Hi! You seem to know a lot about the military. Could you help me understand how the military structure works? Like military branches (what specializations do they have, and is the USMC Scout Snipers one of them?), what is each one's special forces (known tasks forces for each), what's the difference between SOCOM & JSOC and what does each do? And what does JTF do, and how is it linked to all the others? Thanks in advance for any help you may offer, or for trying to help!
Okay, let’s introduce you to the US military structure. There are seven uniformed services in the USA. The military branches are under the United States Department of Defense (DoD). They are (in order of precedence):
US Army: The Army (also called ground force) is the fighting force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or state. Inside the US Army, you can find several divisions with different roles. For instance, Airborne Division, the paratroopers; Cavalry; Armored; Infantry; Artillery. There’s also the Special Forces, which are military units trained to conduct special operations. Their training is harder than an average unit. US Army Special Forces include the Green Berets, Delta Force, United States Army Rangers, the Night Stalkers, etc. More about them here.
USMC: The Marine Corps also known as naval infantry, are typically an infantry force that specializes in the support of naval and army operations at sea and on land, as well as the execution of their own operations. They can be part of the Navy (like in my country, Brazil), or the Army, or have an independent service branch like in the US (although the United States Marine Corps is under the United States Department of the Navy). Like the Army, they have divisions. They also have special forces like Force Recon (Marine Recon), FAST, ANGLICO, etc.
The USMC Scout Snipers is a secondary MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) designator of U.S. Marine Corps infantrymen and reconnaissance Marines that have graduated from a U.S. Marine Corps Scout Sniper School. Frank Castle, my muse, was a Scout Sniper in Marine Recon.
USN: US Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces. The mission of the Navy is to maintain, train and equip combat-ready Naval forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression and maintaining freedom of the seas. They have a famous special forces unit, Navy SEALS.
USAF: US Air Force is the aerial and space warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces. They provide air support for land and naval forces and aids in the recovery of troops in the field. I don’t know much about Air Force, still doing my reading. xD
There’s also the Coast Guard, which is under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), but forgive me, I don’t know much about them.
SOCOM or United States Special Operations Command provides fully capable special operations forces to defend the United States and its interests and plan and synchronize operations against terrorist networks. SOCOM has all the military branches working inside like NAVSOC (United States Naval Special Warfare Command), MARSOC (United States Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command), USASOC (United States Army Special Operations Command), AFSOC (Air Force Special Operations Command) and JSOC (Joint Special Operations Command). Each of these Commands has their own several units, with different tasks.
The JSOC or Joint Special Operations Command is a component command of SOCOM (like MARSOC, USASOC, NAVSOC and AFSOC). JSOC is charged to study special operations requirements and techniques to ensure interoperability and equipment standardization; plan and conduct special operations exercises and training; develop joint special operations tactics; and execute special operations missions worldwide.
JTF or Joint Task Force is a multi-service military formation. It is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy. Each branch has their own tasks forces, for instance, Task Force Blue is actually Navy SEALS. Task Force 6-26 is SOCOM or JSOC Task Force. You can find a list of task forces here.
I hope this will help you, anon! Cheers <3
