Military PlainFacts » Military Rank & Insignia

Navy Chain of Command

The first mistake many people make is to refer to the hierarchical structure of the Navy as being a ‘rank’ structure, in actual fact the correct term is ‘rate.’ If that is not confusing enough, there is the additional complication of an individual rate’s ‘rating’ or specialty. So for example a Petty Officer First Class is his rate, but his rating could be as a Boatswain’s Mate.There are ten rates of enlisted sailors in the US Navy and they are: Seaman Recruit, Seaman Apprentice, Seaman, Petty Officer Third Class, Petty Officer Second Class, Petty Officer First Class, Chief Petty Officer, Senior Chief Petty Officer, Master Chief Petty Officer, and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy.

Officers of course make it even more confusing as they wear their rank (and it is called rank for officers) in different places on their uniform depending on what they are wearing. Khakis have pins on the collar, whites have stripes on the shoulder boards, and blues have stripes sewn onto the lower sleeve.

Officers are split into two categories, Line Officers and Staff Corps Officers, who have specific specialties such as physicians, lawyers, and civil engineers.

The Officer Chain of Command goes as follows: Ensign, Lieutenant Junior Grade, Lieutenant, Lieutenant Commander, Commander, Captain, Rear Admiral (lower half), Rear Admiral (upper half), Vice Admiral, Admiral, and Fleet Admiral.

As with the other services, it is important to remember that this is the rank structure, which is not necessarily the same as the chain of command. The chain of command is more akin to a ‘line management’ system in a commercial company. Yes, the Admirals are more senior than the Lieutenants, but they may not actually be in command of them, if they work in a different unit or part of the organization.

Everyone has a commander and other senior ranks would not normally give orders to junior ranks or rates without consulting their commander, it is seen as bad form. The bottom line in the military is you do as you are told by the person that writes your annual report, as it is your report that determines your future; your report will most likely be written by your commander. Respect by all, for all, but make sure you know your chain of command it is important.

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Air Force Chain of Command

As with all elements of the forces, there is more to command than just rank. This brief article will explain the rank structure in detail, but command status (the relationship of one airman to another) is something that is more often than not, unit specific.The enlisted ranks of the Air Force are not to be confused with the pay grades (E-1 to E-9). The pay grades may have more than one grading in any one particular rank as some airmen will have different specializations.

The ranks are: Airman, Airman First Class, Senior Airman, Staff Sergeant, Technical Sergeant, Master Sergeant, First Sergeant, Senior Master Sergeant, Chief Master Sergeant, Command Chief Master Sergeant, and Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force.

The officer ranks are different, as they are actually the holders of presidential commissions, which are confirmed by the Senate. The pay grades of officers are O-1 to O-7 and beyond. O-1 to O-3 are company grade officers, O-4 and O-6 are field grade officers, and O-7 and higher are general officers.

The ranks are: Second Lieutenant, First Lieutenant, Captain, Major, Lieutenant Colonel, Colonel, Brigadier General, Major General, Lieutenant General, General, and General of the Air Force.

The actual command status of one person to another is much more like the ‘line management’ system of a commercial company. Although one officer or airman may be senior to another, it does not actually mean that they command them. If there is an important order to be given then it should be referred to that person’s chain of command.

The commanding officer of a unit is the person that commands all those in the unit and as such they are in all his/her chain of command. The chain of command is that which is the authority for the giving of orders and the carrying out of disciplinary or administrative remedial action should an individual not perform up to the standards required of them. The chain of command is also the person that will write the report on the airman, and that is what will control their future positions.

A person’s chain of command may not always be straight forward and it is important to understand one’s chain of command when one starts in a new post, but it is equally important to understand the chain of command of those you are working with.

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U.S. Marine Corps Chain of Command

The chain of command is the system that controls life in any of the services; it determines who writes a person’s annual report, which determines their future postings. The Chain of Command is also the tasking authority for subordinates, in effect; your orders come from your chain of command. This concept is common to all the services and is transferable to many commercial companies also. In understanding where the chain of command is for a particular post it is crucial to understand the structure of the organization in which you are working, i.e. the makeup of the unit, or headquarters.There is always someone at the top of the chain of command and that person is usually your commanding officer, in a field unit. So if for example he is a Colonel, another Colonel from a different organization, who may still be senior to you – does not command you. As such that ‘other’ Colonel would usually speak to your Commanding Officer before giving you orders as you don’t ‘belong to him’. If you want to get along without upsetting people, knowing your Chain of Command is critical, it can also provide you with great back up if you are having problems with someone.

Enlisted Ranks
So here is how it works in the US Marine Corps, at least these are the ranks which determine who is senior to whom. It starts at the bottom of the enlisted ranks with Private First Class, Lance Corporal, Corporal, Sergeant, Staff Sergeant, Gunnery Sergeant, Master Sergeant/First Sergeant, Sergeant Major, Master Gunnery Sergeant, and Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps.

Warrant Officers
Before we get to the officers, there are the Warrant Officers; these hold warrants from their service secretary and are specialists and experts in their particular field. The order of merit is as follows: Warrant Officer 1, Chief Warrant Officer 2, Chief Warrant Officer 3, Chief Warrant Officer 4, and Chief Warrant Officer.

Officers
For the officer ranks is goes like this: Second Lieutenant, First Lieutenant, Captain, Major, Lieutenant Colonel, Colonel, Brigadier General, Major General, Lieutenant General, General (Commandant of the Marine Corps).

The bottom line is that wherever you find yourself in the military, one of the first things you should do is understand exactly how the chain of command works in that unit; it will play an integral part in your military success.

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Army Chain of Command

For those entirely inexperience with anything military, the Chain of Command can be a confusing thing. It is made more confusing as it means more than one thing, depending on who you are. In its most simple sense the chain of command is simply the list of the rank structure in the Army, starting from the most junior rank up to the most senior General. This ‘ladder’ of hierarchy is referred to as the Chain of Command; let’s have a look in more detail.

The Rank Structure
The rank structure and the chain of command are closely linked in that junior soldiers are commanded by those more senior, so first of all you need to know the order. The ranks are split into soldiers and officers.

There are 12 enlisted (soldier) ranks and they are: Private, Private First Class, Specialist, Corporal, Sergeant, Staff Sergeant, Sergeant First Class, Master Sergeant, First Sergeant, Sergeant Major, Command Sergeant Major, and Sergeant Major of the Army. All of these ranks are based on a stripe system.

For the officer ranks there are 11 positions as follows: Second Lieutenant, First Lieutenant, Captain, Major, Lieutenant Colonel, Colonel, Brigadier General, Major General, Lieutenant General, and General. There is also a General of the Army rank, but it can only be held by one general at a time.

The Chain of Command
The system seems a little complicated you are not in someone’s chain of command just because they are more senior than you. It is a little like any company, if you think of ‘line management’. Although all Majors for example can give orders to Sergeants, not all Sergeants are in the chain of command of that major.

In a unit, everyone is under the chain of command of the commanding officer of the unit, which is the simplest understanding of the system. And so, once you go on to understand a little more about the different units, this will become clearer.

If it all seems a little confusing to start with, the system is not easy to understand on paper and it often takes a bit of time to really understand such a system, even when you are working in the military.

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Air Force Enlisted Promotions

Study… cram… test… wait. So goes the enlisted promotion process. Whether testing for the first time or the fourth time, Airmen endure this process every year. The purpose of promotion testing is to measure Airmen’s specialty and general military knowledge—in conjunction with other weighted criteria—to determine promotion to the next rank. Here are some things Airmen should consider about the enlisted promotion process:
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Naval Officer Rank Insignia

Naval commissioned officers wear distinctive marks on their uniforms to indicate their ranks. The table below shows the current U.S. Navy rank insignia worn by commissioned officers:

Rank	Insignia
Ensign (O-1)
Lieutenant Junior Grade (O-2)
Lieutenant (O-3)
Lieutenant Commander (O-4)
Commander (O-5)
Captain (O-6)
Rear Admiral Lower Half (O-7)
Rear Admiral (O-8)
Vice Admiral (O-9)
Admiral (O-10)