Restructuring of the United States Army

Reflecting increases in technical capability, the U.S. Army is converting from a structure in which the division was the basic "unit of action", to a system where the unit of action is the Brigade Combat Team (BCT). Besides the core combat units, a number of combat support and combat service support are moving to a brigade structure. in which the Brigade Combat Team, rather than the division, is the basic unit capable of independent action (with suitable reinforcements).

Higher headquarters remain, and are called "units of employment". These were to correspond to corps and field armies, but that has not been entirely workable. The assumption was that a numbered army was either an administrative headquarters in the U.S., or the army component (i.e., headed by a three-star officer) within a Joint Combatant Command headed by a four-star. For a time, the senior U.S. headquarters in Iraq was Multinational Corps-Iraq (MNC-I), built around a U.S. corps headquarters, but it seemed wise, especially after Abu Ghraib, to let the corps focus on operations and to create Multinational Force-Iraq headed by a four-star, still having a three-star in CENTCOM.

Combat BCTs

The main Army combat units are built around a core of infantry.

Infantry

Current infantry, however, have increasingly sophisticated weapons, command and control and sensors, and are intended to operate in combined arms operations. All BCT types have vastly more intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and target acquisition than ever before deployed to this level; see Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition Squadron and Military Intelligence Company formations for each BCT.

The three main types of BCT are:

• Infantry BCT: lightest and most easily transportable. Depending on unit training and equipment, may conduct foot-mobile, motorized, heliborne, and parachute operations
• Stryker BCT: organized around the Stryker vehicle system family of medium-weight vehicles, armored against light weapons and extremely maneuverable on the ground
• Heavy BCT: armored forces built around tank and infantry in infantry fighting vehicles.

Fires brigades

Fires brigades recognize that "fires" has been redefined to include "non-kinetic" means of combat, such as information operations including electronic warfare and psychological warfare. These brigades are made up of a combination of former Division Artillery (DIVARTY) commands, plus various resources typically assigned to a corps headquarters. Ten such brigades are planned.

Some of the functions previously under DIVARTY, such as direct cannon support, moved to the BCT level. A fires brigade was more focused planning and execution for joint fire support operations. Its capabilities to affect the enemy emphasized newer systems to carry out precision-strikes, counterstrikes and shaping, which utilized lethal and non-lethal means

In the new system, the role of close fire support would fall to the artillery units assigned to the maneuver brigade combat teams. No longer was it necessary to assign an artillery battalion per brigade as well as having DIVARTY.

While the infantry brigade was classically task-organized, BCTs are more standardized. brigade headquarters, support and maintenance, a target acquisition battery and a Multiple Launch Rocket System battalion as its permanent elements.

The headquarters routinely contained a Marine officer, Air Force personnel, and sections for space command, information operations, psychological operations, civil affairs and a fires and effects cell.

Additional missile, gun, and other kinetic and nonkinetic fires units would be assigned as needed, as well as the coordination of Navy and Air Force fire support.