Company

A company is usually comprised of 128 Marines. It is commanded by a Company Commander who is assisted by the senior non-commissioned officer known as the Company Sergeant. In shipborne detachments of company or larger strength the senior company commander would also be the detachment commanding officer (MCO) with the Executive Officer being the senior of the company or platoon commanders.

The USS Pacifica's Marine Detachment is considered to be Company strength.

Naming Convention

Companies use an alphabetic designation, usually written as a single letter (A Company) but spoken phonetically (Alpha Company). Nicknames and commander names are often included. Examples include:

Command Squad, 1st Platoon, A "Howard's" Company, 1 Battalion, SFMC 7 Regiment, The 7th Cav

Squad One, 2nd "Blue" Platoon, B "Bravo" Company, 2 Battalion, SFMC 22 Regiment, The Royal 22e

Sniper Squad, 3rd "Recon" Platoon, E "Easy" Company, 4 Battalion, SFMC 95 Regiment, The Rifles

Organization

The textbook distribution of a company is four equal 32-man rifle or light infantry platoons. However, many detachment commanders use alternative organizations to better suit their detachment's role or needs. Some examples of company organizations can be found below:

Rifle company.

1st Platoon

1 Company (Platoon) Commander - 7 Non-commissioned officers - 24 Marines, all riflemen

1st Platoon 1 Company (Platoon) Commander

7 Non-commissioned officers

24 Marines, all riflemen 2nd Platoon 1 Platoon Commander 7 Non-commissioned officers 24 Marines, all riflemen 3rd Platoon 1 Platoon Commander 7 Non-commissioned officers 24 Marines, all riflemen 4th Platoon 1 Platoon Commander 7 Non-commissioned officers 24 Marines, all riflemen Recon company.

1st Platoon 1 Company (Platoon) Commander 7 Non-commissioned officers 24 Marines, corpsmen and artificers 2nd Platoon 1 Platoon Commander 7 Non-commissioned officers 24 Marines, all riflemen 3rd Platoon 1 Platoon Commander 7 Non-commissioned officers 24 Marines drivers and gunners 4th Platoon 1 Platoon Commander 7 Non-commissioned officers 24 Marines, all riflemen