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A squadron, or naval squadron, is a significant group of warships which is nonetheless considered too small to be designated a fleet. A squadron is typically a part of a fleet. [1] Between different navies there are no clear defining parameters to distinguish a squadron from a fleet (or from a flotilla), and the size and strength of a naval squadron varies greatly according to the country and time period. [2] Groups of small warships, or small groups of major warships, might instead be designated flotillas by some navies according to their terminology. Since the size of a naval squadron varies greatly, the rank associated with command of a squadron also varies greatly.
Before 1864 the entire fleet of the Royal Navy was divided into three squadrons, the red, the white, and the blue. Each Royal Navy squadron alone was more powerful than most national navies. Today, a squadron might number three to ten vessels, which might be major warships, transport ships, submarines, or small craft in a larger task force or a fleet. A squadron may be composed of one type of ship of various types tasked with a specific mission such as coastal defense, blockade, or minesweeping. In the United States Navy, the term squadron has always been used for formations of destroyers and submarines.
A fleet is usually commanded by a flag officer such as a vice admiral or a rear admiral, but squadrons are sometimes commanded by commodores or simply the most senior captain (often one and the same), depending on the importance of the command. A large squadron will sometimes be divided into two or more divisions, each of which might be commanded by a subordinate captain. Like a fleet, a squadron is usually, but not necessarily, a permanent formation.
There are several types of squadron:
In modern navies, squadrons have tended to become administrative units. Most navies began to abandon the squadron as a tactical formation during the Second World War. The need to provide capital ships with the anti-submarine protection of a destroyer screen and air cover from an aircraft carrier led to the increasing use of the carrier battle group, or ad hoc task forces, composed of whichever ships were available for a particular operation.
As warships have grown larger, the term squadron has gradually replaced the term flotilla for formations of destroyers, frigates and submarines in many navies.
A carrier battle group (CVBG) is a naval fleet consisting of an aircraft carrier capital ship and its large number of escorts, together defining the group. The CV in CVBG is the United States Navy hull classification code for an aircraft carrier.
The Kriegsmarine was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war Reichsmarine (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches, along with the Heer and the Luftwaffe, of the Wehrmacht, the German armed forces from 1935 to 1945.
The United States Pacific Fleet (USPACFLT) is a theater-level component command of the United States Navy, located in the Pacific Ocean. It provides naval forces to the Indo-Pacific Command. Fleet headquarters is at Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, Hawaii, with large secondary facilities at Naval Air Station North Island, California.
The United States Fleet Forces Command (USFF) is a service component command of the United States Navy that provides naval forces to a wide variety of U.S. forces. The naval resources may be allocated to Combatant Commanders such as United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) under the authority of the Secretary of Defense. Originally formed as United States Atlantic Fleet (USLANTFLT) in 1906, it has been an integral part of the defense of the United States of America since the early 20th century. In 2002, the Fleet comprised over 118,000 Navy and Marine Corps personnel serving on 186 ships and in 1,300 aircraft, with an area of responsibility ranging over most of the Atlantic Ocean from the North Pole to the South Pole, the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and the waters of the Pacific Ocean along the coasts of Central and South America.
The Russian Navy is the naval arm of the Russian Armed Forces. It has existed in various forms since 1696; its present iteration was formed in January 1992 when it succeeded the Navy of the Commonwealth of Independent States.
The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet.
A fleet or naval fleet is a large formation of warships – the largest formation in any navy – controlled by one leader. A fleet at sea is the direct equivalent of an army on land.
The Soviet Navy was the naval warfare uniform service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy made up a large part of the Soviet Union's strategic planning in the event of a conflict with the opposing superpower, the United States, during the Cold War period between the two countries. The Soviet Navy played a large role during the Cold War (1945-1991), either confronting the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation in western Europe or power projection to maintain its sphere of influence in eastern Europe.
A flotilla, or naval flotilla, is a formation of small warships that may be part of a larger fleet.
A destroyer squadron is a naval squadron or flotilla usually consisting of destroyers rather than other types of vessel. In some navies other vessels, such as frigates, may be included. In English the word "squadron" tends to be used for larger and "flotilla" for smaller vessels; both may be used for destroyer units. Similar formations are used in non-English-speaking countries, e.g., the "escadrille"—which would translate directly as "squadron"—in France.
In Japanese, sentai (戦隊) is a military unit and may be literally translated as "squadron", "task force", "division ", "group" or "wing". The terms "regiment" and "flotilla", while sometimes used as translations of sentai, are also used to refer to larger formations.
The Commander-in-Chief Fleet (CINCFLEET) was the admiral responsible for the operations of the ships, submarines and aircraft of the British Royal Navy from 1971 until April 2012. The post was subordinate to the First Sea Lord, the professional head of the Naval Service. In its last years, as the Navy shrank, more administrative responsibilities were added.
The Republic of Korea Navy, also known as the ROK Navy or South Korean navy, is the naval warfare service branch of the South Korean armed forces, responsible for naval and amphibious operations. The ROK Navy includes the Republic of Korea Marine Corps, which functions as a branch of the Navy. The ROK Navy has about 70,000 regular personnel including 29,000 Republic of Korea Marines. There are about 160 commissioned ships in the ROK Navy. The naval aviation force consists of about 70 fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft. The ROK Marine Corps has about 300 tracked vehicles including assault amphibious vehicles.
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, abbreviated JMSDF, also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) after World War II. The JMSDF has a fleet of 154 ships, 346 aircraft and 50,800 personnel.
Abukuma (阿武隈) was the sixth and last of the Nagara class of light cruisers completed for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN), and like other vessels of her class, she was intended for use as the flagship of a destroyer flotilla. She was named after the Abukuma River in the Tōhoku region of Japan. She saw action during World War II in the Attack on Pearl Harbor and in the Pacific, before being disabled in the Battle of Surigao Strait in October 1944, then bombed and sunk by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) off the coast of the Philippines.
Military organization or military organisation is the structuring of the armed forces of a state so as to offer such military capability as a national defense policy may require. In some countries paramilitary forces are included in a nation's armed forces, though not considered military. Armed forces that are not a part of military or paramilitary organizations, such as insurgent forces, often mimic military organizations, or use ad hoc structures, while formal military organization tends to use hierarchical forms.
The Pacific Fleet is the Russian Navy fleet in the Pacific Ocean.
The Eastern Fleet, later called the East Indies Fleet, was a fleet of the Royal Navy which existed between 1941 and 1952.
A naval division is a subdivision of a squadron or flotilla. It can also be a subdivision of a fleet. A division is the smallest naval formation, most commonly numbering between two to four ships.
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