Other Definitions
military unit (dict)
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Military UnitA military unit is an organisation within an armed force. It may consist of any number of soldiers, ships, vehicles, or aircraft. Armies, navies, and air forces, are organised hierarchically into groups of various sizes for functional, tactical and administrative purposes. This organisation is sometimes called an "Order of Battle" or Orbat for short. General unit terms This article gives an overview of some of the terms used to describe military units in armed forces across the world. Whilst it is recognised that there will be differences between armies of different nations, it seems that a large proportion are modelled 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. Technically, a unit is a homogenous organisation, such as a battalion. Brigades and above are collections of units, referred to as formations. Rungs may be skipped in this ladder: the UK merges the regiment and brigade under the term "brigade" and calls the battalion a regiment in some arms, for example. Likewise, only large military powers consider the top levels (today, Canada starts at the division level, for example). Army, army group and theatre are all large formations which vary significantly between armed forces in size and hierarchy position. Different arms and countries may also use traditional names, creating considerable confusion: for example, a British or Canadian armoured regiment (battalion) is divided into squadrons (companies) and troops (platoons), whereas an American cavalry squadron (battalion) is divided into troops (companies) and platoons. See also
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