French Army organization

[Lonestar 11]

The French Army organization is not easy to describe and is rather different from the American Army.

Moreover there is a lot of difference between theory and what you see in the battlefield.

Basically from the bottom to the top:

1. 2 fireteams per combat group: the 300m team and the 600m team (the numbers describe the engagement distance)
   
2. 3 combat groups + 1 command group + 1 support group per combat platoon
   
3. 3 combat platoons + 1 command platoon + 1 support platoon (mortars and Milan) per company
   
4. The company level
   

The composition is adaptable at the platoon level according to the platoon type (wheeled, tracked or VBL)

In practice, a combat platoon consists of 39 men:

Note: I'm using the French military ranks.

1 Command Group (5 men):

• 1 platoon commander (lieutenant)
  
• 1 platoon deputy commander (sous-officier adjoint)
  
• 1 radio operator
  
• 2 marksmen (FR-F2)
  

1 Support Group (5 men):

• 1 group leader
  
• 2 Eryx gunners
  
• 2 Eryx assistant gunners
  

3 Combat Groups (21 men):

• 1 group leader (sergent)
  

300m team:

• 1 team leader (caporal or caporal-chef) (Famas Aimpoint)
  
• 2 AT4 CS launchers (+Famas)
  

600m team:

• 1 team leader (Famas J4)
  
• 1 Minimi gunner (Minimi)
  
• 1 LGI soldier - Personal Grenade Launcher (+Famas)
  

4 Armored vehicle crew (8 men):

• 1 radio gunner
  
• 1 driver
  

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Notes:

• The FAMAS is the standard assault rifle of the French Army.
  
• COS are Spec Ops soldiers, COS is equivalent to USSOCOM.
  
• In the French Army and armies based on the French model, the section is the sub-division of a company (equivalent to a platoon).
  
• The French equivalent of a US/UK squad/section is a group.
  
• The word "peloton" (platoon) is still used for the French Armor unit, equivalent in size to an infantry section.
  
• The word platoon is derived from the 17th-century French peloton, meaning a small detachment of soldiers.
  
• A lot of English words and especially military vocabulary come from the French language.
  

More info:

• Wikipedia: French Army
  
• Wikipedia: Platoon
  
• Wikipedia: Section (military unit)
  
• Wikipedia: LGI
  
• Ranks in the French Army
  

Edited November 30, 2011 by Lonestar

[Fox '09 14]

some interesting stuff here, thanks for sharing :)

could also be useful for arma 2 mission making with french units

[Thunderbird 0]

It would be great to establish a decent cfggroup for the hexagon addons according to these informations.

Regards,

TB

[echo1 0]

Every soldier in the combat group has a Famas.

Except, presumably, for the Minimi gunners and marksmen?

[Lonestar 11]

It would be great to establish a decent cfggroup for the hexagon addons according to these informations.

Regards,

TB

Yea that would be nice, I'll suggest it to the developer. Ikår might have other priorities at the moment though, I know he's looking into the improvement of the overall quality of the mod and the ACE2 compatibility.

Except, presumably, for the Minimi gunners and marksmen?

By the sentence "Every soldier in the combat group has a Famas", I meant that the FAMAS is the standard assault rifle of the French army. Of course the Minimi gunner bears a Minimi (Para version in the HEXAgon mod) and the Marksman bears a FR-F2.

Every soldier is equipped with a FAMAS, if not I wrote down the weapon between brackets after the class name.

Edited June 12, 2010 by Lonestar

[BronzeEagle 2]

the famas is a fine looking weapon. what about the mirage F2000's they use? I heard they can only stay in the air fifteen minutes.

[jakerod 254]

the famas is a fine looking weapon. what about the mirage F2000's they use? I heard they can only stay in the air fifteen minutes.

I would highly doubt that that is true. There wouldn't be much of a point to them. All the enemy fighters would have to do is make sure they don't get shot down within the first 15 minutes of the fight and chase them back to base.

[Lonestar 11]

Updated with French Army ranks.

[dunedain 48]

the famas is a fine looking weapon. what about the mirage F2000's they use? I heard they can only stay in the air fifteen minutes.

It can fly as long as it has fuel dude which is 3,335 km with auxiliary fuel "according to wikipedia".. :rolleyes: