Battle Assembly

Last updated November 10, 2024

Battle Assembly is the term used by the United States Army Reserve to describe monthly training, where soldiers practice and perfect their military skills and maintain individual and unit readiness in the event of mobilization and deployment. These training activities were formerly referred to simply as "drill" or "weekend drill", but according to former Chief of the Army Reserve, Lieutenant General James R. Helmly, the term was changed in 2005 to emphasize the need for Army Reserve soldiers' training to focus on continued preparation for fighting the Global War on Terrorism.^[1]

History

During the Korean War (1950–1953), the United States Congress made significant changes to the structure and role of the Army Reserves. These changes transformed the former Organized Reserve Corps into the United States Army Reserve, dividing it into a Ready Reserve, Standby Reserve, and Retired Reserve. Members of the Ready Reserve were authorized 24 inactive duty training sessions per year with their respective reserve unit. This translated into two duty days per month for twelve months and the commencement of regular "monthly drills" for reservists.^[2]

Reserve service

Currently US Army Reserve soldiers sign an initial eight-year service contract upon entry into the military. However, in past eras, most enlistment contracts were for different terms which have been adjusted for different terms and lengths. Occasionally, the enlistment contract specifies that some of the service contract be served in the Regular Army, or "active component" (two, three, or four years), with the rest of the service to be served in the reserve component; alternately, some enlistees elect to sign a contract specifying that his or her entire enlistment obligation be served in the reserve component only. In such case, the soldier or enlistee enters directly into the Army Reserve. Those soldiers who serve a period of years in the active component and choose not to re-enlist in the active component are sometimes transferred afterwards to the reserve component to complete their initial service obligation. After the expiration of the initial service contract, soldiers who elect to continue their service may sign subsequent contracts consecutively until they are formally discharged from the military. The soldiers that attend battle assembly (weekends) are compensated at a higher rate than active duty components. Currently, a four-hour block of service is compensated at an active duty single day of compensation. Thus, a reserve component soldier who performs two 8-hour days in a month will receive the equivalent of an active soldier compensation of four days. However, during the annual training, the compensation will be at the rate afforded to active duty pay. Hence, the heightened pay received by active reserve will only occur during the 24 8-hour days for battle assembly during the normal weekend battle assemblies.

While in the Army Reserve, soldiers may belong to the active Army Reserve, or the Individual Ready Reserve. The key difference is that active Army Reserve soldiers typically attend Battle Assembly one weekend a month, twelve months a year, and also attend a statutory two-week period of active duty every year, referred to as Annual Training. Conversely, members of the Individual Ready Reserve are not required to attend Battle Assembly or Annual Training, but remain committed to military service obligations and may be recalled to active duty as directed by the President or U.S. Congress. Although National Guard troops may be trained by the US Army and attend the same basic training and advanced individual training as US Army Reserve troops, the ultimate authority for the National Guard troops are under the control and authority of the individual states in which they serve. Thus, subsequently they may be called for individual state emergencies as authorized by their respective state governors.

The reserves used to use a recruiting slogan, "One weekend a month and two weeks a year", but has since dropped that slogan due to the Iraq War, where commitments are typically much longer than that time.

Typical duties

Once per month, soldiers report to their unit in uniform, usually very early on a Saturday morning but sometimes on a Friday morning or evening. Their duties typically continue until Sunday evening, but may end earlier at the direction of the unit's commanding officer. During battle assembly, the unit may move to a field training environment to conduct field training; otherwise, the unit's personnel will remain at the unit's home facility to conduct operations there, usually referred to as training in garrison. Most battle assemblies are conducted in garrison, unless the unit is a combat arms unit such as infantry and as a result more likely to spend most battle assemblies in the field. During any given battle assembly, soldiers may:

Go to a weapons range to qualify with their individual weapon or a crew served weapon.
Be evaluated taking an Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT), or participate in group physical training.
Receive military training and practice common soldier skills, such as first aid.
Practice specific vocational tasks related to their Military Occupational Specialty (MOS).
Meet annual training requirements concerning OPSEC, EEO, and similar military programs.
Maintain their individual military equipment, such as their chemical protective mask.
Maintain their unit's organizational equipment, such as military vehicles and generators.
Conduct a movement exercise, such as military vehicle convoy operations.
Undergo a Soldier Readiness Program (SRP) event, especially if preparing to deploy.
Receive health and dental screenings including preventative immunizations.

Once per year, most units will also have a "Family Day," where family members can attend and see firsthand what the unit and the soldier does. The family members also usually receive briefings on benefits and services available to reserve soldiers and their families while attending a unit social event, which helps strengthen family ties to the unit and encourages family members to participate in the unit's Family Readiness Group.

Related Research Articles

The National Guard is a state-based military force that becomes part of the U.S. military's reserve components of the U.S. Army and the U.S. Air Force when activated for federal missions. It is a military reserve force composed of National Guard military members or units of each state and the territories of Guam, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia, for a total of 54 separate organizations. It is officially created under Congress's Article 1 Section 8 ability to "raise and support armies". All members of the National Guard are also members of the organized militia of the United States as defined by 10 U.S.C. § 246. National Guard units are under the dual control of state governments and the federal government.

Military recruit training, commonly known as basic training or boot camp, refers to the initial instruction of new military personnel. It is a physically and psychologically intensive process, which resocializes its subjects for the unique demands of military employment.

The Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) is a category of the Ready Reserve of the Reserve Component of the Armed Forces of the United States composed of former active duty or reserve military personnel. Its governing statute is codified at 10 U.S.C. § 10144. For soldiers in the National Guard of the United States, its counterpart is the Inactive National Guard (ING). As of 22 June 2004, the IRR had approximately 112,000 members composed of enlisted personnel and officers, with more than 200 Military Occupational Specialties are represented, including combat arms, combat support, and combat service support.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reserve Good Conduct Medal</span> United States Armed Forces award

A Reserve Good Conduct Medal refers to any one of the five military conduct awards, four of which are currently issued and one of which was previously issued, by the United States Armed Forces to members of the Reserve and National Guard. The primary difference between the regular Good Conduct Medal and the Reserve Good Conduct Medal is that the regular Good Conduct Medal is only issued for active duty service while the reserve equivalent is bestowed for reserve duties such as drills, annual training, and additional active duty for either training or operational support to the active duty force or, in the case of the Army National Guard and Air National Guard, in support of Title 32 U.S.C. state active duty (SAD) such as disaster response and relief.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ohio Military Reserve</span> State paramilitary organization

The Ohio Military Reserve (OHMR) is one of three separate components that make up the Ohio State Defense Force (SDF). Like other SDF's the Ohio Military Reserve functions as a reserve to the Ohio National Guard.

The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed Forces.

"One weekend a month, two weeks a year" is a former recruiting slogan used by the U.S. Army National Guard. It indicated the amount of time an individual would need to spend actively in the Guard to be a Guardsman with benefits. Though never officially, it was also informally used by Air National Guard, U.S. Army Reserve, U.S. Naval Reserve, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, U.S. Air Force Reserve and U.S. Coast Guard Reserve personnel in describing their similar military time commitment.

The oath of enlistment is a military oath made by members of the United States Armed Forces who enlist.

The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Selected Reserve (SELRES), the Training and Administration of the Reserve (TAR), the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR), or the Retired Reserve.

The California State Guard (CSG) is a military unit which provides assistance and training to the California National Guard (CNG) and is a military force of California. The CSG is a reserve force that supports the state missions and federal readiness of the Army and Air National Guard. CSG service members often come from all branches of the military and are citizens with essential skills. Many CSG service members are fully integrated with Army National Guard and Air National Guard units, and hold full-time state active duty status through the California Military Department.

A reservist is a person who is a member of a military reserve force. They are otherwise civilians, and in peacetime have careers outside the military. Reservists usually go for training on an annual basis to refresh their skills. This person is usually a former active-duty member of the armed forces, and they remain a reservist either voluntarily, or by obligation. In some countries such as Israel, Norway, Finland, Singapore, and Switzerland, reservists are conscripted soldiers who are called up for training and service when necessary.

A military reserve force is a military organization whose members (reservists) have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve forces are generally considered part of a permanent standing body of armed forces, and allow a nation to reduce its peacetime military expenditures and maintain a force prepared for war. During peacetime, reservists typically serve part-time alongside a civilian job, although most reserve forces have a significant permanent full-time component as well. Reservists may be deployed for weeks or months-long missions during peacetime to support specific operations. During wartime, reservists may be kept in service for months or years at a time, although typically not for as long as active duty soldiers.

Air Reserve Technicians, commonly referred to as ARTs, are a nucleus of full-time uniformed U.S. Air Force leaders, managers, operators, planners and trainers in what is known as the Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the United States Air Force, the ARC consisting of both the Air Force Reserve and the Air National Guard.

The Selected Reserve are the members of a U.S. military Ready Reserve unit that are enrolled in the Ready Reserve program and the reserve unit that they are attached to. Selected Reserve members and units are considered to be in an active status.

United States Army Basic Combat Training (BCT) is the recruit training program of the United States Army, for service in the U.S. Army, U.S. Army Reserve, or the Army National Guard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine Corps Individual Reserve Support Activity</span>

The Marine Corps Individual Reserve Support Activity (MCIRSA) is a subordinate unit within Marine Forces Reserve (MARFORRES) that provides support for all Individual Ready Reserve (IRR), Individual Mobilization Augmentee (IMA) and Mobilized Training Unit Marine reservists. It falls under the Force Headquarters Group.

The Militia Act of 1903, also known as the Efficiency in Militia Act of 1903 or the Dick Act, was legislation enacted by the United States Congress to create what would become the modern National Guard from a subset of the militia, and codify the circumstances under which the Guard could be federalized. It also provided federal funds to pay for equipment and training, including annual summer encampments. The new National Guard was to organize units of similar form and quality to those of the regular Army, and intended to achieve the same training, education, and readiness requirements as active duty units.

The Marine Forces Reserve, also known as the United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) and the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, is the reserve force of the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Corps Reserve is an expeditionary, warfighting organization and primarily designed to augment and reinforce the active duty units of the Marine Corps in their expeditionary role. It is the largest command, by assigned personnel, in the U.S. Marine Corps.

The reserve components of the United States Armed Forces are military organizations whose members generally perform a minimum of 39 days of military duty per year and who augment the active duty military when necessary. The reserve components are also referred to collectively as the National Guard and Reserve.

The Inactive National Guard (ING) is a component of the Ready Reserve of the United States Army, and is structured similarly to the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR). Only enlisted soldiers are eligible for transfer to the ING; commissioned and warrant officers are not. At present, only the Army National Guard maintains an ING.

References

↑ Schuette, Rob (May 13, 2005). "Battle assembly, Army Reserve Expeditionary Force new terms". Army Reserve Magazine. Archived from the original on February 25, 2006. Retrieved 2006-12-12.
↑ U.S. Army Reserve History, Global Security.org, retrieved on 2007-10-25

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[Schuette-1] Schuette, Rob (May 13, 2005). "Battle assembly, Army Reserve Expeditionary Force new terms". Army Reserve Magazine. Archived from the original on February 25, 2006. Retrieved 2006-12-12.

[2] U.S. Army Reserve History, Global Security.org, retrieved on 2007-10-25

[1]

[2]