Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!att!cbnews!military
From: howard@cos.com (Howard C. Berkowitz)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Unit designations
Summary: Regimental IDs somewhat standardized
Message-ID: <10009@cbnews.ATT.COM>
Date: 7 Oct 89 03:28:23 GMT
References: <9938@cbnews.ATT.COM>
Sender: military@cbnews.ATT.COM
Organization: Corporation for Open Systems, McLean, VA
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Approved: military@att.att.com



From: howard@cos.com (Howard C. Berkowitz)

> My question is: what determines the numeric unit desgnators for Army
> units, and how are they chosen? I've looked in a couple books I have of
> '50's vintage -- The Officers Guide and The Army Almanac -- and they
> don't explicitly answer the query. The Almanac does have some tables of
> units that appear to begin to address the subject, though.
> 
> Can anyone post a summary explanation of all this? What does determine
> that this unit is the "3rd Whatsit Division" and that unit is the 
> "404th Something Brigade"? And, if these numbers are all from some
> arrangement that has been set up for 70+ years, what has determined,
> during all the build-ups and wind-downs in the intervening years, that
> this particular unit has continued and still exists today, while these
> others have been eliminated and no longer exist?


Let me try a partial explanation, primarily from memory.

The main system is for regiments.  As a side note, a unit number
and type (e.g, 11th Armored Cavalry, 505 Airborne, etc.) is a regiment;
other unit types (e.g, 1/505 Infantry Battalion) include the unit 
"level" -- although you certainly can speak of the 7th Air Cavalry Regiment.

As I recall, regiment numbers from 1 to 100 (99?) are regular
army.  Regiments from 100 (101?) to some number are National
Guard, while higher numbered ones are Army Reserve.  Airborne
regiments are in the 500 series.
Battalions identifiers usually are subordinate to a regimental ID
(e.g., 1/506 Airborne Infantry Battalion).  Note that even while regiments
go in and out of fashion as a command level (e.g., in the Pentomic
division structure, there were "Battle Groups" with no regimental or
battalion level, just lots of companies).  There are also separate
battalions, frequently combat support and combat service support.

Certain organic battalions (i.e., part of a division base) are numbered
for the division (e.g., 4th Signal Battalion in the 4th Division).

Separate brigades (i.e., not part of divisions) currently are mostly
in the 19x series.  

Divisions seem to have unique numbers only within a type -- there 
is a 1st Infantry Division ("Big Red One"), 1st Cavalry Division
(which has been dismounted infantry and now is Air Assault), and
1st Armored Division.  For that matter, there is a 1st Marine Division.


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