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Command Element (United States Marine Corps)

Headquarters component of the U.S. Marine Corps' Marine Air-Ground Task Forces

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Source updated March 16, 2026

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In the United States Marine Corps, the Command Element (CE) is the command and control force of a Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF). It provides C3I for the MAGTF.

01Role within the MAGTF

The Command Element (CE), a headquarters unit organized into a MAGTF (MEU, MEB, MEF) headquarters (HQ) group, that exercises command and control (management and planning for manpower, intelligence, operations and training, and logistics functions) over the other elements of the MAGTF. The HQ group consists of communications, intelligence, surveillance, and law enforcement (i.e., military police) detachments, companies, and battalions, and reconnaissance (Force Reconnaissance), and liaison (ANGLICO) platoons, detachments, and companies.

02Organization

The size of the CE varies in proportion to the size of the MAGTF. A Marine Expeditionary Force has a MEF Information Group, approximately the size of a regiment. A Marine Expeditionary Brigade holds a battalion-sized MEB Information Group. The various Marine Expeditionary Units command a company-sized MEU Information Group. Generally, MEF postings are permanent, while MEBs and MEUs rotate their GCE, ACE, and LCE twice annually.

Hierarchy of Marine command units

I Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group

CE of I Marine Expeditionary Force

Insignia	Name	Location
	I MEF Support Battalion	Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California
	1st Intelligence Battalion	Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California
	1st Radio Battalion	Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California
	9th Communication Battalion	Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California
	1st Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company	Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California

II Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group

CE of II Marine Expeditionary Force

Insignia	Name	Location
	II MEF Support Battalion	Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
	2nd Intelligence Battalion	Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
	2nd Radio Battalion	Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
	8th Communications Battalion	Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
	Chemical Biological Incident Response Force	Indian Head Naval Surface Warfare Center, Maryland
	2nd Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company	Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

III Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group

CE of III Marine Expeditionary Force

Insignia	Name	Location
	III MEF Support Battalion	Camp Hansen, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan
	3rd Intelligence Battalion	Camp Hansen, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan
	3rd Radio Battalion	Marine Corps Base Hawaii
	7th Communication Battalion	Camp Hansen, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan
	5th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company	Camp Hansen, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan

Marine Forces Reserve CE units

Force Headquarters Group

Insignia	Name	Location
	Intelligence Support Battalion	New Orleans, Louisiana
	4th Law Enforcement Battalion
	6th Communications Battalion Note: also fall under 4th Marine Logistics Group	New York City, New York
	1st Civil Affairs Group	Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California
	2nd Civil Affairs Group	Naval Support Facility Anacostia, Washington, D.C.
	3rd Civil Affairs Group	Naval Station Great Lakes, Illinois
	4th Civil Affairs Group	Hialeah, Florida
	3rd Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company	Long Beach, California
	4th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company	West Palm Beach, Florida
	6th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company	Concord, California
	3rd Force Reconnaissance Company Note: Operational Control (OPCON) to II Marine Expeditionary Force	Mobile, Alabama
	4th Force Reconnaissance Company Note: Operational Control (OPCON) to I Marine Expeditionary Force	Marine Corps Base Hawaii

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Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Command Element (United States Marine Corps)”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Images, from Wikimedia Commons:

USMC COC.jpg by Tom Greenfield, DISA Office of the CTO, Public domain

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