United States Air Force officer rank insignia
The United States Air Force officer rank insignia in use today.
Current insignia
US DoD
pay grade |
Special grade[a] | O-10 | O-9 | O-8 | O-7 | O-6 | O-5 | O-4 | O-3 | O-2 | O-1 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
NATO code | OF-10 | OF-9 | OF-8 | OF-7 | OF-6 | OF-5 | OF-4 | OF-3 | OF-2 | OF-1 | |
Insignia | |||||||||||
Service dress uniform (Class A) | |||||||||||
Service uniform (Class B) | |||||||||||
Mess dress uniform | |||||||||||
Title | General of the Air Force | General | Lieutenant general | Major general | Brigadier general | Colonel | Lieutenant colonel | Major | Captain | First lieutenant | Second lieutenant |
Abbreviation[b] | GAF | Gen | Lt Gen | Maj Gen | Brig Gen | Col | Lt Col | Maj | Capt | 1st Lt | 2d Lt |
- ^ Reserved for wartime use only.
- ^ No periods are used in actual grade abbreviation, only in press releases to conform with AP standards.[1]
This chart displays the United States Air Force officer rank insignia. The ranks are divided into three sections: company grade, field grade, and general officers. Company grade officers are those officers of grades O-1 to O-3. Field grade officers are those of grades O-4 to O-6. General officers are those of O-7 and above.
Currently, promotion from Second Lieutenant to First Lieutenant is virtually guaranteed after two years of satisfactory service. Promotion to Captain is virtually guaranteed after another two years of satisfactory service. Previously there was a Promotion Board to Captain, but that was discontinued in 2013.[2] An officer's record is reviewed by a selection board at the Air Force Personnel Center at Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. This process occurs approximately between the nine- and eleven-year mark, where a certain percentage of Captains will be selected for Major. This process will repeat at the 13-16 year mark for promotion to Lieutenant Colonel and then around the twenty-year mark for promotion to Colonel.
The five-star grade General of the Air Force has only been held by General of the Air Force Henry H. Arnold. Federal law currently contains no provisions to promote an officer to five-star grade.
Wearing of insignia
On the Air Force
On the
The
On the
Subdued rank insignia, as worn on the OCP and FDU, are designed to reduce visibility of the wearer under field conditions. The subdued versions of silver insignia are embroidered in dark blue thread on an olive-drab backing. The subdued versions of gold insignia are embroidered in brown thread on an olive-drab backing. On Desert FDUs and OCP uniforms, OCP patterned backing (or tan for the FDU) replaces the olive-drab backing (with black thread in place of dark blue thread). Subdued metal insignia are black and brown in place of silver and gold, respectively. General officers wear black stars as subdued rank.[3]
Agents of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations normally do not wear uniforms while on duty, but even when in uniform they often do not wear rank insignia. However, when attending Professional Military Education courses, they do wear rank insignia.
Past insignia for the McPeak Uniform
The current Air Force officer rank names and insignia were taken from the
His redesign replaced the metal rank insignia for officers with silver braid on the sleeves, similar to the officer rank insignia now used by the
Uniformed services pay grade | Special grade | O-10 | O-9 | O-8 | O-7 | O-6 | O-5 | O-4 | O-3 | O-2 | O-1 | Officer candidate/Cadet | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Service Dress Uniform Insignia |
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Title | General | Lieutenant General | Major General | Brigadier General | Colonel | Lieutenant Colonel | Major | Captain | First Lieutenant | Second Lieutenant | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Abbreviation | Gen | Lt Gen | Maj Gen | Brig Gen | Col | Lt Col | Maj | Capt | 1st Lt | 2d Lt | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
NATO code | OF-10 | OF-9 | OF-8 | OF-7 | OF-6 | OF-5 | OF-4 | OF-3 | OF-2 | OF-1 | OF(D) | Student officer |
Civil Air Patrol
Uniformed services pay grade | Special grade | O-10 | O-9 | O-8 | O-7 | O-6 | O-5 | O-4 | O-3 | O-2 | O-1 | Officer candidate/Cadet | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Civil Air Patrol |
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Major general | Brigadier general | Colonel | Lieutenant colonel | Major | Captain | First lieutenant | Second lieutenant | Senior flight officer | Technical flight officer | Flight officer |
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NATO code | OF-10 | OF-9 | OF-8 | OF-7 | OF-6 | OF-5 | OF-4 | OF-3 | OF-2 | OF-1 | OF(D) | Student officer |
Senior members are members who joined CAP for the first time past the age of 18, or who are former cadets who transferred to the senior member program, which must happen by the cadet's 21st birthday. Senior members who have not yet turned 21 years are eligible for flight officer grades, which include flight officer, technical flight officer, and senior flight officer. There is no mandatory retirement age for CAP members, and there are no physical requirements for joining. Members may enter retired status after twenty years of service. The only physical requirements senior members must follow are the weight and grooming standards required in order to wear the United States Air Force-style uniforms. Senior members who do not meet the weight and grooming standards of the United States Air Force may wear alternative uniforms known as CAP Corporate uniforms.[5]
Officer grades up to lieutenant colonel reflect progression in training and organizational seniority, rather than command authority. Because of this, it is not uncommon for senior members commanding groups and squadrons to have members of superior grades serving under them. Current, retired and former members of the United States Armed Forces may be promoted directly to the CAP grade equivalent to their military grade, although some choose to follow the same standards as non-prior-service members. Except for a few exceptional cases, senior members are only promoted to the grade of CAP colonel upon appointment as a Region Commander, responsible for overseeing multiple states, or Wing Commander, responsible for the administration of CAP units across an entire state.[6]
See also
- United States Air Force enlisted rank insignia
- United States Air Force Warrant officer rank insignia
References
- ^ "Captioning Style Guide" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
- ^ Ismirle, Candace. "SecAF approves captain's board cancellation". Air Force Personnel Center. USAF. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
- ^ a b AFI36-2903 Archived 2007-10-26 at the Wayback Machine
- ISBN 1-884452-05-1.
- ^ "CAP Uniform Manual" (PDF). Civil Air Patrol. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
- ^ "CAP Officer and Noncommissioned Officer Appointments and Promotions" (PDF). Civil Air Patrol. 22 November 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
External links
- Air Force Instruction (AFI) 36-2903 Dress and Personal Appearance of Air Force Personnel
- Use of Silver and Gold Officer Insignia of Rank. U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry.
- Insignia: The Way You Tell Who's Who in the Military. Jim Garamone, Armed Forces Press Service. Archived 2018-01-23 at the Wayback Machine
- Whatever Happened to the Plain Blue Suit? Bruce D. Callander, Journal of the Air Force Association. July 2006, Vol. 89, No. 7.
- Not the Time for 'Designer Battle Dress'. Paul Connors, Military.com. 26 September 2003.