United States Armed Forces
Military Manpower
Military age	18 years of age
Availability	males & females ages 15-49: 73,597,731 (2004 est.)
Reaching military age annually	males/females: 2,124,164 (2004 est.)
Active troops	1,427,000 (Ranked 2nd)
Military Expenditures
Dollar figure	$400 billion (FY2005 est.)
Percent of GDP	3.7% (FY2005 est.)

The United States military is a hierarchical military organization, with a system of military ranks to denote levels of authority within the organization. The military service is divided into a professional officer corps along with a greater number of enlisted personnel who perform day to day military operations. Unlike certain other countries, the United States officer corps is not restricted by society class, education, or nobility. United States military officers are appointed from a variety of sources, including the service academies, ROTC, and direct appointment from both civilian status and the enlisted ranks.

The U.S. military also maintains a number of military awards and badges to denote the qualifications and accomplishments of military personnel.

On July 26, 1948 U.S. President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9981 which racially desegregated the military of the United States. Homosexuals, however, are still barred from serving openly. By law, women may not be put into direct combat, however, assymmetrical warfare has put women into situations, which are direct combat operations in name only.

Under the United States Constitution, the President of the United States is the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. To coordinate military action with diplomatic action, the President has an advisory National Security Council.

Under the President is the United States Secretary of Defense, a Cabinet Secretary responsible for the Department of Defense.

Both the President and Secretary are advised by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In accordance with the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986 (which fundamentally changed the organisation of the Department) the 4 Service Chiefs together with the Chairman and Vice Chairman form the Joint Chiefs of Staff. However operational control flows from the President and Secretary of Defense to the Commanders of the Unified Combatant Commands. Each service is responsible for providing military units to the commanders of the various Unified Commands.

Service	Total Active Duty Personnel	Percentage Female	Enlisted	Officers
Army	500,203	15.2%	414,325	69,307
Marine Corps	176,202	6.0%	157,150	19,052
Navy	375,521	14.5%	319,929	55,592
Air Force	358,612	19.6%	285,520	73,091
Coast Guard	40,151	10.7%	31,286	7,835

The United States has military personnel deployed in numerous countries around the world, with numbers ranging from merely a handful to tens of thousands. Some of the largest contingents are:

Germany	75,603
South Korea	40,258
Japan	40,045
Italy	13,354
United Kingdom	11,801
Iraq	148,000(2005.05)

A total of 1,168,195 personnel are within the United States including some deployments in:

Continental U.S.	1,168,195
Hawaii	35,810
Alaska	17,989
Afloat	120,666