Rapid reaction force

Not to be confused with the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces

A rapid reaction force / rapid response force (RRF), quick reaction force / quick response force (QRF), immediate reaction force (IRF), rapid deployment force (RDF), or quick maneuver force (QMF) is a military unit capable of responding to emergencies in a very short time frame.

Definition

A quick reaction force (QRF) is an armed military unit capable of rapidly responding to developing situations. They are equipped to respond to any type of emergency within a short time frame, sometimes only a few minutes, based on unit standard operating procedures (SOPs). Some can deploy outside their borders and without the need for a large organized support force. A quick reaction force belongs directly to the commander of the unit it is created from and is typically held in the reserve. QRF units can be assigned to an area of operations (AO) or can be associated with a specific operation, for example Neptune Spear, when reserve units were used to support the main force following the crash of a helicopter.

List

Active

Albania Albania: Rapid Reaction Brigade

Argentina Argentina: Argentine Rapid Deployment Force

Australia Australia: 7th Brigade (Australia)

Canada Canada

Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM) Joint Task Force 2 Canadian Joint Incident Response Unit Canadian Special Operations Regiment 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron.
Global Response Task Force (GRTF)
Canadian Army High Readiness Forces 3rd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment 3e Battalion, Royal 22e Régiment Immediate Response Units
Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART)

China China

Colombia Colombia: Rapid Deployment Force

Egypt Egypt: Egyptian Rapid Deployment Forces

Finland Finland: Finnish Rapid Deployment Force

Germany/Netherlands Germany/Netherlands: Rapid Forces Division-DSK

India India: Rapid Action Force

Indonesia Indonesia: Indonesian Air Force Quick Reaction Forces Command

Italy/NATO Italy/NATO: NATO Rapid Deployable Corps – Italy

Japan Japan

Central Readiness Regiment

Malaysia Malaysia

Norway Norway: Norwegian Telemark Battalion

Philippines Philippines

Portugal Portugal: Rapid Reaction Brigade

Soviet Union/Russia Russia/Soviet Union

Singapore Singapore: Army Deployment Force

South Korea South Korea

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka: Air Mobile Brigade

Thailand Thailand

31st Infantry Regiment
3rd Infantry Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division
1st Infantry Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, 6th Infantry Division
1st Infantry Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division
2nd Infantry Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 5th Infantry Division

United Kingdom United Kingdom

United States United States

Multinational

European Union European Union

The European Gendarmerie Force (EUROGENDFOR) serves as a unified intervention force of European militarized police.
EU Battlegroup

NATO NATO

The Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) is a capable of rapidly deploying a NATO headquarters for operations and crisis response.
The NATO Response Force (NRF) is distinct from ARRC as it comprises land, sea, air, and special forces units.

Defunct

The European Rapid Operational Force (EUROFOR) was a European rapid reaction force under the European Union and Western European Union, established in 1995 and composed of military units from Italy, France, Portugal, and Spain. EUROFOR was tasked with performing duties outlined in the Petersberg Tasks. EUROFOR deployed to Kosovo from 2000 to 2001, and North Macedonia as part of EUFOR Concordia in 2003. After being converted into an EU Battlegroup, EUROFOR was dissolved in 2012.
Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Africa
Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Central Command

Proposed

European Union The European Rapid Reaction Force (ERRF) was the intended result of the Helsinki Headline Goal. Though many media reports suggested the ERRF would be a European Union army, the Helsinki Headline Goal was little more than headquarters arrangements and a list of theoretically available national forces for a rapid reaction force.
United Kingdom The Joint Rapid Reaction Force (JRRF) was a British Armed Forces capability concept created in 1999. The force was composed of units from all three branches of the British military, and was able to rapidly deploy anywhere in the world at short notice. However, the War in Afghanistan and 2003 invasion of Iraq siphoned British personnel and equipment, leaving the JRRF with insufficient forces. The JRRF was succeeded by the Combined Joint Expeditionary Force in 2010 and the Joint Expeditionary Force in 2014.
United Nations The concept of a United Nations rapid reaction force was proposed in the mid-1990s by several commentators and officials, including Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali. The UN rapid reaction force would consist of personnel stationed in their home countries, but they would have the same training, equipment, and procedures, and would conduct joint exercises. The force would remain at high readiness at all times so as to quickly deploy them where necessary.
United States The Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force (RDJTF) was a former United States Department of Defense joint task force. It was formed in 1979 as the Rapid Deployment Force (RDF), envisioned as a mobile force that could quickly deploy U.S. forces to any location outside the usual American deployment areas of Western Europe and East Asia, soon coming to focus on the Middle East. It was inactivated in 1983 and reorganized as the United States Central Command.