Commonwealth Army Structure and Organisation: Difference between revisions

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The Commonwealth Army's tactical and operational formations reached their current structure after the military reforms of the early-1960s. it drew together lessons learnt from the mechanised battles of the Great Fascist War and the advent of tactical nuclear weapons. Theorists hypothesised that, in an environment characterised by the massed usage of weapons of massed destruction (or, in the contemporary environment, precision-guided munitions), large concentrations of forces which stay together for too long a period of time are liable to be detected and consequently suffer the murderous effects of the deadly new weapons. As such, dispersion, concealment and mobility are the most important contributors towards survivabilty, with concentration only achieved just before a major engagement and rapidly reversed immediately afterwards. In an environment with low force density and the absence of fixed front lines, war will be characterised by duels between mobile combined arms groups which can maneouvre at will, placing a premium on aggressive leadership and initiative from the lowest levels of command. Overall, Arthuristan ground forces organisation and doctrine are completely optimised for high intensity operations against peer great powers, making no compromises for asymmetrical warfare.

While combined arms divisions form the basic building-block of the army, divisions will fight as autonomous brigade groups (ABGs), each in turn subdivided into task-organised battalion battle groups (BBGs), with divisional HQ allocating support where needed and corps and army HQ doing the same at their levels as needed. The result, the planners hoped, was a system which possesses both the virtue of flexibility and the ability to rapidly concentrate combat power at the decisive schwerpunkt in a massed mechanised battle under the doctrine of Integrated Mobile Operations.

Order of Battle

As a maritime power, Arthurista relies on a very small professional army in peacetime, with the bulk of its heavy combat forces stationed in Lyncanestria and the Allamunnic States. However, in wartime, the army would be able to mobilise significant Territorial personnel in order to augment the regular forces.

The regular army is capable of deploying up to 11 maneouvre brigade group in peacetime. It may also assume operational command over the Commonwealth Marines where necessary.

The full Commonwealth Army Order of Battle may be found at this link.

Divisions

<imgur thumb="yes" w="400" comment="A notional Commonwealth Army Mechanised Division, with one Armoured Brigade Group, two Armoured Infantry Brigade Groups and supporting elements.">44T0bdU.png</imgur>

The full strength of a division typically ranges between 18,000 personnel. It typically consists of three manoeuvre brigades and a number of supporting elements. A typical mechanised division is comprised of one Armoured and two Armoured Infantry Brigade Groups, whereas an armoured division reverses this ratio

Arthuristan maneouvre units fight in the form of all-arms brigade groups. Combat support elements such as artillery, engineer, air defence and logistics are organic to the brigade group itself, rather than devolved from a 'divisional pool'. A divisional headquarters functions at the operational tier, directing its manoeuvre brigade groups, forming the linkage between brigade groups and corps headquarters in a major theatre war.

Brigade Groups

<imgur thumb="yes" w="300" comment="The 1st Parachute Brigade, which is a special augmented light infantry formation, owing to its unique mission">GL2ds2A.png</imgur>

Maneouvre brigade groups are the primary tactical unit of the Commonwealth Army. They consist of between three battalions or battalion-sized regiments of the primary combat arm, together with various combat support and combat sustainment elements. Each manoeuvre brigade group is capable of independent operations on its own logistical resources for up to 72 hours.

The modern Arthuristan brigade group is networked with the latest C4I technology, armed with precision-guided munitions, and generally much more nimble than its earlier ad hoc counterpart. It has been calculated that a well-supported brigade group can hold roughly as much ground as a Great Fascist War-era division, monitor a greater area with its reconnaissance assets and UAVs and is much more lethal in combat utilising both its organic armaments and supporting fires, which it is significantly more capable in coordinating.

Brigade groups are responsible for generating from within its units a 'Brigade Patrol Group', comprised of spare Battleaxe utility cars from within its order of battle, and enhanced with thermal imaging equipment. These semi-permanent groupings of vehicles provide a significant measure of organic reconnaissance capability to their parent formation, acting as a link between the divisional cavalry and the constituent battle groups' own reconnaissance elements.

Armoured Brigade Groups and Armoured Infantry Brigade Groups

An Arthuristan heavy Brigade Group is a combined arms formation, equipped with armoured fighting vehicles and optimised for force-on-force engagements on open terrain against a similarly-equipped opposing force.

These units are traditionally built around heavy armoured combat vehicles, i.e. the Boudicca Main Battle Tank (armoured regiments), Claymore Infantry Fighting Vehicle (armoured infantry battalions), FV430 Bulldog armoured personnel carriers (mechanised infantry battalions) and Ultima Self Propelled Howitzer (self-propelled artillery regiments).

The Commonwealth Army has, from the 1990's, formalised the previous arrangement of ad hoc battlegroups by permanently integrating armour and armoured infantry at the battalion level. Each armoured regiment (battalion) now consists of three squadron (companies) of main battle tanks, one of armoured infantry, and one maneouvre support squadron.

Light Infantry Brigade Group

The only light infantry units of the peacetime regular army are the 1st Parachute Brigade and the 6th Airmobile Brigade, although a number of Territorial light infantry brigades also exist. The former consists of three regular battalions of the Parachute Regiment, which are trained and equipped for airborne operations, although in reality they are more often employed as air assault infantry. The navy's Commonwealth Marines provide a similar highly-trained 'shock troop' capability. Whilst not capable of parachuting, they are trained in amphibious warfare, as well as operation in hostile environments such as subarctic or mountainous conditions.

High-level combat support elements

Artillery and Ballistic Missiles

Each maneouvre brigade group has an organic artillery regiment (equivalent to a 'battalion' in international parlance). A Divisional Artillery Group consists of a brigade HQ, an ISTAR company, a heavy artillery regiment (with two batteries of MLRS and two batteries of 203mm howitzers), a medium range SAM regiment and a support regiment.

Both the III and V Corps have Corps Artillery Groups. Their firing units consist of two heavy artillery regiments, and two regiments of long-range SAM's.

Army Aviation

Army aviation assets almost always attached to higher operational commands. Each of the four heavy divisions are supported by an attack helicopter regiment, with 16 attack helicopters in two squadrons plus a medium drone squadron.

Support

Each Brigade Group has a support regiment, allowing it to conduct independent operations when separated from its parent division for a time. However, it is an austere formation which is not meant to provide for sustained, high intensity operations. For instance, it is estimated that an armoured brigade group can only maintain independent operations on its own for 72 hours without additional support from higher headquarters.

As such, Force Support Brigades can be found at the divisional and corps levels. These are flexible units which can provide logistical support for between one to ten brigade groups, depending on the number of support regiments under its command. In addition, it may contain units of military intelligence, military police, engineering, maintenance, medical, CRBN defence or other support services as and when required. A corps or theatre commander has the option of massing all divisional or corps Force Support Brigades under his purview and set up a centralised sustainment command (expeditionary) or theatre sustainment command to take charge of logistics and combat support throughout the theatre of operations.

Regiments and Battalions

NOTE:

  • Armoured, cavalry, artillery and engineering regiments are the functional equivalent of infantry battalions. The difference in nomenclature is purely ceremonial.
  • Armoured regiments and armoured infantry battalions never enter combat in the form set out in the paper TO&E. Rather, they cross-attach companies and squadrons to each other to form ad hoc combined arms battlegroups, which in addition are normally assigned a battery of self-propelled guns for close support.
  • Each artillery or MLRS regiment contains a fire direction company, each of four fire direction platoons of four fire direction teams. Each infantry company or armoured squadron is supported by a single fire direction team, leaving a fire direction platoon in reserve at the disposal of the brigade commander.

<imgur thumb="yes" w="300" comment="A battalion of light infantry.">eRve1cr.png</imgur>

Armoured Regiment

  • HQ (2x MBTs, 4x command tracks)
  • 4 x Armoured squadrons
  • 1 x Armoured Maneouvre Support Squadron

Armoured Infantry Battalion

  • HQ
  • 3 x Armoured Infantry Companies
  • 1 x Armoured Infantry Maneouvre Support Company

Light Infantry Battalion

  • HQ
  • 3 x Infantry companies
  • 1 x Infantry Maneouvre Support Company

Armoured Cavalry Regiment

  • HQ
  • 4 x Cavalry Squadrons
  • HQ (2x Springbok command vehicles, 3x Apollo Motors Battleaxe)
  • 3 x Cavalry Troop (4 x Springbok-ACV)
  • 1 x Tank Destroyer troops (4x Battleaxe missile carriers)
  • 1 x Recovery Detachment (2x Recovery Vehicles, 1x Battleaxe)
  • Armoured Cavalry Maneouvre Support Squadron

Mobile Artillery Regiment

Light Artillery Regiment

Heavy Artillery Regiment

  • HQ
  • 2 x MLRS Batteries (6x Gorgon MLRS, fire direction centre)
  • 2 x Heavy Artillery Batteries (8x L897 Warhammer, fire direction centre)
  • 1 x Forward observer group

SAM Regiment (divisional)

  • HQ
  • 1 x L-Band phased array early warning radar - towed
  • 4 x SAM Batteries (Battery HQ, GIRAFFE Radar, 6 x AD-16 carrier trucks)
  • 12x Radar decoys

SAM Regiment (Corps)

  • HQ
  • 1 x L-Band phased array early warning radar - towed
  • 4 x SAM Batteries (Battery HQ, 6x AD-12 Area Defence Missile TEL, 2x tracked auxiliary loader vehicles, 2x X-Band engagement radar, prime-mover lorries)
  • 12x Radar decoys

ISTAR Regiment

WIP

Gunship Squadron

UAV Squadron (Divisional)

  • HQ
  • 3x UAV flights (4 x IAI Heron each)
  • Aviation Support Squadron

Transport helicopter Regiment

WIP

Armoured Engineer Regiment

  • HQ
  • 3x Field Squadrons
  • HQ
  • 3x Field Troops (3x Spartan/Stormer, 2x 4-ton lorries, 1x Bar Mine Layer, 4x APCs)
  • 1x Field Support Troop (5x Terrier, 1x Digger, 3x Tractor, 1x 4-ton lorry)
  • 1x Field Support Squadron
  • HQ
  • 1x Bridging Troop (2x BR90)
  • 1x Plant Troop (crane tractors)
  • 1x Resources Troop (3x cranes, 3x diggers)
  • 1x Light Aid Detachment

Mechanised Engineer Regiment

WIP

Light Engineer Regiment

WIP

Signals Regiment (Divisional)

  • HQ
  • 1st Squadron (trunk equipment)
  • 2nd Squadron (main divisional HQ support, 1st secondary access node)
  • 3rd Squadron (alternative divisional HQ support, 2nd secondary access node)
  • 4th Squadron (1st brigade group signals support)
  • 5th Squadron (2nd brigade group signals support)
  • 6th Squadron (3rd brigade group signals support)

Military Intelligence Regiment

  • HQ
  • Analysis squadron
  • Human Intelligence Squadron
  • Psychological Warfare Squadron
  • Electronic Intelligence Squadron
  • Electronic Warfare Squadron

Logistics Support Regiment

WIP

Infantry Platoon

  • HQ team (Platoon leader, sergeant, signaller, mortar spotter)
  • 12x Vehicle crews
  • Three sections of eight men, each divided into two fireteams:
  • Section leader (Corporal, L87 rifle, two fragmentation grenades, one smoke grenade, doubles as leader of the first fireteam)
  • Grenadier (L87 rifle, under-barrel grenade launcher, two fragmentation grenades, one smoke grenade)
  • Marksman (L129A1, two fragmentation grenades, one smoke grenade)
  • LMG Gunner (L110A2, two fragmentation grenades, one smoke grenade)
  • Section 2nd in command (Lance Corporal, L87 rifle, two fragmentation and one smoke grenades, also leader of second fireteam)
  • Grenadier (L87 rifle, under-barrel grenade launcher, two fragmentation grenades, one smoke grenade)
  • GPMG gunner (L6A2 General Purpose Machine Gun, pistol, two fragmentation and one smoke grenades)
  • Machine gun assist (L87 rifle, extra barrel and ammunition MG gunner, two fragmentation and one smoke grenades)

Each platoon is also issued the following support weapons, to be carried with them when they dismount or left in their vehicle at the platoon commander's discretion:

In high intensity operations, the platoon's third section will typically be organised into two anti-tank teams, each equipped with an ATGM command-launch unit. In Armoured Infantry or Mechanised Infantry units, these will typically be dismounted from the Sharpshooter Remote Weapon System of their carrier vehicles.

Each section also possesses between four to eight night vision devices and/or thermal sights, depending on availability and unit readiness.

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