Platoon

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CMC Platoon

A platoon is a Marine (or Army, or Militia) unit comprised of several squads and is commanded by a junior officer, usually an Ensign and will have a senior NCO to assist the officer in the role of a Platoon Sergeant, usually a Gunnery Sergeant. Several platoons comprise a company.

A platoon is usually dedicated to a specific practice, such as infantry combat, engineering, military intelligence, medical or logistical support. The composition of a platoon depends on its purpose, but in most cases one or more squads perform the primary mission role and a single squad would provide a support role for the other squads, such as fire support for an infantry platoon.

A platoon does not contain the logistical resources required for independent operation. It cannot be independently deployed without dedicated logistical support, although the Gunnery Sergeant will perform logistical management functions within the platoon.

A platoon is usually the first opportunity for an officer to perform a command role and it is a very demanding job. If the officer is properly trained and listens to the Platoon Sergeant, his tenure usually goes well and the experience provides him with a wealth of professional development. If he does not listen, the failures can be epic as a Platoon Sergeant has the power to make a new Platoon leader's life utterly miserable by providing every opportunity for that officer to demonstrate his incompetence and ineffectiveness to higher command.

CMC Infantry Platoon Organization

This is the primary building block of a CMC infantry company.

• Three infantry squads.
• 1 "Weapons squad" with heavy machine guns, sniper rifles, or other crew-served weapons.  Precise organization depends on the designated mission of the platoon.
• 1 attached medic, or "corpsman."
• 1 officer
• 1 Platoon Sergeant
• (optional) 1 communications specialist

Weapons Platoon Organization

This weapons support platoon is almost always found within an infantry company. The organization depends on the role of the platoon and the higher echelon company. They may be referred to by their role, such as "Air Defense Platoon" or "Anti-Armor Platoon."

• Three or four "Weapons squads", usually with crew-served weapons such as 60mm Mortars, crew-served anti-armor systems or air-defense systems.
• Support squad(s) if useful, such as a Mortar Fire Direction Center Squad, a forward observer "section," or other specialized squad to provide support for the component squads.
• 1 officer
• 1 Platoon Sergeant

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