Ranks and insignia of NATO
Ranks and insignia of NATO affiliated nations are combined military ranks and insignia used by the member countries (and other affiliated nations) of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
The rank scale is used for specifying posts within NATO.
Rank codes by STANAG 2116 / APersP-01[edit]
NATO maintains a "standard rank scale" which is also known as a "standardized reference system" in an attempt to standardize NATO codes of rank for military personnel and indicate correspondence with nations ranks.[1] The NATO rank reference code categories were established in a 1978 document entitled STANAG 2116 (formally titled NATO Codes for Grades of Military Personnel). The current 7th edition dated January 13, 2021 (supersedes Edition 6, dated February 25, 2010) is just the cover, and the core of the standard is in APersP-01, Edition A[1].
NATO rank codes are not the same as military ranks (eg private, corporal,, captain...) nor military pay grades (eg the US military E-1, W-1, CW-5, O-1e, O-10, etc.). They are rank codes that allow for interoperability among NATO member nations.
Officer rank codes[edit]
OF-1 – OF-10 (lowest rank code to highest) are used for commissioned officers:[2]
- OF-6 – OF-10: General officers
- OF-3 – OF-5: Senior officers
- OF-1 – OF-2: Junior officers
In US Forces the Warrant Officer is a separate and distinct category of officers. This officer rank and precedence is below those of officer personnel, but above that of non-officer personnel, therefore has a special group of codes (W-1 – W-5).[3]
In British Armed Forces and Canadian Armed Forces warrant officers are the highest other ranks.[4]
Other rank codes[edit]
OR1–OR9 (lowest rank code to highest) are used for other ranks / enlisted ranks and non-commissioned officers (NCO) :[2]
- OR-5 – OR-9: Non-commissioned officers (for NATO purposes)
- OR-1 – OR-4: other ranks/enlisted ranks (usually)
At the same time, OR-4 and OR-3 in some armed forces are known as non-commissioned officers for example: in British Armed Forces are called Senior NCOs are OR-5 to OR-7 and Junior NCOs (eg corporals) are in OR-3 and OR-4.[5]
This is not a new feature: it was present in previous editions of STANAG 2116, but was sometimes overlooked[citation needed].
Comparison to US system[edit]
The numbers in the system broadly correspond to the U.S. uniformed services pay grades, with OR-x replacing E-x. The main difference is in the commissioned officer ranks, where the US system recognises two ranks at OF-1 level (O-1 and O-2), meaning that all O-x numbers after O-1 are one point higher on the US scale than they are on the NATO scale (e.g. a major is OF-3 on the NATO scale and O-4 on the US scale).
Rank group | General / flag officers | Senior officers | Junior officers | Officer cadet | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 |
Rank group | Non-commissioned officers | Enlisted | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
NATO code | OR-9 | OR-8 | OR-7 | OR-6 | OR-5 | OR-4 | OR-3 | OR-2 | OR-1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Uniformed services pay grade | Special | E-9 | E-8 | E-7 | E-6 | E-5 | E-4 | E-3 | E-2 | E-1 |
Use of NATO rank codes outside NATO[edit]
Based on the intentions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as Ukraine, to join NATO, NATO codes for military ranks have been officially introduced in these countries. Bosnia and Herzegovina did so by adopting a corresponding law in 2005.[6] In Ukraine, the introduction of NATO codes for military ranks took place in two stages. Firstly in 2020, the Ukrainian parliament amended the structure of military ranks[7] which was followed in January 2021, by the Minister of Defense of Ukraine approving the compliance of military ranks with NATO codes by order[8] though the order had a confidential status.[9].
Such European countries as Austria[10] and Ireland (a NATO partner)[11] use NATO rank codes to as an approximation for comparison with NATO forces[10], or it is unclear whether some official source was used to compile the correspondence.
Officer ranks and criteria for them[edit]
It is left to the NATO member state's discretion which positions are held by which OR rank, and whether an NCO may have a rank below OR-5. This means that even within a single country there may be different approaches for different branches of the armed forces. This is especially true for the US armed forces:
- In US Army E–5(OR-5) through E–6 (OR-6) are junior NCO; E–7 (OR-7) through E–9 (OR-9) are senior NCO[12]
- In US Marine Corps E-4 (OR-4) and E-5 (OR-5) are NCOs; E-6 (OR-6) through E-9 (OR-9) are Staff NCOs[13]
Ranks and insignia of NATO member enlisted[edit]
- Ranks and insignia of NATO member armies enlisted
- Ranks and insignia of NATO member air force enlisted
- Ranks and insignia of NATO member navy enlisted
See also[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ^ a b NATO:NSO 2021, p. 1.
- ^ a b NATO:NSO 2022, p. 1-1.
- ^ NATO:NSO 2022, p. А-10.
- ^ NATO:NSO 2022, p. D-1, D-3.
- ^ NATO:NSO 2022, p. D-8, Е-7, F-7.
- ^ PSBiH 2005, p. 33,34.
- ^ Rada 2020.
- ^ rubryka.com 2021.
- ^ Among the orders of the Minister of Defense for 2019, posted on the website of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, order No. 1 is missing
- ^ a b "Rank Insignias". www.bundesheer.at. Ministry of Defence (Austria). 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-06-27. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- ^ De Barra 2022.
- ^ Army Regulation 220-1 (2010) p43 (52)
- ^ marines.mil 2020.
References[edit]
- NATO:NSO (January 2021). STANAG 2116 (7th ed.). Brussels, Belgium: NATO Standardization Office.
- NATO:NSO (June 2022). APersP-01 (Еd.A Ver.3). Brussels, Belgium: NATO Standardization Office.
- NATO:NSO (October 2023). APP-06 (Еd.E Ver.1). Brussels, Belgium: NATO Standardization Office.
- NATO:MSA (March 1996). STANAG 2116 (5th ed.) (PDF). Military Agency for Standardization. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-03-13.
- NATO:Bi-SC (December 2023). Directive 040-002 (PDF). Allied Command Operations, Allied Command Transformation.
- Department of the Army (April 2010). Army Regulation 220-1 (PDF). Washington, DC: Department of the Army.
- PSBiH (October 2005). "Zakon o službi u Oružanim snagama Bosne i Hercegovine" [Law on Service in the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina] (PDF). www.mod.gov.ba (in Bosnian). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-06-18. Retrieved 2024-07-04.
- Rada (2020). "Zakon Ukrainy vid 04.06.2020 № 680-IX. Pro vnesennia zmin do deiakykh zakonodavchykh aktiv Ukrainy shchodo viiskovykh zvan viiskovosluzhbovtsiv" [Law of Ukraine dated 04.06.2020 No. 680-IX. On amendments to some legislative acts of Ukraine regarding the military ranks of military personnel] (in Ukrainian). Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. Retrieved 2024-07-04.
- DoD (January 2020). Visual Information Style Guide (PDF). U.S. Department of Defense. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2022-03-05.
- "U.S. Military Rank Insignia". www.defense.gov. U.S. Department of Defense. 2020. Archived from the original on 2020-04-14. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- "Military Units: Marine Corps". www.defense.gov. U.S. Department of Defense. 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-05-23. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- "U.S. Army Ranks". www.army.mil. U.S. Army. 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-06-27. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- "Ranks". www.marines.mil. U.S. Marine Corps. 2020. Archived from the original on 2020-09-30. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- Heitzman, Deana (2015). "AF enlisted rank structure 101". www.aviano.af.mil. Aviano Air Base. Archived from the original on 2024-07-01. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- De Barra, Ruairi (2022). "From Aspiration to Action. Exploring New Horizons for the Defence Forces Senior Enlisted Leaders" (PDF). Defence Forces review 2022. pp. 97–104.
- Kosinsky, O.Yu. (2021). "Profesiinyi serzhant – fundament armii" [Professional sergeant is the foundation of the army]. Defense Bulletin (in Ukrainian). No. 3. pp. 4–15.
- "New rank for IDF officers - Master Warrant Officer". www.israelhayom.co.il. Israel Hayom. 22 April 2012.
- "Ukrainian military ranks replaced with NATO military rank codes". rubryka.com. IA "Rubric" LLC. 6 January 2021.
- Skorostetskyi, Volodymyr (6 January 2021). "Yakyi «kod NATO» v serzhanta, abo Pro zaprovadzhenyi STANAG 2116" [What is the “NATO code” for a sergeant, or of the introduction of STANAG 2116]. armyinform.com.ua (in Ukrainian). АрміяInform.
- Rusnak, Ivan; et al. (2021). "The White Book 2019-2020: The Armed Forces of Ukraine and the State Special Transport Service" (PDF). www.mil.gov.ua. Ministry of Defence of Ukraine. Retrieved 2024-07-07.
- Gross, Reot, ed. (2021). "Dictionary of Acronyms in Foreign Armies" (PDF). idf.il (in Hebrew). Israel Defense Forces.
- "Ranks". idf.il. Israel Defense Forces. 2007. Archived from the original on 2012-10-29.[1]
- Shafrir, Asher (2013a). "THE NAMES OF ISRAELI MILITARY RANKS AND THEIR LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS". Redefining Community in Intercultural Context. 2 (1): 155–160.[1][2]
- Shafrir, Asher (2013b). "The Names of Israeli Military Ranks and their linguistic analysis.pdf". Academia.edu.[1][2]
- Campbell, David (2018). Israeli Paratroopers 1954–2016. Osprey Elite 224. Osprey Publishing Ltd. (Bloomsbury Publishing).[1]
- Tennyson, Matt, ed. (October 2018). "Rank Structure - IDF" (PDF). Military Despatches. Vol. 16. South Africa, Tokai: Hipe Media. pp. 24–26.[1]
- FMTB (2008). "FMSO 1101. Rank Structure of Armed Forces Personnel". www.trngcmd.marines.mil. Camp Lejeune, North Carolina: Field Medical Training Battalion - East. Archived from the original (DOC) on 2024-07-03. Retrieved 2024-07-07.[3]
- FMTB (2010). "FMST 1101. Identify the Rank and Rate Structure of Armed Forces Personnel". www.tecom.marines.mil. Camp Lejeune, North Carolina: Field Medical Training Battalion - East. Archived from the original (DOC) on 2016-12-24. Retrieved 2024-07-07.[3]
- FMTB (2013). "Field Medical Service Officer Student Handbook" (PDF). www.tecom.marines.mil. Camp Pendleton, California: Field Medical Training Battalion - West. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-06-29. Retrieved 2024-07-07.[3]
External links[edit]
- "NATO Standard STANAG 2019 / APP-06, NATO Joint Military Symbology (current ed./ver.)". nso.nato.int. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- "NATO Standard STANAG 2116 / APersP-01, NATO Codes for Grades of Military Personnel (current ed./ver.)". nso.nato.int. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- "Army Regulation AR 220-1, Army Unit Status Reporting and Force Registration – Consolidated Policies (current ed./ver.)". armypubs.army.mil. Retrieved 2024-07-08.