There are thousands of US Army Colonels and Lt. Colonels. Between the two, on active duty alone, there are probably close to 10,000. There could be up to 50 at one base depending on the size of the base. There are nearly 50 Major Generals in the Army (3-star), which are close to .5% of officers, or .0007% of the Army.
Full Colonels make up about 5% of the active duty Army officers (1% of total Army soldiers). Lt. Colonels make up about 13% of the active duty Army officers (3% of total Army soldiers).
In addition, as a full Colonel, you are forced to retire at 30 years of commissioned service. My father, started as a Private, went to OCS, became commissioned as a 2LT and made it to Colonel within the normal 22 years of being commissioned. He was forced to retire at 30 years of commissioned service, however, he did have a total of 32 years since he was enlisted prior to his commissioning.
While these numbers serve as a general guideline, they will change over time do to normal fluctuations in the needs of our military, wartime, peacetime, etc.
In the USAF, there are about 3,700 active duty colonels and 1,500 in the reserves.
Troop strengths and deployments are classified, so any answer would be a guess.
Not enough...
100
8
There are two, the Vice-Commandant and the Chaplain.
None. There never was a black female colonel in the air farce
1 full general, 5 lieutenant generals and about 60 major generals
In the Canadian Forces, there are about 12 people at this grade, but this would include the Navy, Army, and Air Force. If the CF's composition is about 40% army, then usually it means 4 to 6 people out of the 12 will be Army Lieutenant-Generals. The "Chief of the Land Staff" (i.e. senior army officer) also holds this rank. The rest of the Lieutenant-Generals usually hold various senior staff positions for the CF in general.
Not in today's army. An officer is usually required to complete a college degree. Many go through ROTC or the Academies to obtain their commission.
Strength numbers change over time: During the Vietnam War, the US Army's battalions averaged 600 men, 900 in a mechanized infantry battalion, less than 500 men in an armor battalion (tank battalion). In the US Army (different for Marines, Air Force, and Navy) during Vietnam; a LTC commanded a battalion or cavalry squadron (battalion=squadron; army only). Full bird colonels commanded brigades (brigades=regiments, army only). Generals commanded divisions; however a one star General could command a brigade if only that one brigade deployed over seas. In Vietnam, the 1st Brigade of the 5th Mechanized Infantry Division was commanded by a Brigadier General (one star), as only that one brigade deployed to Vietnam.
311,591,917.8
10
There are approximately 700 active duty Marine Colonels serving in the United States Marine Corps.
The lowest rank in the US Army for an officer is Second Lieutenant. Then, First Lieutenant. It is important to note that even a Second Lieutenant out ranks many of the most senior non-officers (or enlisted men). In the UK, there is no such thing as a first lieutenant, just lieutenant. Any officer will still outrank any NCO.
Lieutenant Colonels serve as battalion commanders, commanding about 400-500 men. They are also used as Brigade executive officers (second in command) or Brigade operations (S-3) officers. In that capacity, as XO they run the brigade staff, or as S-3 they plan and coordinate operations for each of the brigades 4 or 5 battalions.
2300