An armored cavalry regiment (ACR) is a regiment of the United States Army (Active Component, or Reserve Component (Army Reserve or Army National Guard)) organized for the specific purposes of reconnaissance, surveillance, and security. The regiments can be equipped with Cavalry Fighting Vehicles, tanks and helicopters.
The light armored cavalry regiment was developed in the United States Army in the first years of the Cold War to replace the mechanized cavalry groups used during World War II. The new regiments primarily tasked with providing reconnaissance and security capabilities at the corps level, although also able to attack and defend either mounted or dismounted. The structure of each regiment included a headquarters and headquarters company and three reconnaissance battalions, each of which included a headquarters and service company, three reconnaissance companies, and a medium tank company.[1]