A group is a military unit or a military formation that is most often associated with military aviation.
Air and aviation groups The terms group and wing differ significantly from one country to another, as well as between different branches of a national defence force. Air groups vary considerably in size and status, but generally take two forms:
A unit of two to four squadrons, commanded by a lieutenant colonel, colonel, commander, naval captain or an equivalent rank. The United States Air Force (USAF), groupes of the French Armée de l'air, gruppen of the German Luftwaffe, United States Marine Corps Aviation, British Fleet Air Arm and some other naval air services usually follow this pattern. A larger formation, often comprising more than 10 squadrons, commanded by a major general, brigadier general, commodore, rear admiral, air commodore or air vice-marshal. The air forces of many Commonwealth countries, such as the British Royal Air Force (RAF), follow this pattern. In such cases, the group is equivalent to a US wing, a German Geschwader or a French escadron.
Historical overview During the early stages of World War I in France and Germany, the respective aviation services formed groupes and Gruppen. Beneath the level of the group was a unit of six to 16 aircraft: an escadrille or Staffel. Immediately above the French and German groups was the escadron or Geschwader. In the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), a squadron was usually composed of 18–24 aircraft. When the Royal Air Force (RAF) was formed in 1918 from a merger of the RFC and RNAS, an officer with the rank of colonel typically commanded a group. The following year, when the RAF introduced its own rank system, RAF colonels became group captains, reflecting both the level of command responsibility and the seniority of naval captains (the equivalent Royal Navy rank). By World War II, the groupes of the French Armée de l'Air usually comprised two escadrilles (but sometimes only one, or as many as four). French groupes were the equivalent of U.S. Army Air Corps (USAAC)/U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) groups (analogous to RAF wings), while a groupement was the equivalent of a RAF group (USAAC/USAAF wing). For example, in May 1940 the Groupe de Bombardement I/31, a bomber unit, was operationally part of Groupement de Bombardement 6. In the German Luftwaffe, the principal unit of action was the Gruppe (plural Gruppen); the equivalent of a French or USAAC/USAAF group. Gruppen were part of a Geschwader (equivalent to a USAAC/USAAF wing or an RAF group) and the Geschwader were named according to their function. For instance, I./StG 77 was I Gruppe Sturzkampfgeschwader 77, which flew Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers. II./JG 26 was II Gruppe Jagdgeschwader 26, which flew Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters, then switched to Focke-Wulf Fw 190 fighters. Each Gruppe was composed of three, sometimes four, Staffeln (singular Staffel) (usually 8–12 aircraft). Each Geschwader was composed of three Gruppen. By the time of World War II, some Commonwealth air force groups were commanded by air commodores (equivalent to brigadiers/brigadier generals and commodores) or even air vice-marshals (equivalent to major generals and rear admirals). They were somewhat analogous to a USAAF numbered air force (led by a brigadier general), with 200 to 400 aircraft. From 1943 to 1945, RAF Bomber Command groups were composed of several stations (air bases) and were analogous to USAAF wings.
Commonwealth nations In the RAF (like the air forces of most other Commonwealth countries), a group is made up of several stations or wings, each of which typically controls two or more squadrons, so that a group normally includes six to 10 squadrons. When the ranks of the RAF were designed, an officer with the rank of group captain (equivalent to colonel and naval captain) commanded such a unit, although by the time of World War II, many groups were commanded by air commodores (equivalent to brigadiers/brigadier generals and commodores) or air vice-marshals (equivalent to major generals and rear admirals). Several RAF stations (air bases) are controlled by a particular group, although expeditionary air groups control expeditionary air wings directly. Groups are directly subordinate to a command (or, historically, to a tactical air force). In the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm, like some other Commonwealth naval air services, a group usually consists of two or three squadrons.
United States
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