Military Intelligence Corps (United States Army)

Military Intelligence Corps branch insignia

In the United States Armed Forces, Military Intelligence (sometimes referred to as MI) refers specifically to the intelligence components of the United States Army. Other branches of the service have their own military intelligence components, referred to by other names.

Mission

The primary mission of military intelligence in the United States Army is to provide timely, relevant, accurate, and synchronized intelligence and electronic warfare support to tactical, operational and strategic-level commanders. The Army’s intelligence components produce intelligence both for Army use and for sharing across the national intelligence community.^[1]

Structure

Approximately 28,000 military personnel and 3,800 civilian personnel are assigned to intelligence duties, comprising the Military Intelligence Corps. Some of the key components include:

• Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Intelligence (G2). As the Army's Chief Intelligence Officer, the responsibilities of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence include policy formulation, planning, programming, budgeting, management, staff supervision, evaluation, and oversight for intelligence activities, as well as overall coordination of the major intelligence disciplines.
• United States Army Intelligence and Security Command, located at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. It is the Army's major intelligence command.
• United States Army Intelligence Center, located at Fort Huachuca, Arizona. It is the Army's school for professional training of military intelligence personnel.

History

Intelligence personnel were a part of the Continental Army from its founding in 1775.

In January 1863, Major General Joseph Hooker established the Bureau of Military Information for the Union Army during the Civil War, headed by George H. Sharpe. Allan Pinkerton and Lafayette C. Baker handled similar operations for their respective regional commanders. All of those operations were shut down at the end of the Civil War in 1865.^[2]

In 1885, the Army established the Military Intelligence Division (MID). In 1903, the MID was placed under the new general staff in an elevated position.^[3]

In March 1942, the Military Intelligence Division was reorganized as the Military Intelligence Service (MIS). Originally consisting of just 26 people, 16 of them officers, it was quickly expanded to include 342 officers and 1,000 enlisted personnel and civilians. It was tasked with collecting, analyzing, and disseminating intelligence. Initially it included:

• an Administrative Group
• an Intelligence Group
• a Counter-intelligence Group
• an Operations Group

In May 1942, Alfred McCormack established the Special Branch of MIS, which specialized in COMINT.

In 1945, the Special Branch became the Army Security Agency. In 1946, the Counter-Intelligence Group became the US Army Counter Intelligence Corps.

It was in July 1967, that a number of intelligence and security organizations were combined to form the military intelligence branch.^{[4][5] [6]} In 1977 they eventually recombined with the Army Intelligence Agency and Army Security Agency to become the US Army Intelligence and Security Command.

Military Intelligence Corps

Military Intelligence Corps Distinctive Insignia

The Military Intelligence Corps is one of the basic branches of the United States Army.^[7] In 1971, the United States Army Intelligence Center was established at Fort Huachuca, Arizona as the home of the military intelligence branch. On 1 July 1987 the Military Intelligence Corps was activated as a regiment under the U.S. Army Regimental System.^[8] All United States Army Military Intelligence personnel are members of the Military Intelligence Corps.

Units

Battlefield Surveillance Brigades

Battlefield Surveillance Brigades (BfSB) are meant to improve the situational awareness about the battlefield for commanders at division level or higher, so they can adapt their units combat power for the current operations. For this the Battlefield Surveillance Brigades can deploy unmanned aerial vehicles, signals gathering equipment, human intelligence collectors and long range surveillance patrols.^[9]

There are currently three active Battlefield Surveillance Brigade, each supporting one of the three Corps of the US Army: the 201st BfSB at Fort Lewis, the 504th BfSB at Fort Hood and the 525th BfSB at Fort Bragg. A fourth brigade is scheduled to activate at Fort Polk in 2013 but is not yet named. The Army National Guard has additional seven BfSB's.

Each BfSB consists of a headquarters and headquarters company, two military intelligence battalions, a reconnaissance squadron with a long range surveillance troop, a signals company and a support company.

Battlefield Surveillance Brigades

Name	Insignia	Subordinate to	Garrison
201st Battlefield Surveillance Brigade		I Corps	Fort Lewis
504th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade		III Corps	Fort Hood
525th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade		XVIII Corps	Fort Bragg

Military Intelligence Brigades

Military Intelligence Brigades

Name	Insignia	Supports	Garrison
66th Military Intelligence Brigade		United States Army Europe	Wiesbaden Army Airfield, (Germany)
111th Military Intelligence Brigade 304th MI Battalion 344th MI Battalion 309th MI Battalion 305th MI Battalion		United States Army Intelligence Center, (TRADOC)	Fort Huachuca
470th Military Intelligence Brigade 204th MI Battalion (Aerial Exploitation) 314th MI Battalion 377th MI Battalion (Communications and Electronic) 201st MI Battalion (Interrogation)		United States Army South	Fort Sam Houston
500th Military Intelligence Brigade		United States Army Pacific	Schofield Barracks
501st Military Intelligence Brigade 3d MI Battalion (Aerial Exploitation) 524th MI Battalion (CI) 532d MI Battalion (OPNS) 719th MI Battalion 368 MI Battalion (TSB)		US Forces Korea (USFK) and Eighth United States Army	Yongsan Garrison, (South Korea)
513th Military Intelligence Brigade 202nd MI Battalion 224th MI Battalion (Aerial Exploitation) 297th MI Battalion 345th MI Battalion (Army Reserve)		United States Army Intelligence and Security Command	Fort Gordon
704th Military Intelligence Brigade		United States Army Intelligence and Security Command	Fort George G. Meade

Creed of the Military Intelligence Corps

I am a Soldier first, but an intelligence professional second to none.
With pride in my heritage, but focused on the future,
Performing the first task of an Army:
To find, know, and never lose the enemy.
With a sense of urgency and of tenacity, professional and physical fitness,
and above all, INTEGRITY, for in truth lies victory.
Always at silent war, while ready for a shooting war,
The silent warrior of the ARMY team.

Museum

The United States Army Intelligence Museum is located at Fort Huachuca, Arizona. It features the history of American military intelligence from the Revolutionary War to present.

Military Intelligence Hall of Fame

Main article: Military Intelligence Hall of Fame

See also

• List of United States Army careers#Military Intelligence Branch (MI)
• Combat Support
• U.S. Army Counterintelligence Special Agent
• Company Level Intelligence Cell

References

1. ^ United States Intelligence Community Official Website^{[dead link]}
2. ^ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/additional-publications/civil-war/Intel_in_the_CW1.pdf
3. ^ "The FBI: A Comprehensive Reference Guide". Google Books. http://books.google.com/books?id=VnQduXa4JdoC&pg=PA160&lpg=PA160&dq=Military+Intelligence+Division+1882&source=web&ots=SA8VHu0WpK&sig=mhKGhIZ9XsKk6FSkERkd6qexdEk&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result. Retrieved 20 May 2011. 
4. ^ untitled
5. ^ "index2". Hrc.army.mil. 28 October 2009. https://www.hrc.army.mil/site/active/index2.asp. Retrieved 20 May 2011. 
6. ^ Military Intelligence by John Patrick Finnegan, Center of Military History, United States Army, Washington, D. C., 1998 accessed 18 February 2008
7. ^ "Military Intelligence Corps". Branchorientation.com. http://www.branchorientation.com/militaryintelligence/profile.html. Retrieved 20 May 2011. 
8. ^ Welcome To the Intelligence Center Online Network
9. ^ "Army's New Battlefield Surveillance Brigades Ramping Up". Defense Daily. 2009. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_6712/is_24_241/ai_n31436788/. 

Further reading

• McChristian, General Joseph A. (1994 (reprint of 1974) id = CMH Pub 90-19). Vietnam Studies. United States Army Center of Military History. http://www.history.army.mil/books/Vietnam/mi/index.htm. 
• Ruiz, Victor H., 2010. "A Knowledge Taxonomy for Army Intelligence Training: An Assessment of the Military Intelligence Basic Officer Leaders Course Using Lundvall’s Knowledge Taxonomy" . Applied Research Projects. Texas State University Paper 331. http://ecommons.txstate.edu/arp/331

External links

• University of Military Intelligence