You can submit your questions to Dr. Drill via e-mail to : DrDrill@CadetStuff.org.

Dear Dr. Drill,

I have been asked to call commands for a parade this weekend for a state militia, (army division). I was involved with a marching unit in the US Air Force about 30 years ago. I have forgot most of what the people in my command will ever know, however, the more I read the more confused I am.

I understand that when a company falls in formation that the next movement is a right face to get into a marching formation, lets say four squads deep. That would appear to put the person who calls the company to attention on the left. This would be weird when we pass the reviewing stand for an eyes right. It would seem to me that the person who calls the commands should be on the right of the company. Is this right??? It has been too long! Please help, time is of the essence. Also, can you tell me the order for the company commander, band, color guard, guidon and company for a parade.

Thanks,

Floyd Miller,
Maj New York Guard

Dr. Drill responds

I see you're afflicted with CRS: "Can't Remember Stuff"! But, don't worry, the Doctor has a prescription for what ails you: a big ol' dose of drill covered in chocolate and administered painfully!

You said you're with the Army division of the New York Guard, so I'm going to assume that you're using Army drill standards. There are some significant differences between Army drill Air Force drill, so if you haven't already, you should download a copy of the manual (FM 3-21.5) and give it a good going-over.

In the meantime: your question...

Yes, you're absolutely right: it would be incorrect for the unit commander to be on the left side of his unit and away from the reviewing stand. However, if you'll check in chapter 10 of the 3-21.5, you can see that during a PinR (as we like to call it around these parts), the individual unit commanders are part of a larger unit formation and they should be at the heads of their units:

(7) All commanders, except the commander of troops, move with their staff into positions in the column and at the head of their respective units just before turning onto the reviewing line (Figure 10-9).

So, just before making the turn in front of the reviewing stand, the unit commanders are going to scurry to the heads of their units. It is from there that they'll command "Eyes, RIGHT" and "Ready, FRONT" on the march (and over their right shoulders).

However, I'm a little confused, because this is normally a ceremony reserved for larger units. The FM has this to say:

e. Any of the formations described for the battalion or brigade may be used; however, the two recommended formations for conducting reviews are: battalion in line with companies in mass, or brigade in line with battalions in mass.

On the order of march, it should be the Commander of Troops, the band, then the passing units with the headquarters element evenly in the middle of the subordinate units. For instance, if you have four subordinate units, the headquarters element will be behind the second unit and in front of the third.

The PinR is an exhausting topic and, really, I'm not surprised you're confused.

I hope this helps answer a couple questions, major. But I think that if you start digging into the PinR in all its gory glory, it's going to be Shock and Awe.

Good luck!

Dr. Drill

This is also the case in the Air Force and the Sea Services, so I think that