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==Military departments== The UNSC's armed forces are comprised of six major military departments; four of these branches ([[UNSC Navy|Navy]], [[UNSC Marine Corps|Marine Corps]], [[UNSC Army|Army]] and [[UNSC Air Force|Air Force]]) are recognized and defined in UEG law, while the [[Spartan Operations]] division is a "continuing organization" that lacks explicit recognition and instead works directly under the UNSC's [[UNSC High Command|High Command]]. The [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] is a unique case; an organization that is bureaucratically a subordinate service of the Navy and not recognized as an independent service branch, but has enjoyed ''de facto'' autonomy from the Navy for nearly a century.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22UNSC|Enc22|Page=52-53}} Despite these technicalities, these six organizations are all on occasion informally referred to as the six branches of the UNSC{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFM120|OSFM|Page=12-121}}{{Ref/Reuse|waypointuniunsc}} The military departments themselves are broken down into two major groupings; the '''UNSC Defense Force''' (UNSCDF) and the UNSCEF (presumably standing for something akin to '''UNSC Expeditionary Force'''). The former administers defensive assets of the UNSC and encompasses the Army and Air Force{{Ref/Reuse|McLees}}, while the latter includes Naval and Marine Corps forces. It is unclear whether the UNSCDF and UNSCEF have any relation to NAVCOM and UNICOM. ===Navy=== [[File:UNSC Navy Logo.svg|thumb|250px|The UNSC Navy's logo.]] {{Main|UNSC Navy}} {{Quote|Provide naval forces to ensure freedom of access for aerospace and terrestrial operations.|The Navy's official mission statement.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMNavy}}}} The Navy is the senior service of the UNSC{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22Navy|Enc22|Page=62}}, formed in [[2163]] during the [[Interplanetary War]].{{Ref/Reuse|waypointuniunsc}} The UNSC Navy is commanded by the [[Chief of Naval Operations]] (CINCNAV){{Ref/Book|Enc22|Page=104}}, with a [[Deputy Chief of Naval Operations]] serving as their deputy.{{Ref/Reuse|FS11}} The Chief of Naval Operations serves as the Navy's representative on the UNSC Security Council.{{Ref/Comic|HE|Issue=1}} The Chief of Naval Operations also serves as the [[Commander-in-Chief Fleet]] (CINCFLEET).{{Ref/Novel|Gla|Chapter=11}} The UNSC Navy operates, trains, organizes and equips space forces to establish space superiority in deep space and close orbit - primarily signified by the use of its vast fleet of [[UNSC starship|spacecraft]]. This force is used for the purpose of destroying or suppressing enemy space components, in particular those seeking to attack UEG commercial or terrestrial holdings.{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFMNavy|OSFM|Page=124-126}} The Navy ensures the safety of UEG trade and commerce, assists other governmental agencies in agencies of interstellar governance and as such, very little of interstellar consequence happens without the help or oversight of the Navy.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Navy}} The UNSC Navy is headquartered at [[Fleet Command Headquarters]] on [[Reach]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=CH2|CH|Chapter=2}} The Navy's collateral functions include; *Interstellar transportation of UNSC combat assets.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMNavy}} *Development of doctrine, procedures and equipment that are of common interest to the Air Force and Marine Corps.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMNavy}} *Providing forces for joint aerospace and terrestrial operations, in accordance with UNSC doctrine.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMNavy}} *Coordinating with UEG civil agencies for the establishment and maintenance of naval depots and orbital yards.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMNavy}} *Establishment of emergency military government in designated crisis areas.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMNavy}} [[File:HM SpaceBattle ColourAdjusted Small.jpg|thumb|250px|UNSC Navy frigates engaging Covenant warships in space.]] The Navy has a dual chain of command; administratively, Navy personnel report to NAVCOM while operationally they report to their assigned Task Command. There are three Task Commands under NAVCOM; *[[UNSC Naval Command|UNSC Navy Fleet Command]] (FLEETCOM) - Headed by the Secretary of Fleet Command{{Ref/Site|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/characters/dimah-tchakova|Site=Halo Waypoint|Page=Dimah Tchakova|D=30|M=06|Y=2021}} and directs the movement and tasking of naval squadrons and coordinates with UNICOM. FLEETCOM is responsible for the deployment of Navy warfighting assets and maximizing their combat efficacy.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Navy}} Their direct deployment of the UNSC fleet sees them as the largest and most powerful of any NAVCOM grouping.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMNavy}} *[[Naval Logistical Operations Command|UNSC Navy Logistical Operations Command]] (NAVLOGCOM) - Oversees the design, contracting and construction of Navy spacecraft alongside ensuring they are spaceworthy and supplied with parts, munitions, food and reaction mass.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Navy}} *[[Naval Special Warfare Command]] (NAVSPECWARCOM) - A smaller, culturally-distinct section of the Navy that trains, equips and oversees [[UNSC Special Forces|special forces]] personnel in support of UNSC space operations.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Navy}} Marine Corps special forces units are typically tasked under NAVSPECWARCOM, as were the [[SPARTAN-II program|SPARTAN-II]] and [[SPARTAN-III program|SPARTAN-III]] program personnel prior to the establishment of the Spartan Operations branch. Navy spacecraft are assigned to [[fleet]]s, which are organized in one of two ways; *Expeditionary fleets - Numbered fleets (e.g. [[Third Fleet]]) designed for offensive operations in deep space and centered around massive [[UNSC carrier|carriers]].{{Ref/Book|HWF|Page=40-41}} Expeditionary fleets were largely decimated during the early years of the Covenant War, and by the war's end had no appreciable differences with defensive fleets due to being unable to make any major offensives without leaving the Inner Colonies dangerously vulnerable.{{Ref/Book|Id=HFB9|Halo: Fleet Battles core rulebook|Page=9}} *Defensive fleets - Named fleets (e.g. [[Epsilon Eridani Fleet]]) typically named after the star system in which they are based. Defense fleets were historically considered little more than revenue police, though the onset of the Covenant war saw these units take a valuable role in providing desperately-needed training cadres and battle-ready (if outdated) warships.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Navy}}{{Ref/Reuse|HFB9}} Fleets are assigned to numbered CENTCOM Regions such as [[CENTCOM Region One]], contextually organized based on low-energy slipspace routes leading away from [[Earth]]. Special [[task force]]s may also be created without being assigned to a sector, and given responsibility for regions outside of these standard routes - designated as "lettered sectors".{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Navy}} Fleets are comprised of numerous [[battle group]]s, flexible combat elements that can be "plugged together" into ad-hoc fighting forces depending on the immediate situation. [[Squadron]]s serve as administrative groupings of warships for record-keeping and honorific purposes.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Navy}} The UNSC Navy maintains its own [[military police]] force{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFM112|OSFM|Page=112}} ===Marine Corps=== [[File:UNSC MC Logo.svg|thumb|250px|The UNSC Marine Corps' logo.]] {{Main|UNSC Marine Corps}} {{Quote|Provide combined arms expeditionary forces and security detachments.|The Marine Corps' official mission statement.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMMarines}}}} The UNSC Marine Corps is another senior service of the UNSC{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}}, and was formed alongside the Navy in 2163.{{Ref/Reuse|waypointuniunsc}}{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22Marines|Enc22|Page=56-57}} The Marine Corps is the space infantry department of the UNSC, and works closely alongside the Navy to effect military action across human space.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} The administrative head of the Marine Corps is the [[Commandant of the Marine Corps]] (CMC), who serves as the Marine Corps' senior general and service representative on the UNSC Security Council and Unified Ground Command staff. The CMC is responsible for organising, planning and implementing all Marine Corps activities.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} The Marine Corps is headquartered at [[Fleet Command Headquarters]] on Reach.{{Ref/Reuse|CH2}} The Marine Corps is responsible for maintaining an expeditionary force in readiness, which can seize and defend terrestrial and extraterrestrial strategic sites in advance of a larger main UNSC deployment. As such, the Marine Corps organizes, trains, equips and maintains planetary and space-based combined-arms teams capable of being rapidly deployed by the Air Force and Navy.{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFMMarines|OSFM|Page=130-132}} They are the general-purpose combat force of the UNSC, and employ a wide range of personnel from [[Sniper|sharpshooters]] to [[combat engineer]]s to xenolinguists.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMMarines}} Marine Corps forces are under administrative control (ADCON) of [[Marine Corps Forces]] (MARFOR), which focuses on the ability to reorganize, train and direct a given unit's long-term activities. Operational control (OPCON) of combat forces is handed to one of two combatant commands; Naval Command (NAVCOM) and Unified Ground Command (UNICOM) - which provides the authority to conduct missions and delegate tasks, but not the ability to alter the internal organization of subordinate units.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} Marine Corps forces are unusual in that they may transition back and forth between combatant commands in combat zones, synchronized by [[Joint Deconfliction Team]]s. Marine Corps forces assigned to NAVCOM form a unit referred to as Fleet Marine Forces, under the operational control of [[UNSC Fleet Command|FLEETCOM]] command. Fleet Marine Forces include Marines assigned to shipboard and facility security, [[Naval boarding|boarding parties]] and most aerospace assets. Landing parties and expeditionary ground combat elements remain under the jurisdiction of NAVCOM, though this reading of the regulations is vehemently contested by UNICOM. Conversely, Marines conducting long-term planetary security missions, train-and-equip details and force augmentation for UNSC garrisons fall under UNICOM control.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} [[File:H3ODST Mombasa Marines Concept.png|250px|thumb|Marines and ODSTs on deployment in [[Mombasa]].]] The Marine Corps' collateral functions include; *Enforcement of emergency military law in designated crisis areas.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMMarines}} *Development of doctrine, procedures and equipment that are of common interest to the Army and Navy.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMMarines}} *Furnishing security teams for the protection of UNSC property and high-value personnel.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMMarines}} *Deployment of security detachments and organizations for service on Navy ships.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMMarines}} *Development of doctrine, tactics, techniques and equipment for the rapid deployment and utilization of interstellar combat power.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMMarines}} Marine Corps forces are typically deployed as part of a [[Marine Expeditionary Force]], which may encompass several divisions as subordinate units and is itself subordinate to Fleet Marine Forces.{{Ref/Novel|CH|Chapter=7}} :xx - [[Division]] - 14,000 Marines led by a [[Major General]] and deployed as a [[Marine Expeditionary Force|Marine Expeditionary Unit]]{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} :x - [[Brigade|Marine Brigade]]/[[Wing|Marine air wing]] - 9,000 Marines led by a [[Brigadier General]] and deployed as a Marine Air Wing{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} :||| - [[Regiment]]/Marine Air Regiment - 3,000 Marines led by a [[Lieutenant Colonel]] or [[Colonel]] and deployed specifically by UNICOM as a Rapid Reaction Force{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} :|| - [[Battalion]] - 900 Marines led by a Lieutenant Colonel or Colonel and deployed as a [[task force]] ground combat element or as a unit assigned to a [[UNSC carrier|carrier]]{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} :| - [[Company]] - 180 Marines led by a [[First Lieutenant]] or [[Captain (UNICOM)|Captain]] and deployed as a special task force or as a unit assigned to a [[cruiser]]{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} :{{*}}{{*}}{{*}} - [[Platoon]] - 40 Marines led by a [[Second Lieutenant]] or [[Staff Sergeant]] and deployed as a unit assigned to a [[UNSC frigate|frigate]]{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} :{{*}}{{*}} - [[Squad]] - Thirteen Marines led by a Corporal or [[Sergeant]]{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} :{{*}} - [[Section]] - Eight Marines led by a Lance Corporal or Corporal{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} :Ø - [[Fireteam]] - Four Marines led by a [[Lance Corporal]] or [[Corporal]]{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} Marine [[Special operations (disambiguation)|special operations]] forces such as the [[Orbital Drop Shock Troopers]] (ODSTs), [[UNSC Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance]] and other Marine special forces are typically deployed under the control of [[Naval Special Warfare Command]] (NAVSPECWARCOM).{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Marines}} The ODSTs maintain a number of specialized internal divisions to oversee special activities such as the [[ODST Special Purpose Forces]], containing the air assault units nicknamed "[[Bullfrogs]]" and the Special Tactics and Equipment Group (STEG), nicknamed the "[[Hellbringers]]" - specialized ODST warfighters who oversee the usage and deployment of demolition charges, incendiary weapons, [[nuclear weapon]]s and thermobaric weapons.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22ODST|Enc22|Page=58-59}} ===Army=== [[File:UNSC Army Logo.svg|thumb|250px|The UNSC Army's logo.]] {{Main|UNSC Army}} {{Quote|Provide forces for sustained terrestrial combat operations and civil works.|The Army's official mission statement.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMArmy}}}} The UNSC Army is the primary terrestrial department of the UNSC, and provides the majority of the logistical support and [[UNSC Army Reserve|reservist soldiers]] who fight in ground campaigns.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22Army|Enc22|Page=61}}{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFMArmy|OSFM|Page=133-135}} The Army is responsible for defense of UEG territorial holdings and the long-term occupation of enemy territories, and as such trains, organises, equips and maintains amphibious, land, and airborne forces for this mission.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMArmy}}{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22UNSC}} As such, while all Army soldiers are trained warfighters, in peacetime they also provide an invaluable force of engineers, technicians, builders and designers who perform public works and improve existing colonial infrastructure to support future UNSC deployments.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMArmy}}{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Army}} The Army also maintains its own [[UNSC Army Corps of Engineers|Corps of Engineers]] for performing some of the duties listed above{{Ref/Game|H5G|Edition=Limited Edition|[[Halo 5: Guardians Limited Edition dossiers|Dossier]] - Holly Tanaka}}{{Ref/Comic|HE|Issue=17}}, alongside the [[UNSC Army Security Forces|Army Security Forces]] for the purpose of [[Military police|military policing]] - particularly among the [[Inner Colonies]]. Army Security Forces may be employed for the duties of colonial occupation, reconstruction oversight and even civilian law enforcement, or deployed into the [[Outer Colonies]] to assist [[CAA Marshals]] and UNSC peacekeeping forces in fighting against [[Insurrectionist]] elements, monitoring megacorporate activities and guarding critical infrastructure.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Army}} [[File:HR Campaign Winter Contingency 3 Charlie attacking.jpg|250px|left|thumb|Troopers of [[3 Charlie]] engaging Covenant forces in the [[Visegrád]] region on the morning of [[2552#July|July 24, 2552]].]] The Army's collateral functions include; *Conducting civil works that have strategic application, including projects for improvement of navigation and follow-on [[terraforming]].{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMArmy}} *Development of doctrine, procedures and equipment that are of common interest to the Air Force and Marine Corps.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMArmy}} *Organisation and training of civil defense units (colloquially "[[Colonial Militia|militias]]"){{Ref/Reuse|OSFMArmy}} *Providing forces for joint aerospace and space operations, in accordance with UNSC doctrines.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMArmy}} Army forces have been historically administratively organised under the control of specialised local commands ([[Army Component Command]]) based on a particular assigned [[Human colonies|colony]], though the destruction of many of these worlds in the war with the Covenant saw most of these "temporarily" disestablished and replaced by sector working groups on [[Earth]] and [[Reach]]. Operational authority of Army forces is granted to UNICOM.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Army}} The Army operates its own special forces such as the [[UNSC Army airborne|Army airborne]], [[UNSC Army Pathfinders|Pathfinders]] and [[UNSC Army Rangers|Army Rangers]] - who are presumably organised under [[Unified Special Warfare Command]] (USW), or simply Special Warfare Command (SPECWARCOM). SPECWARCOM organises its detachments into "Groups" such as [[Special Warfare Group Three]]. , as well as specialised maritime forces colloquially referred to as the "wet navy". Army submarine arsenal ships and aircraft carriers are vital components in the defense of colony worlds.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22Army}} ===Air Force=== [[File:UNSC AF Logo.svg|thumb|250px|The UNSC Air Force's logo.]] {{Main|UNSC Air Force}} {{Quote|Provide aerospace defense and conduct space control operations.|The Air Force's official mission statement.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMAirForce}}}} The UNSC Air Force serves as the primary aerospace combat department of the UNSC. Contrary to their name, the Air Force does not simply operate aircraft within a planetary atmosphere, but instead focus on maintaining aerospace superiority over a given world via the use of unmanned drones, [[Space fighter|crewed aerospacecraft]] and [[orbital weapon platform]]s.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22AirForce|Enc22|Page=60}} The Air Force operates a network of quick rapid reaction squadrons on Earth and in the Inner Colonies, which are prepped and ready to deploy atmospheric fighter craft and military spaceplanes at a moment's notice. These strikecraft work alongside surveillance and weapons satellites to attrition an attack and assist Navy elements on station - this task saw the Air Force rack up a considerable kill ratio against Covenant invaders during the Great War despite their disadvantage in numbers and technology.{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFMAirForce|OSFM|Page=136-138}} The Air Force's atmospheric forces are primarily comprised of unmanned drones such as the [[F-99 Wombat]] which are deployed in large numbers, though they are augmented by crewed multi-role craft such as [[GA-TL1 Longsword]] interceptors, [[F-41 Broadsword]] fighters and even [[B-65 Shortsword]] strategic bombers.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22AirForce}} [[File:F-99 CAP.jpg|thumb|250px|left|The Air Force operates a number of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) such as the F-99 Wombat (pictured).]] The Air Force's collateral functions include; *Deployment and maintenance of UNSC unmanned defense satellites and orbital weapon platforms.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMAirForce}} *Monitoring and regulation of military and civilian orbital activites.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMAirForce}} *Development of doctrine, procedures and equipment that are of common interest to the Army and Navy{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMAirForce}} *Furnishing support and space support for the Army and Navy.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMAirForce}} Air Force units may be expeditionary or garrison in nature, with the largest overall groupings named [[Group]]s and [[Wing]]s, respectively. A given Group/Wing is a larger organisation within the Air Force that combines several air [[Squadron]]s with non-aircraft units to provide specialised functions such as airbase operation and fuel refining. Squadrons consist of two to six [[Flight]]s plus additional command and technical elements, and are typically named by a number and a mission type (such as the [[980th Intercept Squadron]]), while a Flight consists of three to four individual aircraft and their support personnel. Flights are officially identified by a phonetic letter designation, though most also get an informal nickname.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22AirForce}} Air Force orbital defense platform assets are grouped under the [[Orbital Defense Command]]{{Ref/Level|H4|H4:Midnight|Midnight}}, while regular air combat operations are conducted under the [[Air Combat Command]].{{Ref/Map|HR|Tempest}} The Air Force also maintains its own [[Wikipedia:Signals intelligence|signals intelligence]] (SIGINT) division{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFM113|OSFM|Page=113}} and the [[Air Mobility Express]] - who work to provide airlift and spacelift capacity for the UNSC.{{Ref/Game|HR|[[AMX-4]] and [[AMX-42]] decals}} The Air Force often employs Army maritime forces as launch platforms for its operations, using roving watercraft and carrier platforms to vector strikes against targets from outside the enemy's sensor horizon before retreating to underwater staging areas.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22AirForce}} The Air Force was the first service department to directly collaborate with the newly-established Spartan Operations branch, funding a joint-operations laboratory to test novel ways in which super-soldiers can augment their capabilities and certifying [[SPARTAN-IV program|Spartan-IV]] personnel as [[pilot]]s for next-generation fighters.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMAirForce}} ===Office of Naval Intelligence=== [[File:ONI Seal 1.png|thumb|250px|The Office of Naval Intelligence's logo.]] {{Main|Office of Naval Intelligence}} {{Quote|Provide technical capabilities for the support of psychological, information and cyber operations.|The Office of Naval Intelligence's official mission statement.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMONI}}}} The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) is the preeminent intelligence service within the UEG.{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFMONI|OSFM|Page=127-129}} The organisation is ostensibly and bureaucratically subordinate to the UNSC Navy, though in practice retains almost complete autonomy thanks to nearly a century of growth. This has seen ONI take over the duties of previously-independent agencies such as the [[Department of Colonial Security]] (DCS) to become the sole major intelligence organisation in human space. ONI is headed by the [[Commander-in-Chief of the Office of Naval Intelligence]] (CINCONI), who is granted a seat on the UNSC Security Council. ONI remains closely-linked with the Navy in terms of administration and overall culture, though collaboration at the flag officer level is fraught with political peril and bureaucratic manoeuvring.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22ONI|Enc22|Page=63}} ONI's collateral functions include; *Deployment of covert teams for direct action and technical data collection.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMONI}} *Oversight of the gathering, analysis and dissemination of national security information from around the UEG.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMONI}} *Development of doctrine, techniques and equipment for the collection and exploitation of information in support of UEG security.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMONI}} *Providing combat support intelligence for UNSC operations.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMONI}} *Establishment of covert observation systems around enemy colonies and facilities.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMONI}} To achieve its goals, ONI is divided into five sections that each specialise in different aspects of intelligence gathering, analysis and dissemination. Each section in turn, has its own compartmentalised teams dedicated to more specific long-term taskings and program management.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22ONI}} *[[ONI Section Zero|Section Zero]] - Section dedicated to internal affairs and security audits. Section Zero believes its existence to be a secret, but other sections are aware of their existence and often work to infiltrate it and turn it against their rivals.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22ONI}} *[[ONI Section One|Section One]] - Section dedicated to military intelligence gathering and analysis. This is the oldest and most traditional element of ONI, with offices and functions that predate even the creation of the UNSC.{{Ref/Reuse|OSFMONI}} As such, this is the only section to have a notable public presence, with the [[Fleet Intelligence Center]] (FIC) issuing UEG slipspace travel interdiction orders, planetary evacuation notices and thread advisories on behalf of the UNSC and UEG.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22ONI}} *[[ONI Section Two|Section Two]] - Section dedicated to information operations and public relations. This section began as the public relations division of ONI, but soon grew into an organisation specialising in "information shaping" across the UEG. This has seen Section Two commonly labelled as a propaganda centre, though the section's activities tend more toward disseminating accurate information and reports for use by policy makers.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22ONI}} *[[ONI Section Three|Section Three]] - Section dedicated to special acquisition, research and development projects for the UNSC. Section Three maintains a vast number of front organisations and wields considerable power, and leverages this both covertly and overtly in the corporate and academic worlds.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22ONI}} *[[ONI Section Four|Section Four]] - Clandestine survey group that conducts [[xenoarchaeology]] and planetary survey studies, claiming new worlds for ONI use without the approval or knowledge of the UEG. Section Four additionally maintains observation capabilities on ex-Covenant, Banished and independent human worlds.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22ONI}} ===Spartan Operations=== [[File:Spartan Branch insignia.png|thumb|250px|The insignia of Spartan Operations.]] {{Main|Spartan Operations}} Established in [[2553]]{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22Spartan|Enc22|Page=64-65}}{{Ref/Book|Id=OSFM32|OSFM|Page=32}}, Spartan Operations (sometimes unofficially termed the "Spartan branch") is the sixth and newest military department of the UNSC, charged with oversight of the [[Spartan]] supersoldiers. Unlike the Army, Navy, Marine Corps