

The front is already a self-sufficient structure with reserves, warehouses, training units, military schools, and so on. The front commander commands the front. This is a lieutenant general or army general.

The composition of the front depends on the assigned tasks and the situation. Typically the front includes:

• control;
• missile army (one - two);
• army (five - six);
• tank army (one - two);
• air army (one - two);
• air defense army;
• separate formations and units of various types of troops and special troops of front-line subordination;
• formations, units and establishments of operational logistics.

The front can be strengthened by formations and units of other branches of the Armed Forces and the reserve of the Supreme High Command.

What other similar tactical terms exist?

Subdivision. This word refers to all military formations that are part of the unit. Squad, platoon, company, battalion - they are all united by one word “unit”. The word comes from the concept of division, to divide. That is, the part is divided into divisions.

Part. This is the main unit of the Armed Forces. The term “unit” most often means regiment and brigade. External signs units are: the presence of their own office work, military economy, bank account, postal and telegraph address, their own official seal, the commander’s right to give written orders, open (44 tank training division) and closed (military unit 08728) combined arms numbers. That is, the part has sufficient autonomy.

IMPORTANT! Please note that the terms military unit and military unit do not mean exactly the same thing. The term “military unit” is used as a general designation, without specifics. If we are talking about a specific regiment, brigade, etc., then the term “military unit” is used. Usually its number is also mentioned: “military unit 74292” (but you cannot use “military unit 74292”) or, for short, military unit 74292.

Compound. As a standard, only a division fits this term. The word “connection” itself means to connect parts. The division headquarters has the status of a unit. Other units (regiments) are subordinate to this unit (headquarters). All together there is a division. However, in some cases, a brigade may also have the status of a connection. This happens if the brigade includes separate battalions and companies, each of which has the status of a unit in itself.

Association. This term combines corps, army, army group and front (district). The headquarters of the association is also the part to which various formations and units are subordinated.

Bottom line

There are no other specific and grouping concepts in the military hierarchy. In any case, in Ground forces. In this article we did not touch upon the hierarchy of military formations of the aviation and navy. However, the attentive reader can now imagine the naval and aviation hierarchy quite simply and with minor errors.

Now it will be easier for us to dialogue, friends! After all, every day we are getting closer to speaking the same language. You are learning more and more military terms and meanings, and I am getting closer and closer to civilian life!))

I wish everyone to find in this article what they were looking for,

Generals have always found it difficult to control large military units. To facilitate management, it was decided to create subunits commanded by junior commanders. Below is a list of these subunits. Of course, each army has its own style of management, but subunits are often similar in different armies. After all, managing military units of the army is an extremely responsible matter, and the smaller the unit commanded by an officer, the easier it is for him to understand the situation. This reduces responsibility.

In this article we will also consider the organization and armament of units of foreign armies. This is a very serious topic that is of interest to many. Large units of foreign armies are divided into their own small units. The first such part is a link.

Flight or fire group

A flight is a small military infantry unit and is designed to optimize fire, movement, and tactical doctrine in combat. Depending on mission requirements, a typical fireteam consists of four or fewer members:

• machine gunner;
• machine gunner's assistant;
• shooter;
• designated team leader.

The role of each fire team leader is to ensure that everyone operates as a unit. Two or three fireteams are organized into a squad or section in coordinated operations led by a squad leader.

Military theorists consider effective fireteams to be critical to the modern professional military because they serve as the primary force. Psychological studies conducted by the United States Army have shown that the survivability and readiness of soldiers to fight in to a greater extent influences the desire to both protect and support other members of the fireteam than abstract concepts or ideologies. Historically, countries with effective organization fire groups had significantly better performance from their infantry units in battle than those who were limited to traditional operations: with larger units.

The fire group is the primary link on which the organization of modern infantry is based in the British Army, Royal Air Force regiments, Royal Marines, and US Army. The fireteam concept is based on the need for tactical flexibility in infantry operations. The link is capable of operating autonomously as part of a larger unit. Successful work as part of fire groups depends on the quality training of military personnel of small units, experience collaboration fire team members, sufficient communications infrastructure and quality NCOs to provide tactical leadership to the team.

These requirements have led to the successful use of the fireteam concept by more professional militaries. Military conscription makes it difficult for teams to develop because team members are less effective as they gain experience over time by working together and building personal connections. The tactics of action of army units within a flight are quite diverse.

In combat, when attacking or maneuvering, the fireteam typically extends out to a distance of 50 meters (160 ft), while in defensive positions the team may cover the range of their weapons or their visual limits, whichever is less. In open terrain, an effective team can travel up to 500 meters (1,600 ft), although detection range limits effectiveness beyond 100 meters (330 ft) or so without specialized equipment. A team is effective as long as its main weapon remains operational. Link as part of an army unit on at the moment a very effective combat unit.

The next division consists of several units. This large unit of the army is called a detachment.

Squad

In military terminology, a detachment, or squadron, is a unit led by a non-commissioned officer who reports to an infantry platoon. In countries following the traditions of the British army (Australian Army, Canadian Army, etc.), this organization is called a section. In most armies, a squad consists of eight to fourteen soldiers and can be divided into fire teams.

During World War II, the German Wehrmacht infantry unit (or Gruppe) was built around a general purpose machine gun. The advantage of the general purpose machine gun concept was that it greatly increased the total volume of fire that could be given to a squad. MG-34 or MG-42 were actively used as such a machine gun.

The infantry group consisted of ten people: a non-commissioned officer, a second-in-command, a group of three (machine gunner, assistant gunner and ammunition carrier) and five riflemen. As a personal small arms the detachment commander was issued a rifle or, from about 1941, a submachine gun, the machine gunner and his assistant were issued pistols, and the deputy detachment commander, ammunition carrier and riflemen were issued rifles.

The riflemen carried additional ammunition, hand grenades, explosives or a machine gun tripod, as needed. They provided security and covering fire for the machine gun group. Two of the standard issue 98k Carbine rifles could be replaced with semi-automatic Gewehr-43 rifles, and sometimes assault rifles The StG-44 could be used to rearm the entire squad, except for the machine gun.

In U.S. Army units, a detachment was historically a unit of a section consisting of two soldiers up to 12 men, and was originally used primarily for training and administrative purposes.

Platoon

A platoon is a combat unit of an army, usually consisting of two or more squads/sections/patrols. Platoon organization varies by country, but generally, according to official organization tables published in US military documents, a full US Infantry rifle platoon consists of 39 Soldiers or 43 Marines (US Army or US Marine Corps, respectively) . There are other types of rifle platoons (e.g., anti-tank, lightly armored reconnaissance, mortar, reconnaissance, sniper), depending on the service and the type of infantry company/battalion to which the platoon is assigned, and these platoons can range from 18 men (Marine Corps USA - sniper platoon) up to 69 people (USMC - mortar platoon).

The platoon was originally a firing squad, not an organization. The system was invented by the Swedish Gustavus Adolphus in 1618. In the French army in the 1670s, a battalion was divided into 18 platoons, which were grouped into three "firings". Each platoon in the range either actually fired or reloaded. The system was also used by the British, Austrian, Russian and Dutch armies. The platoon leader is usually a junior officer: a junior or first lieutenant, or a soldier of equivalent rank. The officer is usually assisted by a platoon sergeant. A platoon is usually the smallest military unit led by an officer.

Rifle platoons typically consist of a small platoon and three or four sections (commonwealth) or squadrons (USA). In some armies, a platoon is used in all branches of the army. In several armies, such as the French Army, a platoon is specifically a cavalry unit, and infantry uses a "section" as its equivalent unit. A unit consisting of several platoons is called a company/battery/detachment.

From October 1913, under General Sir Ivor Maxx's scheme, the British Army's regular battalions were reorganized from the previous eight companies into four company structures, with each company having four platoons as separate units, each commanded by a lieutenant with a platoon sergeant as his deputy. Each platoon was divided into four units under the command of a corporal. Due to a shortage of officers in 1938-1940. For experienced non-commissioned officers who commanded platoons, the non-commissioned officer rank of platoon sergeant major was introduced. IN modern units Russian Army platoon is one of the main army units.

Company

A company is a military unit, usually consisting of 80-150 soldiers, commanded by a major or captain. Most companies are formed from three to six platoons, although the exact number may vary by country, unit type and structure.

Usually several companies are grouped into a battalion or regiment, the latter of which is sometimes formed by several battalions. Sometimes independent or separate companies are organized for special purposes, such as the 1st Air Force Signal Company or the 3rd Reconnaissance Company. These companies are not organic to the battalion or regiment, but rather report directly to a higher level organization, such as Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters (i.e., corps-level command).

Companies in units of the Russian army:

1. Motorized rifle company. The Soviet motorized rifle company can be mounted with any armored personnel carrier, armored personnel carrier or infantry fighting vehicle, which were more numerous in the late 1980s. The rifle company's armored personnel carrier consisted of a company headquarters, three motorized rifle platoons and a machine gun/anti-tank platoon. A rifle company with an infantry fighting vehicle had the same number of personnel and carriers, and consisted of a company headquarters, three motorized rifle platoons and a machine gun platoon equipped with six RPK-74s. Despite the perceived lower firepower, American commanders were advised to include the heavier BMP weapons in their calculations.
2. Tank company. Until the end of the 1980s, a Soviet tank company consisted of a company headquarters and three tank platoons with T-64, T-72 or T-80 tanks for a total of 39 men and 13 tanks; companies using the old T-54, T-55 or T-62 tanks had 10 or 13 additional troops. However, forces in Eastern Europe began to standardize tank companies into 10 tanks, with three tanks in each platoon instead of four.
3. Scientific company. Scientific companies were created in 2013 to allow college-educated conscripts to serve in scientific research missions. There are 7 research companies:

• 2nd and 3rd Exploration Companies (Aerospace Forces);
• 5th Research Company (Army);
• 6th Research Company (General Staff);
• 7th Research Company (Communications);
• 8th Research Company (Medical);
• 9th Research Company (RKhBZ).

Battalion

A battalion is a military unit. The use of the term "battalion" depends on nationality and type of service. Typically a battalion consists of 300-800 soldiers and is divided into several companies. The battalion is usually commanded by a lieutenant colonel. In some countries the word "battalion" is associated with infantry.

The term was first used in Italian as battaglione (not later than the 16th century). It comes from the Italian word battaglia. First use of the battalion English was in the 1580s, and the first use to mean "part of a regiment" is from 1708.

Independent Operations

The battalion is the smallest military organization capable of "limited independent operations" as the battalion is organizational unit the lowest level containing organic coordinating or executive personnel and a support and maintenance group (e.g., headquarters and company headquarters). The battalion must have a source of reinforcement so that it can continue operations for a long time. This is due to the fact that the main burden of a battalion is on ammunition, expendable weapons (such as hand grenades and expendable rocket launchers), water, rations, fuel, lubricants, spare parts, batteries and medical supplies usually consists only of what battalion soldiers and organics can carry vehicles battalion

In addition to sufficient personnel and equipment (usually at least two main mission companies and one mission support company) to carry out significant operations, as well as limited autonomous administrative and logistical capacity, the commander is provided with a staff member whose function is to coordinate ongoing operations and plan future operations. The battalion's subordinate units (companies and their organic platoons) depend on the battalion headquarters for command, control, communications, and intelligence, as well as the battalion's service and support organizational structure to accomplish their mission. A battalion is usually part of a regiment, brigade, or group, depending on the organizational model used by that service.

Motorized rifle battalion in units Russian army

A motorized rifle battalion could be mounted on either APCs or BMP infantry fighting vehicles, with the former being more numerous in the late 1980s. The battalion headquarters includes 12 personnel and three motorized rifle companies (110 people each). The armored personnel carrier battalion also had an anti-tank platoon with four launchers AT-3 or AT-4 and two 73-mm SPG-9 recoilless guns. Armored personnel carrier units that were in a state of high alert, sometimes had six rocket launchers and three recoilless rifles.

Tank battalion

Until the late 1980s, Soviet tank battalions consisted of three tank companies of 13 T-64, T-72 or T-80 tanks each, along with a battalion headquarters, for a total of 165 personnel and 40 tanks. Battalions, using the old T-54, T-55 or T-62, had 31 or 40 additional enlisted soldiers. However, forces in Eastern Europe began to standardize towards less education.

Artillery division

A Soviet artillery battalion in the late 1980s consisted of a battalion headquarters, a platoon headquarters, a maintenance and supply platoon and three fire batteries, each of six artillery units, either self-propelled 2S1 "Gvozdika" or towed D-30 howitzers, and numbered 260 people or 240 people respectively. The artillery rocket battalions consisted of a headquarters platoon, a service battery and three firing batteries equipped with BM-21 (Grads), with a total strength of 255 people.

Brigade

A brigade is the primary tactical military formation, which typically consists of three to six battalions plus supporting elements. This is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced shelf. Two or more brigades may form a division.

Brigades formed into divisions are usually infantry or armored (sometimes called combined arms brigades). In addition to combat units, they may include combat support units or units, such as artillery and engineers, and logistics support units or units. Historically, such brigades were sometimes called brigade groups. In terms of operations, a brigade may include both organic elements and attached elements, including some temporarily attached to perform a specific task.

Brigades can also be specialized and consist of battalions of one unit, such as cavalry, mechanized, armored, artillery, anti-aircraft, aviation, engineering, signal or logistics. Some brigades are classified as independent or detached and operate independently of the traditional division structure. A typical standard NATO brigade consists of approximately 3,200-5,500 troops. However, in Switzerland and Austria their number may reach 11,000 troops. The Soviet Union, its predecessors and successors, generally use "regiment" instead of brigade, and this was common in much of Europe before World War II.

The brigade commander is usually a major general, brigadier general, brigadier or colonel. In some armies the commander is rated as a general officer. The brigade commander has an autonomous headquarters and personnel. A chief staff officer, usually a lieutenant colonel or colonel, may be appointed chief of staff, although until the late 20th century the British and similar armies referred to the position as "brigade major". Some brigades may also have a deputy commander. The headquarters has a core of staff officers and support staff (secretaries, assistants and drivers), which can vary depending on the type of brigade. Headquarters will typically have its own communications team.

Division

A division is a large military unit, or formation, usually consisting of 10,000-20,000 soldiers. Infantry divisions during the world wars they had a nominal strength of 8,000 to 30,000 people.

In most armies, a division consists of several regiments or brigades. In turn, several units, as a rule, make up a corps. Historically, the division has been the default combined arms unit, capable of independent operations. Smaller combination weapons units, such as the American Regimental Combat Team (RCT) during World War II, were used when conditions favored them. IN lately modern Western militaries have begun to use the smaller brigade combat team (similar to the RCT) as the default combined arms unit. However, the division to which they belonged was less important.

Although the focus of the article is on army units, in naval usage a division has a completely different meaning. Refers to either the administrative/functional division of a department (e.g., fire department, weapons department) aboard Navy and Coast Guard ships, shore commands, and naval aviation units (including Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Air Force), in a subgroup of several ships in a flotilla or squadron, or two or three aircraft sections, operating under a designated unit leader.

Within an administrative/functional branch, unit size varies widely, although generally the size of a unit in the Army is less than 100 men and is roughly equivalent in function and organizational hierarchy/command relationship to a platoon.

Frame

An operational formation, sometimes known as a field corps, that consists of two or more divisions. Another variety is the administrative corps - a specialized unit of military service (for example, an artillery corps, a medical corps, or a unit military police) or in some cases a separate service in the national military (such as the United States Marine Corps). These customs often overlap. For example, during Korean War United States Tenth Corps: The field corps included infantry units of the United States Marine Corps and smaller units from various administrative corps of the United States Army.

Corps can also be a general term for a non-military organization such as the US Peace Corps.

Field Army

A field army (numbered army or simply army) is a military formation in many armed forces, consisting of two or more corps and may be subordinate to an army group. Likewise, air armies are equivalent to formations in some air force. The field army consists of 100-150 thousand military personnel.

Specific field armies are usually named or numbered to distinguish them from an "army" in the sense of the entire national land military force. In English, it is common to use numbers such as "First Army" to name field armies. While corps are usually distinguished by Roman numerals (for example, I Corps) and subordinate formations - serial numbers(for example, 1st division). A field army may be given a geographical name in addition to or as an alternative to a numerical name, such as the British Army of the Rhine, Army of the Niemen or Army of the Aegean (also known as the Fourth Army).

The Roman army is one of the first official field armies, in the sense of a very large combined arms formation, namely the sacer comitatus, which can be translated literally as "sacred escort". The term comes from the fact that they were commanded by Roman emperors (considered sacred) when they acted as warlords.

In some militaries, the army is or was equivalent to a corps-level unit. In the Red Army units, the field army in wartime subordinated to the front (equivalent to an army group). It contained at least three to five divisions along with artillery, air defense, intelligence and other auxiliary units. It can be classified as a combined army or a tank army. Although both were combined arms formations, the former contained larger number motorized rifle divisions, and the second - a larger number of tank divisions. In peacetime Soviet army usually subordinated to the military district.

Modern field armies are large formations that differ significantly in size, composition and area of ​​responsibility. For example, in NATO, a field army consists of a headquarters and usually controls at least two corps, under which are located a varying number of divisions. The level of the field army is affected by the movement of divisions and reinforcements from one corps to another to increase pressure on the enemy at a critical point. NATO troops are controlled by a general or lieutenant general.

Army group, army group

An army group is a military organization consisting of several field armies that is self-sufficient indefinitely. She is usually responsible for a specific geographic area. An army group is the largest field organization, controlled by a single commander—usually a general or field marshal—and includes between 400,000 and 1,000,000 soldiers.

In the Polish Armed Forces and the former Soviet Red Army, an army group was known as a front.

Army groups can be multinational formations. For example, during World War II, the Southern Army Group (also known as the 6th US Army Group) included the US Seventh Army and the French First Army; The 21st Army Group included the British Second Army, the First Canadian Army and the US Ninth Army.

In both the Commonwealth and the United States, the number of army groups is expressed Arabic numerals(for example, 12th Army Group), while the number of the field army is spelled out (for example, "Third Army").

Theater of war, front

A theater of war is a sub-area in a theater of war. The theater boundary is determined by the commander who organizes or provides support for specific combat operations within the TO.

The theater of operations is divided into strategic directions or military regions depending on whether we are talking about war or peacetime. The United States Armed Forces are divided into Unified Fighting Commands (regions), which are assigned to a specific theater of war. A strategic direction is an army group, also known as target (field) forces or battle groups. A strategic command or direction would essentially unite a number of tactical military formations or operational command. In modern militaries, strategic command is more commonly known as combatant command, which may be a combination of groups.

In Russian Army units

Large geographical division used by the Soviet and Russian Armed Forces to classify continental geographical areas, is classified as "theater". The separation of large continental and maritime areas helps in determining the limits within which plans for action of strategic military force groups are developed. This allowed military operations to be carried out on specific important strategic directions, known as fronts, which were named according to their "theater" of war, such as the Southwestern Front ( Russian Empire), 1st Ukrainian Front and Northern Front (Soviet Union). In peacetime, due to the loss of strategic direction, the fronts were transformed into military districts (districts) responsible for the designated area of ​​​​operations.

Conclusion

This article discussed military structure units, as well as the number of units in the army. The history of such optimization of troop control goes back to antiquity. Even in the military units of the Roman army, the legion was divided into small units. These units were centuries and cohorts. Military units in the army of the Roman Empire were very successful. Therefore, the commanders adopted this tactic.

The Leningrad Front adopted Resolution No. 00274 “On strengthening the fight against desertion and penetration of enemy elements into the territory of Leningrad,” according to which the head of the Front’s Military Rear Security was instructed to organize four barrage detachments “to concentrate and check all military personnel detained without documents.” On October 12, 1941, Deputy People's Commissar of Defense Marshal of the Soviet Union G.I. Kulik sent I.V. Stalin received a note in which he proposed to “organize a command group along each highway going north, west and south from Moscow” to organize the repulsion of enemy tanks, which would be given a “barrage detachment to stop the fleeing.”

How many people are in a company, battalion, platoon, etc.

The term of punishment was calculated from a month to three, a wound received even on the first day of stay in a penal unit automatically returned the fighter to the unit to the same position, in the same military rank, so service in the penal units when fighting was going on was not even considered a day, and for hours, it was deadly and dangerous.

Penal battalions were under the authority of the military councils of the fronts, and penal companies were under the authority of the military councils of the armies.
For the direct conduct of military operations, penal units were assigned rifle divisions, brigades, regiments.

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Military personnel were sent to penal battalions by order of the division (corps, army, front - in relation to units of the corresponding subordination), and to penal companies - by order of the regiment (individual unit) for a period of 1 to 3 months.

Penal military units

Attention

I.I. Maslennikov, who demanded that military personnel who showed cowardice on the battlefield be sent to a penal battalion or tried by a military tribunal.

Published literature and memoirs of front-line soldiers contain information that commanders and superiors did not always adhere to the rules established in orders and directives.
This, as the study showed, concerned approximately 10 categories of fines: 1. Those convicted unjustly, who were slandered and slandered in order to settle scores with them.
2. The so-called “surrounded people” who managed to escape from the “cauldrons” and reach their troops, as well as those who fought as part of partisan detachments.
3. Military personnel who have lost combat and secret documents.
4.

Commanders and superiors guilty of “criminally careless organization of the combat security and reconnaissance service.”

5. Persons who, due to their beliefs, refused to take up arms.
6.

Military ranks of the Russian Federation

However, the attentive reader can now imagine the naval and aviation hierarchy quite simply and with minor errors. Now it will be easier for us to dialogue, friends! After all, every day we are getting closer to speaking the same language.
You are learning more and more military terms and meanings, and I am getting closer and closer to civilian life!)) I wish everyone to find in this article what they were looking for, the author of the blog Army: a view from the inside.

Penal battalions and barrage detachments of the Red Army during the Great Patriotic War

Platoon. A platoon includes from 3 to 6 sections, that is, it can reach from 15 to 60 people. The platoon commander is in charge of the platoon. This is already an officer position. It is occupied by a minimum of a lieutenant and a maximum of a captain. Company.

A company includes from 3 to 6 platoons, that is, it can consist of from 45 to 360 people.

The company is commanded by the company commander. This is a major position. In fact, the commander is a senior lieutenant or captain (in the army, a company commander is affectionately and abbreviated as a company commander). Battalion. This is either 3 or 4 companies + headquarters and individual specialists (gunsmith, signalman, snipers, etc.), a mortar platoon (not always), sometimes air defense and tank destroyers (hereinafter referred to as PTB).

The battalion includes from 145 to 500 people. The battalion commander (abbreviated as battalion commander) commands.

This is the position of lieutenant colonel.

Mistervik

Practice has shown that when implementing this order, significant violations were committed, the elimination of which was directed by Order No. 0244, signed on August 6, 1944 by Deputy People's Commissar of Defense Marshal A.M. Vasilevsky. Approximately the same kind of order No. 0935, concerning officers of fleets and flotillas, was signed on December 28, 1944 by the People's Commissar

Navy Admiral of the Fleet N.G. Kuznetsov. Military units were also transferred to the category of penalties.

On November 23, 1944, People's Commissar of Defense Stalin signed order No. 0380 on the transfer of the 214th Cavalry Regiment of the 63rd Cavalry Korsun Red Banner Division (commander of the guard regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Danilevich) to the category of penalties for the loss of the Battle Banner. The formation of penal battalions and companies was not always carried out successfully, as required by the leadership of the People's Commissariat of Defense and General Staff. In this regard, Deputy People's Commissar of Defense Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K.

Since the penalty officers were assigned the most difficult combat missions, therefore, their losses from both the permanent and variable composition of the penal units were quite high.

Thus, in 1944, the average monthly casualty of variable casualties in killed, deceased, wounded and sick reached 10,506 people, and permanent casualties - 3,685 people.

This is 3-6 times more than the level of casualties of conventional troops in the same offensive operations. Penalties who were wounded in battle were considered to have served their sentences, were restored to rank and all rights and, upon recovery, were sent for further service in regular units, and disabled people were given pensions from the salary of the last position before enlistment in the penal battalion.
Assault battalions were intended for use in the most active sectors of the front. The duration of stay of personnel in individual assault rifle battalions was established to be two months of participation in battles, either until they were awarded an order for valor in battle or until the first wound, after which the personnel, if they had good certifications, could be assigned to the field troops for the corresponding command positions. commanding staff."

Subsequently, the formation of assault battalions was continued.

Their combat use in principle, did not differ from penal battalions, although there were significant features. Thus, unlike penal battalions, those who were sent to assault battalions were not convicted and deprived of their officer ranks.