Section (military unit)

A section is a military sub-subunit. It usually consists of between six and 20 personnel and is usually an alternative name for, and equivalent to, a squad. As such two or more sections usually make up an army platoon or an air force flight.

However, in the French Army and in armies based on the French model, a section is equivalent to a platoon.

Armies

Standard NATO military map symbol to Section

Squad sized unit
(8-12 soldiers)

Platoon sized unit
(up to 39 soldiers)

“Infantry” friendly / own armed forces

Australian Army

At the start of World War I, the Australian Army used a section that consisted of 27 men including the section commander, a sergeant.

During World War II, a rifle section comprised ten soldiers with a corporal in command and a lance-corporal as his second-in-command. The corporal used an M1928 Thompson submachine gun, while one of the privates used a Bren gun. The other eight soldiers all used No.1 Mk.3 Lee–Enfield rifles with a bayonet and scabbard. They all carried two or three No.36 Mills bomb grenades.

After World War II, and during the Vietnam War, a rifle section consisted of ten personnel comprising: a command & scout group (three people – two sub-machineguns/M16A1 and a L1A1 SLR); a gun group (three people – an M60 machine gun and two L1A1 SLRs) and a rifle group (four people – L1A1 SLRs). The section was later reduced to nine men, and consisted of the section commander, a two-man scout group, the section 2IC and two other men in the gun group, and a three-man rifle group; the section commander would usually move with the latter.

Under the new structure of the infantry platoon, Australian Army sections are made up of eight men divided into two four-man fireteams. Each fireteam consists of a team leader (corporal/lance-corporal), a marksman with enhanced optics, a grenadier with an M203 and an LSW operator with an F89 Minimi light support weapon.

Typical fire team structure:

Position	Armament
Team leader	F88 Steyr
Marksman	F88 Steyr w/enhanced optic (e.g. 3.4× Wildcat)
Grenadier	F88 Steyr w/M203 under-barrel grenade launcher
Machine gunner	F89 Minimi

British Army

World War II and the Cold War

The "Rifle Section" of a World War II Infantry Battalion was generally formed of 10 men; a Corporal as the section commander, a Lance Corporal as the section 2IC, and eight privates. The Corporal variously carried a Lee-Enfield rifle, a Thompson submachine gun, or a Sten gun depending on the year of the war, one private would be the section gunner with a Bren gun, and all other section members were armed with Lee–Enfield rifles. The section was divided into a rifle group consisting of the section commander and six riflemen, and a gun group consisting of the section 2IC, the section gunner and a Bren No. 2 carrying a spare barrel and additional ammunition for the Bren gun. Three sections together formed a platoon, with two being forward sections and the third being a reserve.

With the switch from .303 Inch to 7.62x51mm NATO in the 1950s, the typical British infantry section was armed with and organised around the L7A1/A2 7.62mm general purpose machine gun (GPMG). The section was reduced to eight men but retained the rifle group/gun group organisation: the rifle group consisted of the section commander (Corporal) with an L1A1 self-loading rifle (SLR), the Anti-Tank gunner with an L14A1 84mm anti-tank gun and a L2A3 9mm submachine gun, the Anti-Tank No. 2 with an L1A1 SLR and additional 84mm rounds, and two riflemen with L1A1 SLRs, while the gun group consisted of the section 2IC (Lance Corporal) with an L1A1 SLR, the section gunner with the GPMG, and the gun No. 2 with an L1A1 SLR, a spare GPMG barrel, and additional 7.62mm linked ammunition.

Both World War II and Cold War section tactics were designed with a view to bringing the section machine gun to bear on the enemy and providing support to it; once the gun group had suppressed the enemy ("winning the firefight"), the rifle group would assault and destroy the enemy position with the gun group providing fire until the last safe moment.

Post–Cold War

The introduction of the 5.56mm select-fire SA80 individual weapon or rifle (L85) and light support weapon (L86) in the late 1980s led to the rifle group/gun group organisation being abandoned in favour of fireteams. The British section continued to consist of eight soldiers, but under normal circumstances these were now divided into a Charlie and Delta fireteam. The platoon continued, and continues, to be composed of three sections.

The normal section grouping during the 1990s and early 2000s was as follows:

• Charlie Fireteam
  • Corporal armed with an L85 5.56mm rifle
  • Two Riflemen armed with L85 5.56mm rifles
  • Gunner armed with an L86 5.56mm light support weapon (Often replaced informally by the earlier L7A2 7.62x51mm general purpose machine gun owing to the L86's shortcomings in the section machine gun role, and later officially replaced by the L110A1 5.56mm light machine gun)
• Delta Fireteam
  • Lance Corporal armed with an L85 5.56mm rifle
  • Two Riflemen armed with L85 5.56mm rifles
  • Gunner armed with an L86 5.56mm light support weapon (Often replaced informally by the earlier L7A2 7.62x51mm general purpose machine gun owing to the L86's shortcomings in the section machine gun role, and later officially replaced by the L110A1 5.56mm light machine gun)

This grouping provided a balanced organisation, with either fireteam being capable of moving to assault or supporting the other fireteam's movement (though doctrine still had the Lance Corporal's fireteam providing covering fire in the initial stages of a section attack). There were two other section groupings; an assault team/support team grouping where the Delta fireteam (consisting of the section 2IC, a rifleman, and both section gunners) was responsible for covering the Charlie fireteam (consisting of the section commander and three riflemen, though this could be raised to four if the rifleman in the Delta fireteam was moved to the Charlie fireteam) during the latter's movement from one position to another, and a modified version of the earlier rifle group/gun group organisation, used if it was felt that the strongest possible manoeuvre force was required, where both section gunners formed the gun group and all remaining personnel formed the Charlie fireteam which acted as the rifle group. There were also groupings devised in relation to specific combat scenarios; sections engaged in trench clearing could either be organised as usual or be split into four assault teams of two men each, while sections tasked with clearing a house were organised into a command group, a covering group comprising both section gunners (and possibly the section 2IC), and two assault groups of two riflemen each. LAWs were part of the standard equipment allocation on a scale of two per section, and were carried as needed; the normal section grouping had one LAW per fireteam, while the assault team/support team grouping could have a LAW carried by one or both teams depending on the perceived armour threat. It was also possible to have the platoon's reserve section equipped with all six LAWs, leaving the two forward sections unencumbered for fire and manoeuvre and providing them with anti-armour defence. Fireteams can be split into smaller sub-divisions of two men each if needed, particularly during fire and manoeuvre.

Not all sections will consist of eight men; units mounted aboard the FV510 Warrior will only consist of seven men, with one fireteam's second rifleman usually being the section member that is omitted, while the FV432 Bulldog can accommodate an enlarged section consisting of 10 men.

Changes were made to the section's equipment during the 2000s in response to operational demands and experience; the L123A1-A3 40mm underslung grenade launcher (UGL) was introduced for use on a scale of one per fireteam, the L86 was replaced as the section machine gun by the L110A1-A3 machine gun acquired as an Urgent Operational Requirement, and the second rifleman in the fireteam was re-roled as a designated marksman carrying either the L86A2 or, in later years, the L129A1 7.62x51mm sharpshooter rifle. By 2005 therefore, the normal section grouping was reorganised as follows:

• Charlie Fireteam
  • Corporal armed with an L85A2 5.56mm rifle
  • Rifleman armed with an L85A2 5.56mm rifle and L123A1-A3 40mm UGL (though this could be carried by the fireteam commander instead)
  • Gunner armed with an L110A1-A3 5.56mm light machine gun
  • Designated marksman armed with an L86A2 5.56mm light support weapon or L129A1 7.62×51mm sharpshooter rifle
• Delta Fireteam
  • Lance Corporal armed with an L85A2 5.56mm rifle
  • Rifleman armed with an L85A2 5.56mm rifle and L123A1-A3 40mm UGL (though this could be carried by the fireteam commander instead)
  • Gunner armed with an L110A1-A3 5.56mm light machine gun
  • Designated marksman armed with an L86A2 5.56mm light support weapon or L129A1 7.62×51mm sharpshooter rifle

The two other section groupings were also modified; the assault team/support team grouping now had the Charlie fireteam consist of the section commander, a rifleman with UGL, and both section gunners, with the Delta fireteam consisting of the section 2IC, both section marksmen, and a rifleman with UGL. The rifle group/gun group organisation was replaced by a fast assault/fire support grouping where the Charlie fireteam consisted of the section commander with UGL and a rifleman, while all remaining personnel formed the Delta fireteam. Trench clearing and house clearing groupings remained unchanged. Some units operating in Afghanistan carried on using the L7A2 GPMG as the section machine gun or included it as an additional weapon on the scale of one per fireteam; in the case of the latter, this meant that only two L85A2s (at least one of which was fitted with the UGL) were carried per section. The AT-4 (L1A2 or L2A1) and then the NLAW replaced the LAW 80 as the section anti-armour weapon, though carrying arrangements were essentially unchanged; the Javelin can also be carried for anti-armour capability. The L128A1 combat shotgun was introduced for use by the section point man, with this position subject to rotation within the section to avoid excessive stress for individual soldiers.

The L86A2 and L110A3 began to be removed from service in 2019, leaving the L129A1 and L7A2 as the standard section designated marksman rifle and standard section machine gun respectively. With section commanders now also being able to tailor equipment formations as needed instead of having to deploy in a pre-set lineup, the current British infantry section is as follows:

• Corporal (Charlie team commander and overall section commander) armed with an L85A3 5.56mm rifle
• Lance Corporal (Delta team commander) armed with an L85A3 5.56mm rifle
• Four Riflemen armed with L85A3 5.56mm rifles, two of which will normally be equipped with an L123A3 40mm UGL.
• Gunner armed with an L7A2 7.62x51mm general purpose machine gun (at the section commander's discretion, the gunner can be re-roled as an additional rifleman with an L85A3 5.56mm rifle if needed)
• Designated marksman armed with an L129A1 7.62×51mm sharpshooter rifle

The Army Cadet Force and the Army Sections of the Combined Cadet Force also make use of infantry sections; these are equipped similarly to their British Army counterparts (though without heavy weapons or grenades and with substituted small arms - the L1A1 rifle and L7A2 machine gun did not replace the Lee-Enfield No. 4 and Bren light machine gun, while the L85 rifle was initially substituted by the straight-pull L98A1 and then the semi-automatic L98A2 which replaced the L98A1 from 2009 onwards) and, until 2018, used the following section groupings:

• Normal section grouping (Until 1990)
  • Rifle group
    • Corporal armed with a No. 4 .303 rifle
    • Five Riflemen armed with No. 4 .303 rifles
  • Gun group
    • Lance Corporal armed with a No. 4 .303 rifle
    • Gunner armed with a Bren .303 light machine gun

• Normal section grouping (1990 onwards)
  • Charlie Fireteam
    • Corporal armed with an L98A1/A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifle
    • Two Riflemen armed with L98A1/A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifles
    • Gunner armed with an L86A1/A2 5.56mm light support weapon
  • Delta Fireteam
    • Lance Corporal armed with an L98A1/A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifle
    • Two Riflemen armed with L98A1/A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifles
    • Gunner armed with an L86A1/A2 5.56mm light support weapon

• Assault team/Support team grouping (2013 onwards)
  • Charlie Fireteam (Assault team)
    • Corporal armed with an L98A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifle
    • Three Riflemen armed with L98A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifles
  • Delta Fireteam (Support team)
    • Lance Corporal armed with an L98A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifle
    • Two Gunners armed with L86A2 5.56mm light support weapons
    • Rifleman armed with an L98A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifle

• Fast assault/Fire support grouping (2013 onwards)
  • Charlie Fireteam (Fast assault)
    • Corporal armed with an L98A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifle
    • Rifleman armed with an L98A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifle
  • Delta Fireteam (Fire support)
    • Lance Corporal armed with an L98A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifle
    • Three Riflemen armed with L98A2 5.56mm cadet GP rifles
    • Two Gunners armed with L86A2 5.56mm light support weapons

L86A2s in Community Cadet Forces use began to be withdrawn from service at the same time as those held by the British Armed Forces, with no direct replacement for the weapon being identified; as such, all members of a Army Cadet Force section would now be armed with an L98A2 rifle.

Canadian Army

See also: Organization of Canadian Army rifle sections during World War II

The Canadian Army also uses the section, which is roughly the same as its British counterpart, except that it is led by a sergeant, with a master corporal as the 2IC. The section is further divided into two assault groups of four soldiers each (equivalent to the Australian and British fireteams) and a vehicle group consisting of a driver and a gunner. Assault groups are broken down to even smaller 'fireteams' consisting of two soldiers, designated Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Delta. Alpha and Bravo make up Assault Group 1; Charlie and Delta make up Assault Group 2. The section commander will have overall control of the section, and is assigned to Fireteam Alpha of Assault Group 1. The 2IC will be in command of Assault Group 2, and is assigned to Fireteam Charlie.

Groupings are as follows:

• Assault Group 1
  • Fireteam Alpha
    • Section Commander armed with a C7 rifle.
    • LMG Gunner armed with a C9 light machine gun.
  • Fireteam Bravo
    • Rifleman armed with a C7 rifle.
    • Grenadier armed with a C7 rifle and an underslung M203 grenade launcher.
• Assault Group 2
  • Fireteam Charlie
    • Section 2IC armed with a C7 rifle.
    • LMG Gunner armed with a C9 light machine gun.
  • Fireteam Delta
    • Rifleman armed with a C7 rifle.
    • Grenadier armed with a C7 rifle and an underslung M203 grenade launcher.
• Vehicle Group
  • Driver armed with a C7 rifle.
  • Vehicle Gunner armed with a C7 rifle.

In a mechanised section, the vehicle group gains a commander and stays with the section vehicle (Currently the LAV III), while the second assault group loses its rifleman

Danish Army

In the Danish Army, the section consists of two squads, usually commanded by a Sergeant First Class. Sections are usually highly specialized support units providing heavy weapons support, EOD support etc.

French Army

In the French Army, a section is equivalent to an English-language platoon and is a subunit of a company, in most military contexts. (In cavalry or armoured units, a subunit of a company is a peloton [platoon].)

A subunit within a modern French section is a groupe de combat ("combat group"), which is divided into:

• a "300 metre fireteam" armed with FAMAS 5.56 mm assault rifles and carrying an AT4 anti-tank weapon and
• a "600 metre fireteam", armed with a FN Minimi, a FAMAS and a personal grenade launcher.

Singapore Army

Singapore Army's infantry section consists of seven men led by a Third Sergeant and assisted by a Corporal or Corporal First Class as 2IC. Each section is divided into one 3-man group - including the section commander, and two 2-man groups. Weapons carried by each section include two light anti-tank weapons, two section automatic weapons (SAW), and two M203 grenade launchers.

United States Army

Historically, a section of US Infantry was a "half platoon" (the platoon itself being a "half company"). The section was led by a sergeant assisted by one or (later) two corporals and consisted of a total of from 12-24 soldiers, depending on the time period. In the US Cavalry, a section was roughly equivalent to a squad in the US Infantry. In Armor, Armored Cavalry, Mechanized Infantry, and Stryker Infantry units, a section consists of two tanks/armored vehicles, with two sections to a platoon. The platoon leader, leads one section and the platoon sergeant leads the other. Some branches, such as Air Defense Artillery and Field Artillery, use the term section to denote a squad-sized unit that may act independently of each other in the larger platoon formation. (I.e., the Firing Platoon consists of several gun sections, which are the basic firing elements of the unit.) The section is used as an administrative formation and may be bigger than the regular squad formation often overseen by a Staff Sergeant.

United States Marine Corps

The USMC employs sections as intermediate tactical echelons in infantry, armored vehicle units (individual vehicles being the base tactical element), and low altitude air defense (LAAD) units, and as the base tactical element in artillery units. Infantry sections can consist of as few as eight Marines (heavy machinegun section) to as many as 32 in an 81-mm mortar section. In headquarters, service, and support units throughout the USMC (CE, GCE, ACE, and LCE), sections are used as functional sub-units of headquarters or platoons. For example, the intelligence section (S-2) of a battalion or squadron headquarters; the communications-electronics maintenance section, communication platoon, regimental headquarters company; armory section, Marine aviation logistics squadron. In Marine aircraft squadrons, section is also used to designate a flight of two or three aircraft under the command of a designated section leader. Some sections, such as weapons platoon sections are led by a staff non-commissioned Officer (SNCO), usually a staff sergeant. Tank and other armored vehicle sections, as well as service and support sections, may be led by either an officer, usually a lieutenant (or a CWO, in the case of service and support units), or a SNCO ranging from staff sergeant to master sergeant. Headquarters and aircraft sections are always led by a commissioned officer. Rifle squads generally contain 13 marines.

In infantry units, weapons platoons have sections consisting of the squads and teams that man the crew-served weapons.

Weapons platoon, rifle company:

• a machine gun section, consisting of a section leader and three machine gun squads, each containing two machine gun teams of three men each
• an LWCMS mortar section, consisting of a section leader and three 60mm mortar squads, each containing one mortar and four man crew
• an assault section, consisting of a section leader and three assault squads, each containing two assault teams of two men each

Weapons company, infantry battalion:

• an 81mm mortar platoon, consisting of a five-man platoon headquarters and two 81mm mortar sections, each section containing four 81mm mortar squads of six men each and an eight-man section headquarters.
• an antiarmor platoon, consisting of a three-man platoon headquarters and a Javelin section, containing a section leader and two Javelin squads, each having two teams of two men each, and an antitank (TOW) section, containing a section leader and four antitank squads, each having a squad leader and two TOW teams of two men each
• a heavy machine gun (HMG) platoon, consisting of a four-man platoon headquarters and three HMG sections, each having two HMG squads of four men each.

In armored vehicle units, platoons consist of sections consisting of individual vehicles and their crews:

• tank and light armored reconnaissance platoons consist of two sections, each containing two tanks/light armored vehicles and crews
• assault amphibian vehicle (AAV) platoons consist of four sections, each containing three AAV's and crews
• combat engineer assault breacher sections consist of two CEV assault breacher vehicles and crews

In low altitude air defense (LAAD) batteries, the firing platoons consist of three sections, each consisting of a section leader and five two-man Stinger missile teams.

In artillery batteries, the firing platoon consists of a platoon headquarters and six artillery sections, each containing a section chief (staff sergeant) eight-member gun crew with one howitzer, and a driver and prime mover (i.e., a truck to tow the artillery piece and transport the gun crew and baggage). The gun crew consists of a gunner (sergeant), two assistant gunners (corporals), and five cannoneers (lance corporals and/or PFCs).

Air forces

In some air forces, a section is a unit containing three to four aircraft (if it is a flying unit) and up to 20 personnel. Two or three sections usually make up a flight.

The United States Air Force uses the term element, as well as section, to designate two or three subunits within a flight.

In the context of British Empire military aviation during World War I, the term half flight or half-flight was used for equivalent formations; at the time a flight was normally four to six aircraft. Hence the Mesopotamian Half Flight, the first Australian flying unit to see action, initially comprised three aircraft. After the war, the RAF and other Commonwealth air forces adopted the term section for a formation of three aircraft, while a flight was normally six aircraft.

During the Second World War:

• in the German Luftwaffe, the equivalent in fighter units was a Schwarm of four aircraft and, in bomber units, a Kette (three aircraft), along with headquarters and support personnel, and;
• the Soviet Red Air Force the equivalent was a zveno (three or four aircraft).

Other organisations

A section is also the name for a shift or team of police officers in various police forces, particularly in the Commonwealth. The term is no longer used in the British police, in which it originated and where it was the group of officers headed by a Sergeant.

See also

• Infantry Minor Tactics
• Contubernium

External links

• canadiansoldiers.com article on the history of the Infantry Section.