Minnesota Joe Posted March 27, 2001 Share Posted March 27, 2001 I have been searching the web for an hour trying to find a solid figure. I'd check a world almanac, but the newest one I got is from '96. I need this information for a ten minute speech I have to give for school. Any help would be appreciated. Madmatt: do me a favor, don't lock this up 'till I get some info. Thanks. ------------------ Ah scheist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M Hofbauer Posted March 27, 2001 Share Posted March 27, 2001 How about we replace "OT" with "PL"? seriously, I think the strength of the U.S. Army lies in it's new black beret. because, funnily enough, when I recentrly read about the Ranger's and other's dissatisfaction about the introduction of the cotton headgear produced by a relative of Mr Shinseki, it was this very argument which was put forth as a reason FOR the introduction of the headgear: "Rangers don't necessarily disagree with the general's intent, but this directive has caused somewhat of a rift in the Ranger community. Some don't mind the change; some vehemently oppose it. Even some non-Ranger types have expressed apprehension. Such a divide in the ranks proves America's Army needs something like the black beret to unite its troops. " Hysteron proteron. Or somefink. [This message has been edited by M Hofbauer (edited 03-26-2001).] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug Beman Posted March 27, 2001 Share Posted March 27, 2001 Best way to avoid getting locked is to put this thread into GENERAL DISCUSSION. DjB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mannheim Tanker Posted March 27, 2001 Share Posted March 27, 2001 Originally posted by Minnesota Joe: Madmatt: do me a favor, don't lock this up 'till I get some info. Thanks. ROTFLMAO! On a more serious note, you might find what you're looking for under this link: http://www.army.mil/aps/aps_toc.htm ------------------ Andreas himself will attest that my massive ego and foolhardy belief in my own greatness would never allow for me to be anyone's worshipper - Hamsters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Dorosh Posted March 27, 2001 Share Posted March 27, 2001 If you read Anthony Herbert's book SOLDIER, there are some who would say that the black beret was just another example of form over substance anyway. I mean, after you get the Ranger tab, what difference does it make what hat you wear? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minnesota Joe Posted March 27, 2001 Author Share Posted March 27, 2001 I probably should have been more specific. How many active-duty soldiers are there in the Army right now? Officers included. A number for Reservists would also be great. ------------------ Ah scheist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pvt. Ryan Posted March 27, 2001 Share Posted March 27, 2001 I think we found ourselves another one of those Ruskie spies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minnesota Joe Posted March 27, 2001 Author Share Posted March 27, 2001 Niet! I mean no, I just need some info. ------------------ Ah scheist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasoncawley@ameritech.net Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Active duty personnel as of February was 1,369,000. That breaks out 474,000 Army, 171,000 Marines, 368,000 Navy, and 355,000 Air Force. The Guard and Reserves provide added depth, on roughly the same scale or a bit less - not too many Marine or navy reservists, though, compared to Air and Army. If you want a detailed order of battle, by units, you can find it here - http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/9059/usaob.html If you want a synopsis, summing up all the info on that page, it is about as follows. The Army has the equivalent of about 7 heavy divisions, active, plus 6 more light, active, if you count the independent regiments and brigades etc. About the same amount again in the Guard and reserves, with an 7-4 breakdown heavy vs. light. "Light" means airborne, air assault, mountain, light, etc. Heavy means armor and mech. The army also has numerous independent artillery brigades (for corps and army level, etc) in addition to the divisional artillery of the above forces, 4-5 divisions worth active and slightly less, on top of that, in reserve. In addition, the Marines have about 4 divisions worth active and 1 in reserve, counting all the smaller units. Medium in weight, with APCs and some tanks, but not as much mechanized firepower as the Army heavy divisions. The air force has 5 heavy bomber wings (B-2, 2 each B-1 and B-52) and 2 light ones (F-117, a second mixed w/ some A-10), plus 2 heavy bomber wings in reserve (B-1), along with 8 A-10 wings also in reserve. On the fighter side, there are 28 active wings and 24 in the Guard and reserve. The active fighter wings are split about 40-60 F-15 vs. F-16, while most of the reserve is F-16. The air force also runs the Minuteman missle force. The marines also have their own planes of course, and the Navy has 12 carriers, an overkill or three of SSBNs (missle subs), and numerous surface escort groups and SSNs (attack subs). The army and marines both have flocks of choppers too. Lots of training commands, support, airlift, etc, in addition to those main forces. As for deployment, there are forces in the continental U.S., Alaska and Hawaii, Japan, Okinawa, Korea, Guam, Diego Garcia, Kuwait, Turkey, Macedonia, Kosovo, Bosnia, Italy, Germany, Britain, Cuba - "and all the ships at sea". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abbott Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Originally posted by Michael Dorosh: If you read Anthony Herbert's book SOLDIER, there are some who would say that the black beret was just another example of form over substance anyway. I mean, after you get the Ranger tab, what difference does it make what hat you wear? Oustanding book! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Dorosh Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Originally posted by jasoncawley@ameritech.net: Active duty... What's the average length of enlistment (or for that matter, average IQ) for GIs these days? Originally posted by Abbott: Great book! You know, I read it, thought it was great, then my dad read it, thought it was self serving, I changed my opinion a little, but not overly...just reread it cover to cover and am still impressed by it. Some other posters on other boards have told me it is a good book too; some actually met Herbert after the war. The 173rd Airborne Brigade has a website that lists some neat info about the book and personal experiences of other soldiers who interacted with Herbert at the time. A lot of the problems that Herbert had seem to be univeral in some militaries; I could recognize a lot of the Canadian Army's current problems in what Herbert wrote about. [This message has been edited by Michael Dorosh (edited 03-28-2001).] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gregory Deych Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Originally posted by Minnesota Joe: I probably should have been more specific. How many active-duty soldiers are there in the Army right now? Officers included. A number for Reservists would also be great. The figure given for the divisions earlier in in the tread is somewhat misleading. United States has near 100 battalions of infantry currently, including light, mechanized, airborne, Ranger and Marine. This works out to around 11 divisions, as opposed to 15 (17 - 2 armored)you'd get by counting essentically just divisional HQs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forever Babra Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 I'm reliably informed it's "an army of one" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Dorosh Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Abbot - sorry, I guess this is not the "official" 173rd website, but is where I found the Herbert info - http://www.olywa.net/sdotctho/ltcfired.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abbott Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Originally posted by Michael Dorosh: Abbot - sorry, I guess this is not the "official" 173rd website, but is where I found the Herbert info - http://www.olywa.net/sdotctho/ltcfired.htm Thank you Michael. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasoncawley@ameritech.net Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 http://www.defenselink.mil/ Average length of initial enlistment is 4 years active, 4 years reserve duty. 50% of enlisted men re-enlist after such a term, except in the Marine Corps, where there are more volunteers than slots, and only 25% get a re-enlist "berth". For officers, the length is 6 years and the same 50% portion "re-up" after each. The Air Force only gets about 95% of the re-enlisters it wants, and there are shortages in certain specialties - e.g. computer technicians, linguists - in high civilian demand. As for the educational level, of course the officers are college grads, the enlisted are high school grads, 3/8ths with some college. The portion of the enlisted scoring above national averages on standardized tests is 66% - bit lower in the Army and Army reserve, higher in the Air Force, as you'd expect. None of the above shows any marked change in the last few years. The force is smaller, the op-tempo higher, than ten years ago, of course. Which means the people there are doing a harder job. And there is more wacky political silliness going on, even than usual from such a huge bureaucracy, again compared to 10 years ago (but not to 20 or 30, when it was much worse). Oops. I did it *again*. I answered a direct question, and I cited *numbers*. Arrrgg. The litte buggers are *everywhere*. Will the plague never end? - LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasoncawley@ameritech.net Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 To Gregory Detch - well, I gave 13, not your 11 nor your hypothetical 15. I didn't count division HQs, I counted brigades. But whatever, the total manpower figures are there, and the OOB is on the link for anyone who wants to quibble about how to count them. I take it your meaning is, some of the brigades aren't at full strength? I'm sure that is true. A lot of tail per bit of teeth, though, to get just 11 divisions out of 474,000 soldiers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasoncawley@ameritech.net Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Someone wanted actual figures for the size of the reserves, which I didn't give before. The total reserve force is 865,000. 353,000 Army National Guard, 207,000 Army Reserve, 106,000 Air National Guard, 86,000 Naval Reserve, and 40,000 Marine Reserve. So that puts the whole force at 2,234,000 active and reserve. The portion of the total population that comes to, is 1 out of 125, or expressed as a portion of those employed, 1 out of 60. [This message has been edited by jasoncawley@ameritech.net (edited 03-29-2001).] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Dorosh Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Originally posted by jasoncawley@ameritech.net: http://www.defenselink.mil/ Oops. I did it *again*. I answered a direct question, and I cited *numbers*. Arrrgg. The litte buggers are *everywhere*. Will the plague never end? - LOL. Yeah, but you didn't make them up yourself this time. There's hope for you yet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasoncawley@ameritech.net Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Still as snide and hopeless as ever I see... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berlichtingen Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Originally posted by jasoncawley@ameritech.net: In addition, the Marines have about 4 divisions worth active and 1 in reserve, counting all the smaller units. Medium in weight, with APCs and some tanks, but not as much mechanized firepower as the Army heavy divisions. 3 Active duty Divisions (1st - 3rd) and 1 reserve Division (4th). 1 active duty Brigade (3rd - in Hawaii). 3 active duty Air Wings (1st - 3rd) and 1 reserve Air Wing. Added to this are the Marines at the Embassies, barrackses and on Ship duty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Dorosh Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Originally posted by jasoncawley@ameritech.net: Still as snide and hopeless as ever I see... Now, now, Jason! LOL = We tease, because we love! Besides, I'm serious, this was a good and appropriate use of numbers. Bravo. You even kept your replies to less than 7000 words. Commendable! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mannheim Tanker Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Hehe...Jason and Michael, I highly recommend that you two take your banter to the FAQ thread. You could make an interesting storyline out of your comments! Now THERE's a place to display some wit (whether it be high-brow or low-brow is up to you). Besides, Croda and Mace are getting tired of playing with the livestock ------------------ Andreas himself will attest that my massive ego and foolhardy belief in my own greatness would never allow for me to be anyone's worshipper - Hamsters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berlichtingen Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 Originally posted by Mannheim Tanker: Besides, Croda and Mace are getting tired of playing with the livestock Mace never tires of playing with the livestock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Dorosh Posted March 29, 2001 Share Posted March 29, 2001 I think Jason and I would be in constant fear in that thread - not just of being eaten alive, but of not having the last word! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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