Precedence of soldiers at parades and reviews
 

Posted Monday, November 14, 2005

For the conduct of parades and reviews, see FM 3–21.5, chapters 10 and 11.

During ceremonial occasions, except for funerals, soldiers ordinarily are arranged from right to left in line, oldest to youngest lineage, subject to the discretion of the commander of troops.

In reviews in which 2 or more branches are present, units of various branches will be posted at the discretion of the commander of troops.

In parades and in ceremonies on shore in which several Services are participating, precedence should be according to e below, without regard to the relative grades of the commanding officers of the detachments. A member of the senior Service present will bear the national colors, and the organizational colors of the Services represented will be carried in order of seniority from right to left as viewed from the rear.

Members of the Armed Forces of the United States and Merchant Marine midshipmen will take precedence in the following order during formations in which members thereof may participate, except as indicated in (18), below:

1. Cadets, United States Military Academy.
2. Midshipmen, United States Naval Academy.
3. Cadets, United States Air Force Academy.
4. Cadets, United States Coast Guard Academy.
5. Midshipmen, United States Merchant Marine Academy.
6. U.S. Army.
7. U.S. Marine Corps.
8. U.S. Navy.
9. U.S. Air Force.
10. U.S. Coast Guard.
11. Army National Guard of the United States.
12. U.S. Army Reserve.
13. Marine Corps Reserve.
14. Naval Reserve.
15. Air National Guard of the United States.
16. Air Force Reserve.
17. Coast Guard Reserve.
18. Other training organizations of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard, in that order. School cadet corps not organized per 10 USC 2031 (Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps) and 10 USC 2102 (Senior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps) do not fall within these categories.
19. During any period when the U.S. Coast Guard operates as a part of the U.S. Navy, the cadets, United States Coast Guard Academy, and members of the U.S. Coast Guard and Coast Guard Reserve are upgraded in precedence to immediately follow their Navy counterparts (the midshipmen of the United States Naval Academy and members of the U.S. Navy and Naval Reserve, respectively).