United States Army Reserve
Encyclopedia
The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is the federal reserve force
Military reserve force
A military reserve force is a military organization composed of citizens of a country who combine a military role or career with a civilian career. They are not normally kept under arms and their main role is to be available to fight when a nation mobilizes for total war or to defend against invasion...

 of the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard
Army National Guard
Established under Title 10 and Title 32 of the U.S. Code, the Army National Guard is part of the National Guard and is divided up into subordinate units stationed in each of the 50 states, three territories and the District of Columbia operating under their respective governors...

 constitute the reserve components
Reserve components of the United States armed forces
The reserve components of the United States armed forces are military organizations whose members, generally perform a minimum of 39 days of military duty per year and who augment the active duty military when necessary. The reserve components are also referred to collectively as the Guard and...

 (RC) of the United States Army.

The Army Reserve was formed 23 April 1908 to provide a reserve of medical officers to the Army. After the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, under the National Defense Act on 4 June 1920, Congress reorganized the U.S. land forces by authorizing a Regular Army, a National Guard, and an Organized Reserve (Officers Reserve Corps and Enlisted Reserve Corps) of unrestricted size, which later became the Army Reserve.

Reserve service today

Reserve soldiers perform only part-time duties as opposed to full-time (active duty) soldiers, but rotate through mobilizations to full-time duty. When not on active duty, reserve soldiers typically perform training/service one weekend per month, known as inactive duty for training (IADT) and currently referred to as Battle Assembly
Battle Assembly
Battle Assembly is the term used by the United States Army Reserve to describe monthly training, where soldiers practice and perfect their military skills and maintain individual and unit readiness in the event of mobilization and deployment...

, and for two continuous weeks at some time during the year referred to as Annual Training (AT). Many reserve soldiers are organized into Army Reserve troop program units (TPU), while others serve in active Army units as Individual Mobilization Augmentees (IMA), or are in non-drilling control groups of the Individual Ready Reserve
Individual Ready Reserve
The Individual Ready Reserve is a category of the Ready Reserve of the Reserve Component of the Armed Forces of the United States composed of former active duty or reserve military personnel, and is authorized under...

 (IRR). Reserve Soldiers may also serve on active duty in support of the US Army Reserve (USAR) in an Active Guard/Reserve (AGR) status.

All United States Army soldiers sign an initial rim job contract upon entry into the military. Typically, the contract specifies that some of the service will be in the Regular Army (also called Active Component/AC) for two, three, or four years; with the remaining obligation served in the Reserve Component (RC). Some Soldiers elect to sign contracts specifying that all eight years be served in the RC.

Soldiers entering directly into the Army Reserve nevertheless spend a period of initial active duty (approximately five months depending upon Military Occupational Specialty
Military Occupational Specialty
A United States military occupation code, or a Military Occupational Specialty code , is a nine character code used in the United States Army and United States Marines to identify a specific job. In the U.S. Air Force, a system of Air Force Specialty Codes is used...

 (MOS)) for basic training
Basic Training
Basic Training may refer to:* Basic Training, a 1971 American documentary directed by Frederick Wiseman* Basic Training , an American sex comedy* Recruit training...

 and Advanced Individual Training (AIT). All Army Reserve soldiers, are subject to mobilization throughout the term of their enlistment. Soldiers who, after completing the AC portion of their enlistment contract choose not to re-enlist on active duty, are automatically transferred to the RC to complete the remainder of their Statutory Obligation (eight year service total) and may be served in a drilling Troop Program Unit (TPU), Individual mobilization Augmentee (IMA), or Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) status.

Commissioned officers, Warrant Officers, and Non-commissioned officers of the rank of Staff Sergeant (E-6) and above are considered to be on indefinite status if they have more than 10 years of service. (This no longer applies to reenlist with an "Indefinite" status as part of the Army Reserve. Memo is dated 20080110 – It is not retroactive.)

The Army Reserve was composed of 205,000 soldiers as of 2009.

Current leadership

On 25 May 2006, Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....

 Jack C. Stultz
Jack C. Stultz
Lieutenant General Jack C. Stultz, Jr. is the current Commanding General of the United States Army Reserve.-Biography:Jack Calvin Stultz, Jr. was born in Dillon, South Carolina. He attended Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history. He...

 became Chief, Army Reserve, and Commanding General, United States Army Reserve Command
United States Army Reserve Command
United States Army Reserve Command commands all United States Army Reserve units. USARC is responsible for the staffing, training, management and deployment of its units to ensure their readiness for Army missions. The Army Reserve which consists of three main categories of units.-Mission:U.S...

 (USARC), after serving as the Command's Deputy Commanding General since October 2005. Prior to assignment to the Army Reserve Command, Lieutenant General Stultz served as the Commanding General of the 143rd Transportation Command.

On 16 March 2010, Command Sergeant Major Michael D. Schultz was sworn in as the 11th Command Sergeant Major of the Army Reserve, serving as the Chief of the Army Reserve's senior advisor on all enlisted soldier matters, particularly areas affecting training, leader development, mobilization, employer support, family readiness and support, and quality of life. In his capacity as CSM of the Army Reserve, he dedicates the majority of his time traveling throughout the United States and overseas visiting, observing, and listening to soldiers and families to address their issues and concerns.

Importance to the active army

In the early 1980s Army Reserve soldiers constituted the following numbers in US Army units:
  • 100% of training divisions, brigades, and railway units
  • 97% of civil affairs units
  • 89% of psychological operations units
  • 85% of smoke generator companies
  • 78% of Petrol/Oil/Lubricant (POL) supply companies
  • 62% of Army hospitals
  • 61% of terminal companies
  • 59% of the supply and service capability of the Army
  • 51% of ammunition companies
  • 43% of airborne pathfinder units
  • 43% of watercraft companies
  • 42% of chemical decontamination units
  • 38% of combat support aviation companies
  • 26% of combat engineer battalions
  • 25% of Special Forces Groups
  • smaller percentages of other units and formations such as combat brigades and tank battalions

In 1980, the peacetime USAR chain of command
Chain of Command
Chain of Command may refer to:* Chain of command, in a military context, the line of authority and responsibility along which orders are passed* "Chain of Command" , the fifth episode of the first season of Beast Wars...

 was overlaid with a wartime trace. In an expansion of the roundout and affiliation programs begun ten years earlier, CAPSTONE purported to align every Army Reserve unit with the active and reserve component units with which they were anticipated to deploy. Units maintained lines of communication with the units—often hundreds or thousands of miles away in peacetime—who would presumably serve above or below them in the event of mobilization. This communication, in some cases, extended to coordinated annual training opportunities.

Despite the commonly held belief that CAPSTONE traces were set in stone, the process of selecting units to mobilize and deploy in 1990 and 1991 in support of Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm largely ignored CAPSTONE.

In the post-Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

 draw-down, all of the Army Reserve's combat units were disbanded, except the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry Regiment. This meant the disestablishment of the three remaining Army Reserve fighting brigades: the 157th Infantry Brigade (Mechanized) (Separate)
157th Infantry Brigade (United States)
The 157th Infantry Brigade is an active/reserve component unit based at Camp Atterbury, Indinia. The unit is responsible for training selected United States Army Reserve and National Guard units. The unit was activated using the assets of the 5th Brigade, 87th Division...

 of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, the 187th Infantry Brigade (Separate)
187th Infantry Brigade (United States)
The 187th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the United States Army. It was first formed under the United States Army Reserve's 94th Army Reserve Command, which wore the patch of the inactivated 94th Infantry Division, from which the 187th was formed when the 94th was inactivated and the...

 of Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

, and the 205th Infantry Brigade (Separate) (Light)
205th Infantry Brigade (United States)
The 205th Infantry Brigade, was first formed as part of the United States Army Reserve's 103rd Division. It was active from 1921 to 1942 and then from 1963 through 1994, and then reformed in 2006....

 of Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

. Many of the Army Reserve training divisions were realigned as institutional training divisions.

With the Army National Guard providing reserve component combat formations and related combat support units, the Army Reserve is configured to provide combat support, combat service support, peacekeeping, nation-building and civil support capability. With roughly twenty percent of the Army's organized units and 5.3 percent of the Army's budget, the Army Reserve provides about half of the Army's combat support and a quarter of the Army's mobilization base expansion capability.

In 2008, the Army Reserve contains the following percentages of the Army's units of each category:
  • 100% of chemical brigade
    Brigade
    A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...

    s, internment
    Internment
    Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of 'interning'; confinement within the limits of a country or place." Most modern usage is about individuals, and there is a distinction...

     brigades, judge advocate
    Judge Advocate General's Corps
    Judge Advocate General's Corps, also known as JAG or JAG Corps, refers to the legal branch or specialty of the U.S. Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, and Navy. Officers serving in the JAG Corps are typically called Judge Advocates. The Marine Corps and Coast Guard do not maintain separate JAG Corps...

     units, medical groups, railway units, training & exercise divisions
    Division (military)
    A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...

    , and water supply battalion
    Battalion
    A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...

    s.
  • more than 67% of civil affairs units, psychological operations units, transportation groups, motor battalions, chemical battalions, hospitals, medical brigade
    Brigade
    A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...

    s, and theater signal commands.
  • nearly 50% of petroleum battalion
    Battalion
    A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...

    s, Adjutant General units, petroleum groups, transportation commands, terminal battalions, and public affairs
    Public affairs (military)
    Public Affairs is a term for the formal offices of the branches of the United States Department of Defense whose purpose is to deal with the media and community issues. The term is also used for numerous media relations offices that are created by the U.S. military for more specific limited purposes...

     units.


In fiscal years 2007–2009, the Army Reserve was realigned into a functional command structure. The majority of Army Reserve units are now assigned to operational and functional commands. Operational commands are deployable elements which command deployable units of the same or similar capabilities regardless of peacetime geographic location. For instance, the 377th Sustainment Command (Theater) commands all Army Reserve sustainment units, while the 11th Aviation Command commands all Army Reserve aviation assets. Likewise, functional commands are responsible for command of units of the same or similar capabilities regardless of peacetime geographic location, but are not, as a headquarters, deployable.

The training structure has been transformed in order to streamline command and control. Instead of multiple training divisions, each with its own geographic area of responsibility, the new structure features four training commands responsible for specific categories of training throughout the United States. Each command is configured for either initial entry training, advanced individual training schools, leader development or battle command training. These commands train soldiers of the Army Reserve, Army National Guard and the active component, through formal classroom and “hands on” training. Two training support commands under the First United States Army, designated First Army East and First Army West, provide customized, realistic unit-specific and operation-specific training. TSCs plan, conduct and evaluate training exercises for Army, Army Reserve and Army National Guard units. Training Support Commands are organized under the United States First Army into two subordinate units.

As a part of this realignment, most of the regional readiness commands were eliminated, leaving only seven globally. These were redesignated "[regional, civil or mission] support commands"; the four in the Continental United States being "regional"; the geography for which each regional support command increased significantly, but all of the support commands were stripped of their former command and control authority over units in their respective territories. Instead, the support commands provide base operations and administrative support to Army Reserve units within their geographic region.

Headquarters Commands

  Office of the Chief, Army Reserve
Office of the Chief, Army Reserve
The Office of the Chief, Army Reserve is located in the Pentagon, Washington DC, and provides the Chief, Army Reserve with a staff of functional advisors who develop and execute Army Reserve plans, policies and programs, plus administer Army Reserve personnel, operations and funding...

 (OCAR)
at The Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...

, Washington, DC

OCAR provides the Chief, Army Reserve (CAR) with a staff of functional advisors who develop and execute Army Reserve plans, policies and programs, plus administer Army Reserve personnel, operations and funding. The CAR is responsible for plans, policies and programs affecting all Army Reserve Soldiers, including those who report directly to the Army. OCAR is composed of specialized groups that advise and support the CAR on a wide variety of issues.

  United States Army Reserve Command
United States Army Reserve Command
United States Army Reserve Command commands all United States Army Reserve units. USARC is responsible for the staffing, training, management and deployment of its units to ensure their readiness for Army missions. The Army Reserve which consists of three main categories of units.-Mission:U.S...

 (USARC)
at Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Through USARC, the CAR commands all Army Reserve units. USARC is responsible for the staffing, training, management and deployment of its units to ensure their readiness for Army missions. The Army Reserve which consists of three main categories of units: operational and functional, support, and training. Due to Base Realignment and Closure Act, the headquarters of USAR has moved to Ft. Bragg.

Operational and Functional Commands

Support Commands

  • 1st Mission Support Command at Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico
    Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico
    United States Army Garrison Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico is the U.S. Army’s only active military installation in Puerto Rico. Located in the Metropolitan area of San Juan, it serves under the direct control of the Installation Management Command, Southeast Region...



  63rd Regional Support Command "Blood and Fire" at Moffett Field, California

  81st Regional Support Command "Wildcat Division" at Fort Jackson, South Carolina
Fort Jackson, South Carolina
Fort Jackson is a United States Army installation, which TRADOC operates on for Basic Combat Training , and is located in Columbia, South Carolina. This installation is named for Andrew Jackson, a United States Army General and 7th President of the United States.-Overview:Fort Jackson was created...



  85th Support Command "Custer Division" at Arlington Heights
Arlington Heights, Illinois
Arlington Heights is a village in Cook and Lake counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it lies about 25 miles northwest of the city's downtown. The population was 75,101 at the 2010 census....

, Illinois

  87th Support Command "The Golden Acorn Division" at Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...



  88th Regional Support Command at Fort McCoy
Fort McCoy
Fort McCoy may refer to:* Fort McCoy, Florida, a community in Marion County* Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, a military base...

, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...



  99th Regional Support Command "Checkerboard" at Fort Dix, New Jersey
Fort Dix, New Jersey
JB MDL Dix , better known as Fort Dix, is a United States Army base located approximately south-southeast of Trenton, New Jersey. Dix is under the jurisdiction of the United States Army Reserve Command...

  • 78th Army Reserve Band
    78th Army Band
    The 78th Army Band, United States Army Reserve is one of the premier musical organizations of the 99th Reserve Support Command. It was organized on 1 October 2008 as part of the Army Reserve Transformation process and was posted to Ft Dix New Jersey...


  Army Reserve Careers Division at Fort McPherson, Georgia

Training Commands, Institutional

  75th Training Command (Battle Command Training Division) at Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...



  80th Training Command (TASS) "Blue Ridge Division" at Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...



  84th Training Command "Lincoln County Division" at Fort McCoy
Fort McCoy
Fort McCoy may refer to:* Fort McCoy, Florida, a community in Marion County* Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, a military base...

, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...



  108th Training Command (Individual Entry Training) "Golden Griffins" at Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...



  166th Aviation Brigade
166th Aviation Brigade (United States)
The 166th Aviation Brigade is an aviation training brigade of the United States Army headquartered at Fort Hood, Texas. It is a subordinate unit of First Army - Division West...

 at Fort Hood, Texas
Fort Hood, Texas
Fort Hood is a United States military post located outside of Killeen, Texas. The post is named after Confederate General John Bell Hood. It islocated halfway between Austin and Waco, about from each, within the U.S. state of Texas....


Training Support Commands

  • First United States Army East at Fort Meade, Maryland
    Maryland
    Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

  • First United States Army West at Fort Carson, Colorado
    Colorado
    Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...


Historic Organizations (Retired)

  • 70th Infantry Division
  • 85th Infantry Division
  • 89th Infantry Division
  • 90th Infantry Division
  • 94th Infantry Division

Other components

The Army of the United States
Army of the United States
The Army of the United States is the official name for the conscription force of the United States Army that may be raised at the discretion of the United States Congress in the event of the United States entering into a major armed conflict...

 is the official name for the conscripted force of the Army
Conscription in the United States
Conscription in the United States has been employed several times, usually during war but also during the nominal peace of the Cold War...

 that may be raised at the discretion of the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

, often at time of war or mobilization for war. The last use of the Army of the United States was in 1974.

See also

  • United States Military
  • Reserve Component of the Armed Forces of the United States
  • Reserve Officers' Training Corps
    Reserve Officers' Training Corps
    The Reserve Officers' Training Corps is a college-based, officer commissioning program, predominantly in the United States. It is designed as a college elective that focuses on leadership development, problem solving, strategic planning, and professional ethics.The U.S...

  • Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act
    Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act
    The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 was signed into law by U.S. President Bill Clinton on October 13, 1994 to protect the civilian employment of non-full time military service members in the United States called to active duty...


External links

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