what's the point of marching?

[rob_van_riel]

Sometimes you see something quite ordinary, and suddenly you can't stop thinking "but why?". I was watching some movie that showed at some point large groups of modern soldiers marching in perfect formation, something armies never seem to tire of.
Now, I fully understand this was vitally important in the days when armies fought in tight formations, but armies stopped doing that over a century ago. Todays armies travel in vehicles, and all tightly packed formations do on a battlefield is invite extreme numbers of casualties. So why are they still so insistent on this sort of thing? What am I missing?

[iggie]

Discipline...armed forces still need an element of blind adherence to orders even with all the advances in technology and drills such as marching reinforce the 'muscle memory' that discipline relies on.

Even in the fire service, we have some drills that reinforce the same principle even though some would regard them as being outdated or even unnecessary... one you understand the reasoning though, they make sense and get done with a will

[wokka]

Not just discipline but working together as a team. Look how armies perform on the battlefield, they might not march but they still manouver together as a team and that started somewhere.A friend of mine from the RAF said basic training was about knocking out the individual and building up someone who will conform and I think he had a point.

[Gregers]

It is the easiest and most time effective way of moving a body of people from one place to another on foot. As said above, it develops teamwork. It also develops esprit de corps.
As an ATC cadet I was one of the weird ones that enjoyed marching, and had the honour of being in the drill team.

All the best

Greg

[TeeELL]

Saves walking!

[fredk]

Marching is part of the learning and instructioning to turn individuals into a unit. A unit which will obey instructions instantly

On one occasion, as an ATC cadet, we were marching across an airfield to an exercise. Part of our route crossed the end of a runway. We stopped, officer checked all was clear. As we were about the middle of the runway the officer shouted 'Down! Now!' We, all 30 of us, hit the tarmac instantly. Just in time, as two 'Pelicans' team JP5 came into land. Even with us down, they missed us by just feet. It was their fault, they came in on the wrong runway and had been warned of our presence on the 'other' runway.

I was my ATC squadron drill instructor,