An organic unit is a

military unit Military organization or military organisation is the structuring of the armed forces of a state so as to offer such military capability as a national defense policy may require. In some countries paramilitary forces are included in a nation ...

that is a permanent part of a larger unit and (usually) provides some specialized capability to that parent unit. For instance, the

US Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

incorporates its own aviation units (distinct from the

US Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signa ...

and US Navy) that provide it with

fire support Fire support is defined by the United States Department of Defense as " Fires that directly support land, maritime, amphibious, and special operations forces to engage enemy forces, combat formations, and facilities in pursuit of tactical and op ...

electronic warfare Electronic warfare (EW) is any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum (EM spectrum) or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy assaults. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponen ...

, and transport.

Description

At a lower level of organization, infantry units commonly incorporate organic

armour Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or fr ...

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sie ...

units to improve their combined arms capability. Organic assets are closely integrated into their parent unit's command structure and their personnel are familiar with other personnel in the parent unit, improving coordination and responsiveness and making the parent unit more self-sufficient. However, over-emphasis of organic assets can create wasteful redundancy. For instance, an infantry unit assigned to urban peacekeeping duties might have little use for its organic

, while another unit deployed elsewhere might have less artillery support than it required. The question of how much to emphasise the use of organic assets, as opposed to coordination with separate units ("joint organization") is a subject of debate and heavily dependent on questions of

command and control Command and control (abbr. C2) is a "set of organizational and technical attributes and processes ... hatemploys human, physical, and information resources to solve problems and accomplish missions" to achieve the goals of an organization or e ...

References

Military units and formations by type {{mil-stub