NCOs in the American Army, 1945 - Present

The Noncommissioned Officer (NCO), also known as a NCO or Noncom, is credited in many cases as being the backbone of the army (FM 7-22.7, 2002). They serve as administrative or training personnel and as advisors to the officer corps. The NCOs most valuable role is a link between the common Soldier and the commissioned officer (Wikipedia Encyclopedia, 22 Aug 07). The NCO helps mentor the inexperienced officer that may have a position of authority but lacks practical experience (Wikipedia Encyclopedia, 22 Aug 07). We will touch on the changes and significant contributions in the NCO corps throughout this essay. We will focus on duties, training, weapons and heroes of the NCO corps in the American Army from post WWII to present.