The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution. As the oldest and most senior branch of the U.S. military in order of precedence, the modern U.S. Army has its roots in the Continental Army, which was formed to fight the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783)—before the United States of America was established as a country. After the Revolutionary War, the Congress of the Confederation created the United States Army on 3 June 1784 to replace the disbanded Continental Army. The United States Army considers itself descended from the Continental Army, and considers its institutional inception to be the origin of that armed force in 1775.
Fort Knox is a United States Army post in Kentucky, south of Louisville and north of Elizabethtown. It is adjacent to the United States Bullion Depository, which is used to house a large portion of the United States' official gold reserves. The 109,000 acre base covers parts of Bullitt, Hardin, and Meade counties. It currently holds the Army Human Resources Center of Excellence to include the Army Human Resources Command. It is named in honor of Henry Knox, Chief of Artillery in the American Revolutionary War and first United States Secretary of War.
Fort Benning is a United States Army post straddling the Alabama–Georgia border next to Columbus, Georgia. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees, and civilian employees on a daily basis. It is a power projection platform, and possesses the capability to deploy combat-ready forces by air, rail, and highway. Fort Benning is the home of the United States Army Maneuver Center of Excellence, the United States Army Armor School, United States Army Infantry School, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, elements of the 75th Ranger Regiment, the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade, and other tenant units.
The Air Assault Badge is awarded by the U.S. Army for successful completion of the Air Assault School. The course includes three phases of instruction involving U.S. Army rotary wing aircraft: combat air assault operations; rigging and slingloading operations; and rappelling from a helicopter.
In the United States (U.S.), a marksmanship badge is a U.S. military badge or a civilian badge which is awarded to personnel upon successful completion of a weapons qualification course or high achievement in an official marksmanship competition. The U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps are the only military services that award marksmanship qualification badges. However, marksmanship medals and/or marksmanship ribbons are awarded by the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Air Force for weapons qualifications. For non-military personnel, different U.S. law enforcement organizations and the National Rifle Association (NRA) award marksmanship qualification badges to those involved in law enforcement. Additionally, the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) and the NRA award marksmanship qualification badges to U.S. civilians. Most of these organizations and the U.S. National Guard award marksmanship competition badges to the people they support who succeed in official competitions.
The U.S. military issues instructor badges to specially training military personnel who are charged with teaching military recruits the skills they need to perform as members of the U.S. Armed Forces or teach continuing education courses for noncommissioned officers and officers in the military. With the exception of the U.S. Army and U.S. Coast Guard, these badges are considered temporary military decorations and must be surrendered upon completion of one's duty as a military instructor. Because of this, the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Marine Corps award Drill Instructor Ribbons as a permanent decoration to recognize service members who have qualified and performed as military instructors.
Established 1 July 1973, the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) is a major command of the United States Army headquartered at Fort Eustis, Virginia. It is charged with overseeing training of Army forces and the development of operational doctrine. TRADOC operates 37 schools and centers at 27 different locations. TRADOC schools conduct 1,304 courses and 108 language courses. The 1,304 courses include 516,000 seats for 443,231 soldiers; 36,145 other-service personnel; 8,314 international soldiers; and 28,310 civilians.
Branch insignia of the United States Army refers to military emblems that may be worn on the uniform of the United States Army to denote membership in a particular area of expertise and series of functional areas. Army branch insignia is similar to the line officer and staff corps officer devices of the U.S. Navy as well as to the Navy enlisted rating badges. The Medical, Nurse, Dental, Veterinary, Medical Service, Medical Specialist, Chaplains, and Judge Advocate General's Corps are considered "special branches", while the others are "basic branches".
Jack L. Tilley is an American businessman and retired United States Army soldier. He served for almost 37 years in the United States Army, culminating in his appointment in 2000 as the 12th Sergeant Major of the Army, a post he held until his retirement on January 15, 2004. He was the last Vietnam War veteran to serve in that position.
The United States Army Infantry School is located at Fort Benning, Georgia, is a school dedicated to training infantrymen for service in the United States Army.
The United States Army Sergeants Major Academy (USASMA) was established on 1 July 1972 at Fort Bliss, Texas, and began instruction in January 1973. Its curriculum is designed to broaden the student's current knowledge base. This approach differs from the Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) related training at the basic and advanced levels of the Noncommissioned Officer Education System. The prime educational technique employed throughout the course is the small group participatory learning process.
The United States Army Armor School is a training school located at Fort Benning, Georgia. Its primary focus is the training of United States Army soldiers, non-commissioned officers, warrant officers, and commissioned officers in the operation, tactics, and maintenance of armor forces and equipment including the M1 Abrams main battle tank, the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, the Stryker Mobile Gun System, assorted crew-served and personal weapons, and various other equipment including radios. The school is also the site where U.S. Marines are sent for training on the Abrams tank. The Armor School moved to Fort Benning in 2010 as part of the United States' Base Realignment and Closure program.
In the United States (US) armed forces, a beret flash is a shield-shaped embroidered cloth or polished metallic insignia that is usually attached to a stiffener backing of a military beret. Today, the attached flash is worn over the left eye of the wearer with the excess cloth of the beret folded and pulled over the right ear giving it a distinctive shape. The embroidered designs of the US Army's beret flashes represent the distinctive heraldic colors and patterns of a special mission unit or represent the US Army overall while the US Air Force's represent their Air Force Specialty Code (AFSC) or their assignment to a special unit. Joint beret flashes, such as the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) Beret Flash and United Nations Peacekeepers Beret Flash, are worn by all of the US armed forces on unique berets while assigned to a specific multinational mission.
The structure of the United States Army is complex, and can be interpreted in several different ways: active/reserve, operational/administrative, and branches/functional areas.
The U.S. Army Creed of the Noncommissioned Officer, otherwise known as the Noncommissioned Officer's Creed, and commonly shortened to the NCO creed, is a tool used in the United States Army to educate and remind enlisted leaders of their responsibilities and authority, and serves as a code of conduct. Each branch has their own version, and many have been altered over the years.
In the United States Army, "tabs" are small cloth and/or metal arches displaying a word or words signifying a special skill that are worn on U.S. Army uniforms. On the Army Combat Uniform, the tabs are worn above a unit's shoulder patch and are used to identify a unit's or a soldier's special skill(s) or are worn on shoulder patches as part of a unit's unique heritage. Individual tabs are also worn as small metal arches above or below medals or ribbons on the Army Service Uniform.
The 316th Cavalry Brigade of the United States Army is the brigade responsible for the training of U.S. Army Cavalry and Armor officers and non-commissioned officers. The 16th Cavalry Regiment was redesignated as this unit in July 2010. The 316th Cavalry Brigade is currently assigned to Fort Benning, Georgia, in accordance with the Base Realignment and Closure of 2005.
The Armor Branch of the United States Army is an active combat arms branch.
The Security Force Assistance Command (SFAC) is a division-level command element for the United States Army's new security force assistance brigades (SFAB). These units core mission is to conduct training, advising, assisting, enabling and accompanying operations with allied and partner nations.
The United States Army's Master Gunner Identification Badge (MGIB) recognizes soldiers who complete one of eight U.S. Army master gunner courses and is an indicator for commanders and soldiers to value the master gunner's advice regarding the training and employment of weapon systems.
