Editing Troop (section)

== Troops in various forces ==
Today, a troop is defined differently in different armed forces.

In the [[Australian Army]] a troop is the equivalent of a platoon sized element in units of certain corps, those being:<ref>{{cite book |last=Jobson |first=Christopher |title=Looking Forward, Looking Back: Customs and Traditions of the Australian Army |year=2009 |publisher=Big Sky Publishing |location=Wavell Heights, Queensland |isbn=9780980325164 |page=93}}</ref>

* [[Australian Army Aviation]]
* [[Royal Australian Armoured Corps]]
* [[Royal Australian Corps of Signals]]
* [[Royal Australian Corps of Transport]]
* [[Royal Australian Engineers]]
* [[Royal Australian Survey Corps]] (now disbanded)
* [[Royal Regiment of Australian Artillery]] 
* [[SASR|Special Air Service Regiment (SASR)]]

The SASR is the only unit in the [[Royal Australian Infantry Corps]] to use the term ''troop'' to refer to its platoon-size elements. SASR troops are also unusual as they are commanded by a captain—most troop or platoon-sized elements are commanded by a lieutenant. In most cases, units which refer to platoon sized elements as troops refer to company-sized elements as squadrons and battalion-sized elements as regiments (regiments in the [[Royal Australian Artillery|RAA]] use the term '[[Artillery battery|battery]]' for company-sized elements). Privates in the Royal Australian Armoured Corps and SASR hold the rank "trooper", however this is not the case for any other corps or units, which use the term ''troops''.<ref>Jobson 2009, p. 15.</ref>

[[File:IWM-ARMY-TRAINING-6-16-Lanchester-armoured-car.jpg|thumb|[[12th Royal Lancers]] on manoeuvres]]

In the [[British Army]] the definition of a troop varies by [[corps]].

* [[Household Cavalry]] and [[Royal Armoured Corps]]: Three or four [[armoured fighting vehicle]]s commanded by a [[subaltern (rank)|subaltern]], i.e. effectively the same level element as an infantry platoon. A unit of two to four guns or launchers, or an equivalent headquarters unit.
* [[Royal Artillery]]: A half-battery. In the [[Royal Horse Artillery]], a troop used to be the equivalent to a battery in other artillery units.
* [[Royal Engineers]], [[Royal Corps of Signals]], [[Royal Logistic Corps]], [[Special Air Service]], and [[Honourable Artillery Company]] (and formerly the [[Royal Corps of Transport]]): A unit equivalent in size to a platoon in other corps, divided into sections or patrols. The Royal Engineers and Royal Corps of Signals used platoons instead until after World War II.

Other Army corps do not use the term.

In the [[Royal Marines]], a troop is the equivalent to an Army platoon; a carryover from the organisation of the [[British Commandos]] in World War II.

In the [[Canadian Army]], a troop is the equivalent of a platoon within the armoured, artillery, engineer, and signals branches.  Two to four troops comprise the main elements of a squadron.

In the [[United States Army]], in the cavalry branch, a troop is the equivalent unit to the infantry company, commanded by a captain and consisting of three or four platoons, and are called a troop within a regiment. Companies were renamed troops in 1883.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.25thida.com/4thcav.html |title=4th Cavalry Regiment |access-date=2009-12-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091212113148/http://www.25thida.com/4thcav.html |archive-date=2009-12-12 }}</ref> In some instances, an infantry company may be titled as a "troop" due to its presence in a cavalry squadron; this is typically the case for the [[Dismounted reconnaissance troop|dismounted reconnaissance troop (DRT)]] of a [[RSTA squadron]], in which an infantry company-sized element is part of a cavalry-branched squadron.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Headquarters |first=Department of the Army |date=November 2010 |title=Dismounted Reconnaissance Troop |url=https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/policy/army/attp/attp3-20-97.pdf |website=Global Security}}</ref>