A major restructuring of the British Army has been put into place by the Ministry of Defense. Top-level command structure changes and a new Army HQ became effective Nov. 1.

The Royal Air Force and Royal Navy are expected to follow with reorganizations of their own, as all three services take responsibility for their own budgets and shrink in size as a result of significant defense spending cuts and Defense Ministry reforms.

key changes include:

■ Gen Sir Peter Wall, the chief of the General Staff and the Army’s top soldier, will no longer control the Army through a commander in chief. That post, and the role of commander Field Army, have ceased to exist.

■ The chief will form and command a single Army staff predom­inantly based in Andover. Wall will be based in Andover rather than the MoD’s headquarters in London.

■ Command will now be exercised through three three-star commanders: commander Land Force; commander Force Devel­opment and Training; and adjutant general.

■ Commander Land Forces be­comes the deputy to the chief of the General Staff, while the assi­tant chief of the General Staff will provide control and coordination across the three-star commands.