I'm comparing how different militaries organize their divisions for shits and giggles, and upon further examination, motorized infantry units with these symbols use comparable equipment, yet different symbols.
Does someone know the NATO standard for these?
Also post unit infographs or any other cool organisational stuff if you want.
Regular Infantry
Motorized Infantry
Wheeled cross country capable infantry
Armored wheeled cross country capable infantry.
Whats your point?
APP-6 is the standard. In practice they just get more an more specific, the first one is plain infantry but unmotorized infantry does not exist in practice today, then you have in order, motorized infantry, motorized infantry with wheeled vehicles, and motorized infantry with armored wheeled vehicles.
As far as I know, the wheeled modifier in US Army usage separates Stryker units from Bradley units.
Cheers i was just curious what the different symbols meant, especially since today these troops all seem to use either, Mrap-type vehicles, wheeled APCs without turrets or at most weapon stations, or wheeled IFVs, but it seemed random at times which symbol they used.
3rd motorized recon platoon of the 64th something?
If you want to peruse like 900 pages of shit on it, look up MIL-STD-2525D. It's mostly pictures and all the non-appendix shit is 60 pages.
I'll take a look at least haha, as if all of those symbols get used, let alone anyone can remember all of that.
>3rd motorized recon platoon of the 64th something?
Exactly. The number on the right is always the next higher independent unit. In this case
3rd Platoon, 64th (independent) motorized recon Company
A 64th Company would be highly unusual. But if an army had several independent recon companies which could be attached to other units it would be probable
Do units that are labeled as 'independent' actually have a different mission set compared to units that are actually attached to their parent divisions?
Depends. They can be used in a more flexible way which is much easier if they are not attached
Think US Tank Destroyer Battalions in WW2
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO_Joint_Military_Symbology
You're probably gone by now, but whatever. So all four are friendly (blue border) Infantry (cross icon) battalion/regiment/squadrons ("II" on top).
The first is just regular Infantry, hence the cross icon.
The second is Motorized Infantry (cross icon with vertical bar for motorized; think HMMV or MRAP)
The third isn't a thing. It has the "wheeled " icon (3 circles) but no armor icon (oval like #4) or motorized bar. Are they on tactical bicycles?
The fourth is Mechanized Infantry with wheeled armor that have machine gun turrets instead of autocannons (Cross icon with oval for armor and 3 circles for wheeled; think Stryker or BRT-80). FYI cannoned armor would have a vertical bar to the left of the oval.
Funnily enough, there is a modifier for bicycles which is just one circle on the bottom. Unarmored wheeled could imply they have just trucks but it's redundant with the just motorized one, never seen one.
Ah, right you are, kek.
But yeah, unarmored wheeled would just be motorized, though I guess either's technically correct to the MILSTD. I enjoy all the symbols.
If you like you can decode this
Shit, forgot pic
Nah, circles are not plain ass vehicles but offroad capable ones. Vertical line is plain ass
To be more soecific
Vertical line: Vehicles are regular mil vehicles which are of course offroad capable. Think of Humvees or 6x6 trucks, at least nowadays
Three circles in the lower part: cross country capable vehicles. More offroad capable than regular vehicles.
In reality there's not much difference anymore. I also don't know any unit which is cross country capable (by definition of their symbol) but ain't armored
Btw, i stumbled across this chart of the German Army organisation.
Is it normal for a tank brigade to only have a single tank battalion but several mechanized or motorized battalions?
I've compared this to US Armored brigade combat team, Russia, UK, France and some others and it seems to be unusual, only other country i could find with single tank battalions was Japan.
Best symbol coming in