What Is The Hardest Branch Of The Military
Do not expect to get into this military branch without a high school diploma. In addition, it is most difficult to get a satisfactory score in the Armed Forces Vocational Aptitude Battery. Thus, in this regard, the Air Force is the hardest military branch out of all five primary branches to get into.
How Big Are The Military Services
The United States ended the draft for military service in 1973, transitioning to the all-volunteer force that exists today. At that time, the active component of the military, excluding the coast guard, comprised 1.9 million men and women, or about 1 percent of the population. Now, there are about 1.3 million active-duty personnel, or less than one-half of 1 percent of the U.S. population.
The army is the largest U.S. military service, followed by the navy, air force, marine corps, and coast guard. The space force became its own branch of the armed services in late 2019 and is still developing.
What Are The Branches Of The Us Military
What is the military? In simple terms, the U.S. Armed Forces are made up of the six military branches: Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, , Navy and, most recently, Space Force.
There are three general categories of military people: active duty , reserve & guard forces , and veterans and retirees . And of course, there are the millions of family members and friends of military members, past and present.
But you’re here to learn more about the military. There is much to learn. So first the basics.
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Who Is In Charge Of The 6 Military Branches
The president of the United States is the commander in chief, who is responsible for all final decisions. The secretary of the Department of Defense has control over the military and each branch — except the Coast Guard, which is under the Department of Homeland Security. With more than 2 million civilian and military employees, the DoD is the world’s largest “company.”
What Percentage Of The Us Population Serves In The Military

As we have mentioned earlier, there were 2,395,993 military personnel in the five branches of the Armed Forces in 2020. Juxtaposing this with the U.S population at the time 329.5 million, it is possible to compute that the percentage of the population in the military was 0.727%.
If you are interested, here is the math bit:
- The number of military personnel in 2020 / U.S population in 2020
- 2,395,993/329,500,000
- 00727160242 x 100
Hence, the percentage of Americans in the military is 0.727%.
Assuming that the U.S population number published online only takes into account those with a valid U.S citizenship and that there is no exception to the rule that you must be an American to serve in the military, the percent of American citizens who serve in the military is also 0.727%.
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Where Are Enlisted Recruits From
Enlisted military members come from all fifty states and the District of Columbia, but some contribute more than others. In absolute terms, the top five for recruitment in 2018 were California, Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and New York, which is reflective of their relatively large populations.
Another way of analyzing this data is to look at representation ratios, which show recruits as a share of a jurisdictions residents between the ages of eighteen and twenty-four. From this perspective, the picture is significantly different. A ratio of 1.0 means the jurisdictions share of recruits in 2018 was equal to its share of eighteen- to twenty-four-year-olds.
South Carolina had the highest representation ratio, at 1.5, meaning it contributed 50 percent more than its share of the country’s eighteen- to twenty-four-year-old population. Florida, Hawaii, Georgia, and Alabama round out the top five. On the other end of the spectrumjurisdictions that contribute fewer recruits than their share of eighteen- to twenty-four-year-olds, or those with ratios less than 1.0are Washington, DC, North Dakota, Massachusetts, Utah, and Rhode Island.
Nasa But Not The Marines
The United States Marine Corps has never in its 244 years had a four-star general who was not a white male.
Consider the case of Maj. Gen. Charles F. Bolden Jr., who managed to break barriers on land and in the air. In 1963, after South Carolinas congressional delegation turned him down for an appointment to the Naval Academy, General Bolden wrote a letter to President Lyndon B. Johnson. A recruiter came to his house a few weeks later, and he got into Annapolis.
General Bolden flew more than 100 sorties over Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia as a Marine fighter pilot during the Vietnam War. He went on to NASA to pilot two space shuttles, the Columbia in 1986 and the Discovery in 1990, and command two more, the Atlantis in 1992 and the Discovery in 1994.
Although he made it to the rank of major general, he never got that third or fourth star, and he left the Marines in 2004. Five years later, President Obama appointed him the head of NASA.
Lt. Gen. Ronald L. Bailey could not do it either. The first black man to command the First Marine Division, from 2011 to 2013, General Bailey retired in 2017 after 40 years in the Marines, one star short of breaking the four-star barrier.
The Marine Corps actually has given this a great deal of thought because we have struggled, said Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., the Marine who is head of United States Central Command. Weve struggled to do it with minorities. Weve struggled to do it with women. It is a continuing problem for us.
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How Many Generals Are There In The Us Military
Written by Everett Bledsoe / Fact checked by Brain Bartell
There are many members of different ranks in the military. The most common ones that are known to the public are soldiers and generals. If you are somewhat well-versed in the structure and organization of the military, you will know what a general is and what the position entails.
But do you know how many generals are there in the US military? Todays article focuses on the number of generals in the US military in general and the number of generals in the US Army in particular. The short answer is 653 generals. However, there is a lot more to explore. Join us in finding out more about this interesting topic of the United States military generals go on!
Us Military Personnel 1954
Here are how the numbers of active duty military personnel have fluctuated over the past 60 years.1
The numbers for all services spiked in 1968-69 as U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War reached its peak. All dropped dramatically as that war drew down. But even the peak of the Vietnam War pales in comparison to World War II. In 1945, there were over 12 million active duty military personnel.
The Army, Navy, and Air Force had significant cuts in the numbers of personnel with the end of the Cold War, while the Marine Corps numbers have stayed relatively flat.
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How Many Aircraft Carriers Does Russia Have Technically The Answer Is Zero
As of this month, the United States Navy has eleven aircraft carriers of the worlds 47 active flattops that are operated by fourteen navies. Yet, it is important to remember that not all of those ships are in active service. Vessels can be officially commissioned and considered active in the navy rolls, yet, still be out of service as they undergo refits and repairs.
This is the case with the USS George Washington and USS John C. Stennis , which are each currently undergoing their respective nuclear refueling and overhaul. This process typically takes four years as the ships are essentially taken apart and rebuilt.
Profile Of Us Servicemen
- 38.8% of U.S. servicemen and all servicewomen were volunteers
- 61.2% were draftees
- Average duration of service: 33 months
- Overseas service: 73% served overseas, with an average of 16 months abroad
- Combat survivability : 8.6 were killed in action, 3 died from other causes, and 17.7 received non-fatal combat wounds
- Non-combat jobs: 38.8% of enlisted personnel had rear echelon assignmentsadministrative, support, or manual labor.
- Average base pay: enlisted$71.33 per month officer$203.50 per month
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How Old Are Service Members
The military, which has strict age limits, is younger than the civilian population, but the numbers differ significantly by service. The age ranges of the services vary most on the enlisted side: the coast guard tends to have older members, and marines tend to be younger. About 70 percent of enlisted marines are twenty-four years old or younger, compared with about 30 percent of enlisted coast guard members.
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Suspect Had Been Known To Campus Police

Jones had come to campus authorities attention in September, when authorities found out Jones had made a comment about possessing a gun to someone unaffiliated with the university, Longo said at Mondays news conference. But that person never actually saw the gun in question, he said.
Through the course of the threat assessment teams investigation, we learned of a prior criminal incident involving a concealed weapon violation that occurred outside the city of Charlotteville in February of 2021, Longo said, adding the suspect was required to report that incident to the university but never did. The schools judicial council took over the case, and the results are pending.
Jones was also involved in a hazing investigation on campus that was closed because witnesses would not cooperate, Longo said.
It is important to share that information with you, he said, to let you know that he had been called to our attention.
Jones is listed on UVAs athletics website as a football player in 2018 who as a freshman did not participate in any games. He attended Varina High School and Petersburg High School, where he played football as a linebacker and running back, according to his university athletics bio. While in high school, Jones was Key Club president and a member of the National Honor Society and the National Technical Honor Society, the bio says.
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Us Military Forces In Fy 202: Army
This paper is part of U.S. Military Forces in FY 2022. The U.S. Armys force structure remains steady even though its budget declined by $3.6 billion dollars. The Army does this by cutting modernization and readiness. In the long term, the Armys force structure is at risk because of the strategic focus on China, perceived as primarily an air and naval theater.
Us Military Presence In Latin America
Located on the eastern tip of Cuba, the Guantanamo Bay naval base is the USs oldest overseas military base. The 116sq km facility has been under American control since the end of the 19th century.
The base is a hotly debated issue between the US and Cuba. For decades, Cuba has insisted that the US hand back the territory it took by force in 1898 and subsequently leased permanently in 1903.
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Information Sources: Within Dod
Identifying sources of information about military families is critical for understanding the availability and quality of data that DoD has at its disposal. DoD gathers and maintains certain types of demographic and military service data on service members and military dependents to assist with the organizational management of personnel , the administration of programs and benefits , and statistical research . DoD also routinely sponsors surveys to gather insights on the attitudes and experiences of service members and spouses, such as the perceived impact of deployments, satisfaction with military programs and services, and attitudes toward continued military service. These surveys also typically gather demographic and military service data, some of which are used to weight the analytic sample.
This committee considered whether there are additional characteristics that DoD should be collecting information about, or additional ways MC& FP should be analyzing or sponsoring analyses of the data DoD is already collecting.
List Of Active Duty United States Four
There are currently 44 active-duty four-star officers in the uniformed services of the United States: 17 in the Army, 3 in the , 9 in the Navy, 10 in the Air Force, 2 in the Space Force, 2 in the Coast Guard, and 1 in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. Of the eight federal uniformed services, the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps is the only service that does not have an established four-star position.
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Factors To Consider When Evaluating A Country’s Military Strength
There are several crucial factors to consider when analyzing the strength of a nations military. The capability and availability of equipment is essential. The quality of training each soldier receives is vital. Their commanders’ ability to consistently devise effective tactical strategies can be pivotal. But one of the most fundamental measures of a country’s military strength is the number of soldiers it can deploy.
The list of countries that boast the highest total number of members in the military may be surprising to some readers. However, it is vital to also keep in mind servicepeople are usually divided into three categories: soldiers on active duty, reserves, or paramilitary members.
- Soldiers on active duty Soliders who work for the military full time, often live on base, and may be deployed at any time.
- Reservists Soldiers who typically serve part time and join the reservessuch as the Army Reserve or National Guardto make extra money, get tuition bonuses at college/university, or take advantage of other perks without devoting themselves full time to the military.
- Paramilitary members Servicepeople who belong to organizations such as Canadas Canadian Rangers or France‘s National Gendarmerie, which are military-like, but not formally part of the armed forces.
Where In The World Is The Us Military
Despite recently closing hundreds of bases in Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States still maintains nearly 800 military bases in more than 70 countries and territories abroadâfrom giant âLittle Americasâ to small radar facilities. Britain, France and Russia, by contrast, have about 30 foreign bases combined.
These costs have heightened debate over whether the United States needs so many bases abroad: What effect do they have around the world, and are they really making us safer?
The first step is looking at where U.S. bases are, and where theyâre most prevalent. For my forthcoming book, Base Nation, I compiled a near-comprehensive list of overseas U.S. bases, including smaller cooperative security locations and suspected but unconfirmed sites .
Mapped all together, this data, which comes from the Pentagonâs annual Base Structure Report and additional government, news or academic sources, helps to show just how far Americaâs reach is.
Graphic by 5W Infographics.
Italy
Hundreds of bases in Europe have closed since the 1990s, but the base and troop presence in Italy has been relatively constant. Recently, the military has built new bases and expanded Africa-focused operations in Sicily.
Japan
During the Cold War, U.S. forces occupied hundreds of bases in Japan and the Pacific to surround China and the Soviet Union. Since 1995, anti-base protests have escalated in Okinawa, where there are still more than 30 bases.
Honduras
Burkina Faso
Iraq
Thailand
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Us Military Presence In The Middle East
According to the Watson Institute at Brown University, between 1.9 and three million US service members have served in Afghanistan and Iraq since 2001, with over half of them deployed more than once.
The largest US military installation in the Middle East is the Al Udeid Air Base, located west of Doha, Qatar. Established in 1996, it hosts around 11,000 American and coalition service members. Covering an area of 24 hectares , the base accommodates almost 100 aircraft as well as drones.
On October 7, 2001, the US under President George W Bush invaded Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks. The coalition he led accused the ruling Taliban regime of harbouring Osama bin Laden, the al-Qaeda leader who claimed responsibility for the attacks.
An estimated 241,000 people have died as a direct result of the war since 2001, according to the Costs of War project at Brown University. In addition, hundreds of thousands more, mostly civilians, have died due to hunger, disease and injury caused by the devastating war.
In 2003, the US invaded Iraq after it accused long-time Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein of having weapons of mass destruction none was found. At its peak in 2007, the US had an estimated 170,000 troops in the country. Today, there are around 2,500 US troops in the country as part of a security agreement with the Iraqi government.
More On Us Armed Forces

- Abortion: The Pentagon is seeking to reassure service members worried about having access to abortions in states where the procedure is banned with travel funds and other support.
- Rules on Drone Strikes: President Biden signed a classified policy limiting counterterrorism drone strikes outside conventional war zones, tightening rules that President Donald J. Trump had loosened.
- A Culture of Brutality: The Navy SEALs punishing selection course has come under new scrutiny after a sailors death exposed illicit drug use and other problems.
- Sexual Abuse: Pentagon officials acknowledged that they had failed to adequately supervise the Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps, after dozens of military veterans who taught in U.S. high schools were accused of sexually abusing their students.
The absence of minorities at the top means the absence of a voice to point to things that should have been addressed a long time ago.
Brandy Baxter, Air Force veteran
One of the biggest problems, service members say, is that white men in the top ranks do not see the problem. In July, Gen. John E. Hyten, the second-highest officer in the military, told a Senate committee that racism in the military was a thing of the past compared with the issue of sexism.
He added, Now when I am in uniform, I feel colorblind, which is amazing.
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