26 Military units and formations established in 1972

The 1st Cavalry Division Horse Cavalry Detachment is a United States Army equestrian military unit. Posted at Fort Hood, Texas, it was activated in 1972 and is a subordinate unit of the 1st Cavalry Division.

The 1st Sustainment Command (Theater) is a major subordinate unit of US Army Central at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

5 Forward Delivery Squadron was an armour recovery and replenishment squadron of the South African Army Armoured Corps. The squadron was responsible for reissuing and moving tanks and heavy armour between bases and operational areas utilising heavy duty flatbed vehicles.

The 9th Battalion, Ulster Defence Regiment was formed in 1972 from two companies of the 1st Battalion Ulster Defence Regiment creating a second battalion in County Antrim. It was amalgamated with 1 UDR in 1984 to form 1/9 UDR.

The 11th (Craigavon) Battalion, Ulster Defence Regiment was formed from companies of the 2nd Battalion Ulster Defence Regiment and the 3rd Battalion Ulster Defence Regiment in 1972. In 1991 under the reductions planned in Options for Change by the British Army, it again amalgamated with 2 UDR to form the 2nd/11th Battalion Ulster Defence Regiment.

The 12th Flying Training Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Education and Training Command (AETC) as part of AETC's Nineteenth Air Force. It is headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio, Texas. The wing is also the parent organization for the 479th Flying Training Group, a geographically separated unit (GSU) located at NAS Pensacola, Florida. The wing is also the parent organization for the 306th Flying Training Group, a geographically separated unit (GSU) located at The United States Air Force Academy, Colorado. The 12 FTW is the only unit in the Air Force conducting both pilot instructor training and combat systems officer training.

The 14th Flying Training Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force based out of Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi.

The 14th Test Squadron is a United States Air Force unit located at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado. It is an Air Force Reserve unit that augments the 17th Test Squadron. The squadron is responsible for testing and evaluating space systems and associated support equipment. The unit was originally established in 1972 as the 14th Missile Warning Squadron. The missile warning squadron was an active duty unit that operated early warning radars at eight locations around the United States until it was inactivated in 1980. The squadron was reactivated and given its current space test mission in 2000.

The 29th Flying Training Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit last based at Craig Air Force Base, Alabama. It was inactivated when Craig was closed when the Air Force reduced its pilot training program after the Vietnam War.

The 51st Guards Artillery Brigade is an artillery brigade of the Belarus Ground Forces, based at Osipovichi.

75 Armoured Regiment is an armoured regiment of the Indian Army.

The 99th Reconnaissance Squadron is a squadron of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the 9th Operations Group, Air Combat Command, stationed at Beale Air Force Base, California. The squadron is equipped with the Lockheed U-2 Dragon Lady reconnaissance aircraft.

406 "City of Saskatoon" Maritime Operational Training Squadron is a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) unit of the Canadian Armed Forces. Based at 12 Wing Shearwater since 1972, it is responsible for crew training on the Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone since summer of 2016. The squadron was formed during World War II as part of RAF Fighter Command.

The Israeli Armor Corps 500 Brigade, also known as the Kfir Formation, was a regular-service tank brigade that existed from 1972 to 2003. It was originally composed of three battalions: the Romach (429), Se'ara (430), and Gur (433) battalions. During the Yom Kippur War, it fought in the battle over the city of Suez under the 162nd Division, and was led by Colonel Aryeh Keren. Primarily relying on the Magach tank, it was situated in the Sinai border, until the beginning of the withdrawal following the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty, when it was moved to the Jordan valley. During the 1982 Lebanon War, it fought in the central front, where it took part in the Siege of Beirut.

The 708th Airlift Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force Reserve unit. It was last assigned to the 349th Operations Group at Travis Air Force Base, California, where it was inactivated on 30 September 1996.

The 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment of the French Foreign Legion. The regiment is one of two mechanized infantry regiments of the 6th Light Armoured Brigade.

The Guardians of the Oglala Nation (GOONs) was a private paramilitary group established in 1972 by the elected tribal chairman, Dick Wilson under authority of the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council. It operated on the Oglala Sioux Pine Ridge Indian Reservation during the early 1970s. It was disbanded after a new chairman was elected in 1976.

The Kommando Landstreitkräfte was the Army staff — and simultaneously the Army command of the National People's Army (NPA) Land Forces of the former GDR.

The Medium Tank Trials Unit (MTTU) was a temporary Australian Army unit formed to test M60 Patton and Leopard 1 tanks to determine the most suitable replacement for the Army's Centurion tanks. The MTTU was formed in early 1972 by converting B Squadron, 1st Armoured Regiment. The MTTU's personnel were trained in the United States and Germany in early 1972 and received two M60A1 Pattons, two Leopard 1A2s and a Leopard 1 armoured recovery vehicle in the middle of the year. The tank trials commenced in late 1972 and were conducted at Puckapunyal and the Tully - Innisfail region of north Queensland. The trials were completed in March 1973 and the MTTU reverted to B Squadron, 1st Armoured Regiment on 1 June 1973. The Leopard 1 tank was selected on the basis of the results of the trials and entered service with the Australian Army in 1976.

Regiment Springs was an infantry battalion of the South African Army. As a reserve force unit, it had a status roughly equivalent to that of a British Army Reserve or United States Army National Guard unit.

The Rhodesian Armoured Corps—the "Black Devils"—was the only standing armoured battalion of the Rhodesian Security Forces. During World War II, it took part in the Allied Spring 1945 offensive and the Battle of Monte Cassino as part of South Africa's 6th Armoured Division. The unit was among the first to enter a liberated Florence in July 1944. Prior to 1963, its crews were trained in the United Kingdom or Aden Colony and were known as the "Selous Scouts" under the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. After Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence, maintaining the armoured vehicle fleet became a responsibility of the Rhodesian Light Infantry until Major Bruce Rooken-Smith reactivated the former Rhodesian Armoured Car Regiment in 1972. During the Rhodesian Bush War, the regiment fought in several major campaigns and battles, particularly Operation Miracle in September 1979. It was superseded by the new Zimbabwe Armoured Corps between 1980 and 1981.

The South African Special Forces Brigade, colloquially known as the Recces, is South Africa's principal special operations unit and counter-insurgency elite, specialising in long-range combat reconnaissance as well as unconventional airborne operations. Only about 8% of recruits who undergo South African special forces training pass the course.

South-Eastern District was a district command of the British Army from the mid-19th century until 1903. It was in existence again between 1967 and 1995.

The Sri Lanka Volunteer Naval Force (SLVNF) is the volunteer and volunteer reserve force of the Sri Lanka Navy, established in 1937 as the Ceylon Naval Volunteer Force. It is headquartered at SLNS Lanka, Welisara, and is tasked with a support and complementary role to the country's navy, partly by serving as a pool of civilian talent and expertise otherwise lacking in the regular naval force, and partly by acting as a reserve force during times of war.

Western District was a command of the British Army.