Indonesian military ranks

The Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) use a unified ranking system across the Army, Navy, and Air Force, with most insignia standardized. The Marine Corps, although part of the Navy, is an exception: it uses Army-style rank titles while retaining Navy-style insignia, with blue replacing red for enlisted personnel.

Flag officers hold branch-specific titles, such as Jenderal in the Army, Laksamana in the Navy, and Marsekal in the Air Force. Junior and middle-ranking officers use common titles (e.g., Kolonel, Mayor, Kapten) but add a corps abbreviation. For example, an Army colonel in the Infantry branch is styled Kolonel INF, a Navy colonel in the Supply Corps is styled Kolonel Laut (S), and an Air Force colonel in the Electronics Corps is styled Kolonel (Lek). Enlisted personnel share the same titles in the Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, where the junior enlisted ranks are styled Prajurit. In the Navy, the equivalent junior enlisted ranks are styled Kelasi, and Navy enlisted personnel use corps abbreviations after their titles.

Insignia follow a standardized system: flag officers wear stars, middle-ranking officers use jasmine buds, and junior officers use bars. Senior NCOs use wavy bars, NCOs use yellow chevrons, senior enlisted personnel wear red chevrons (blue in the Navy and Marine Corps), and junior enlisted personnel wear red bars (blue in the Navy and Marine Corps).

Rank title

Ranks between 1945–1957

The following ranks were used at the beginning of the establishment of the Tentara Keamanan Rakyat (TKR, People's Security Army) in late 1945, the basis of the present day Indonesian National Armed Forces. This first rank system, with insignia following the former Imperial Japanese practice, was used until mid 1948. ^[1]

The TKR's Ground, Air and Naval Forces, later the Indonesian Army, Air Force, and Navy, used these ranks with different insignias for Navy officers following Japanese and Dutch precedence. (The same Army ranks were also used by the nascent Indonesian Marine Corps which was established at the same time.)

In 1950 the Navy received updated officer shoulder board insignia.

• Note: Previous spelling used until 1973 was utilised.

Indonesian Army

Commissioned officers

The following were the rank insignia of commissioned officers.

Rank group	General officers				Field officers			Junior officers
Rank	Djenderal Besar (adopted 1950)	Djenderal	Letnan djenderal	Djenderal mayor	Kolonel	Letnan kolonel	Mayor	Kapten	Letnan I	Letnan II
Insignia in 1945-1949
Insignia in 1949-1957 (Full dress uniform)
Insignia in 1949-1957 (Service dress uniform)

Enlisted personnel

The rank insignia of non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnels.

Rank group	Senior NCOs			Junior NCOs	Enlisted
Rank	Letnan Moeda	Sersan Major	Sersan	Kopral	Pradjurit Kelas I	Pradjurit Kelas II
Insignia in 1945-1949
Insignia in 1949-1957 (Full dress uniform)
Insignia in 1949-1957 (Service dress uniform)

Indonesian Air Forces

Commissioned officers

The following were the rank insignia of commissioned officers.

Rank group	General officers				Field officers			Junior officers
Rank	Laksamana Tertinggi udara (adopted 1950)	Laksamana Besar udara	Laksamana udara	Laksamana Muda udara	Komodor udara	Komodor Muda udara	Mayor udara	Kapten udara	Letnan I udara	Letnan II udara
Insignia in 1945-1957 (Full dress uniform)

Enlisted personnel

The rank insignia of non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnels.

Rank group	Senior NCOs				Junior NCOs	Enlisted
Rank	Letnan Moeda Udara I	Letnan Moeda Udara I	Sersan Major Udara	Sersan Udara	Kopral Udara	Pradjurit Udara I	Pradjurit Kelas II
Insignia in 1945-1957 (Full dress uniform)

Ranks between 1957–1973

The rank system was updated by yet another Government Regulation on 22 June 1957. ^[2] The Army received the Brigadier General rank, the Navy flag officer ranks were replaced by new ones (Admiral, Vice Admiral, Rear Admiral and Commodore replacing Admiral 1st Class, Admiral 2nd Class and Admiral 3rd Class) and the Air Force flag officer ranks replaced to be similar with Navy (with special title "Udara"). The ranks remained Army-style in the Army and Navy and army-style ranks were formally introduced into the air force. NCOs and Enlisted ranks and ratings became different per service branch. Although the government regulation did not specifically mention rank to be used in the Naval Commando Corps, the rank system of Army was begun to be used in the Naval Commando Corps (Marine Corps today).

• Note: Enhanced Indonesian Spelling System used

Rank Category	Indonesian Army, Naval Commando Corps	Indonesian Navy	Indonesian Air Force
Generals, flag officers, air marshals	Jenderal Besar (General of the Army)	Laksamana Besar (Admiral of the Fleet)	Laksamana Besar Udara (Marshal of the Air Force)
	Jenderal (General)	Laksamana (Admiral)	Laksamana Udara (Air Chief Marshal)
	Letnan Jenderal (Lieutenant General)	Laksamana Madya (Vice Admiral)	Laksamana Madya Udara (Air Marshal)
	Mayor Jenderal (formerly Jenderal Mayor) (Major General)	Laksamana Muda (Rear Admiral)	Laksamana Muda Udara (Air Vice Marshal)
	Brigadir Jenderal (Brigadier General)	Komodor (Commodore)	Komodor Udara (Air Commodore)
Field officers	Kolonel (Colonel)	Kolonel Laut (Captain)	Kolonel Udara (Colonel)
	Letnan Kolonel (Lieutenant Colonel)	Letnan Kolonel Laut (Commander)	Letnan Kolonel Udara (Lieutenant Colonel)
	Mayor (Major)	Mayor (Lieutenant Commander)	Mayor Udara (Major)
Junior grade officers	Kapten (Captain)	Kapten (Lieutenant)	Kapten Udara (Captain)
	Letnan I (First Lieutenant)	Letnan (Lieutenant junior grade)	Letnan Udara I (First Lieutenant)
	Letnan II (Second Lieutenant)	Letnan Muda (Ensign)	Letnan Udara II (Second Lieutenant)
Warrant officers and non-commissioned personnel	Pembantu Letnan I (Chief Warrant Officer)	Pembantu Letnan (Warrant Officer)	Letnan Muda Udara I (Warrant Officer First Class)
	Pembantu Letnan Calon Perwira (Warrant Officer First Class)
	Pembantu Letnan II (Warrant Officer Second Class)	Ajudan (Adjutant)	Letnan Muda Udara II (Warrant Officer Second Class)
	Sersan Mayor (Sergeant Major)	Sersan Mayor I (Master Chief Petty Officer)	Sersan Mayor Udara (Sergeant Major)
		Sersan Mayor II (Senior Chief Petty Officer)
	Sersan Kepala (Staff Sergeant)	Sersan I (Chief Petty Officer)	Sersan Udara I (Flight Sergeant)
	Sersan I (Sergeant First Class)
	Sersan II (Sergeant)	Sersan II (Petty Officer First Class)	Sersan Udara II (Sergeant)
Enlisted personnel, ratings	Kopral Kepala (Master Corporal)	Kopral (Petty Officer Second Class)	Kopral Udara I (Corporal)
	Kopral I (Corporal)
	Kopral II (Lance Corporal)		Kopral Udara II (Lance Corporal)
	Prajurit Kader (Specialist)	Kelasi I (Seaman)	Prajurit Udara I (Airman First Class)
	Prajurit I (Private First Class)
	Prajurit II (Private)	Kelasi II (Seaman Apprentice)	Prajurit Udara II (Airman)
		Kelasi III (Seaman Recruit)

Changes between 1973–1990

Government Regulation No. 24/ 1973, ^[3] updated the rank system once again, the changes were as follows:

• Perwira Tinggi (PATI) (General Officers, Flag Officers, and Air Officers)
  • Ranks of General, Lieutenant General, Major General, Brigadier General are used in the Army, the Naval Commando Corps (Marine Corps today), and the Police.
  • Ranks of Admiral, Vice Admiral, and Rear Admiral are to be maintained in the Navy and the rank of Commodore (lit. 'First Admiral') reintroduced
  • Air Chief Marshal, Air Marshal, Air Vice Marshal, and Air Commodore are to be used in the Air Force
• Perwira Menengah (PAMEN) (Field Officers), used same rank system in all branches of armed forces.
• Perwira Pertama (PAMA) (Subaltern Officers), used same rank system in all branches of armed forces.
• Bintara Tinggi (BATI) (Warrant Officers), used same Army rank system in all branches of armed forces.
• Bintara (NCOs), used same rank system in all branches of armed forces.
• Tamtama (Higher Enlisted Rank or Corporal), used Navy and Air Force rank system in all branches of the armed forces.
• Tamtama (Lower Enlisted Rank or Privates)
  • Private is used in the Army, the Naval Commando Corps (Marine Corps today), and the Air Force (equivalent to Airman)
  • Seaman is used in the Navy
  • Agent is used in the Police (later restricted to the Mobile Brigade and Water Police, all policemen in the other branches would later start directly as Sergeants)

Changes between 1990–1997

During this period, there are minor changes of rank system in all branch of the armed forces, which are removal of rank of senior warrant officer and new enlisted ranks introduced (Master Corporal and Petty Officer 3rd Class and Specialist Private, Seaman and Senior Airman). Those changes are based on Government Regulation No.6/ 1990. ^[4]

Changes between 1997–2010

Government Regulation No. 32/ 1997 regarding the rank system of armed forces ^[5] was issued. The primary difference with previous regulation were that five-star honorary rank for all branches of the armed forces was reintroduced (after a brief period in the 1950s) and warrant officers rank was re-introduced.

In 2000, with the Indonesian National Police having regained its independence from the armed forces, the TNI rank system ceased to be used.

Current ranks 2010–present

Five-star honorary rank for all branches of the armed forces are no longer regulated on the latest regulation. ^[6]

The ranks and rank insignia used today come from the Armed Forces rank regulations of 1990 and 1997, themselves revisions of the first rank regulations published in 1973 to use the current system. All three branches have the same rank titles at the same paygrades, except for the Perwira Tinggi (General Officers, Flag Officers, and Air Officers) and the Tamtama (Lower Rank Enlisted) of the Navy and Air Force.

Rank insignia

All branches of the armed forces maintain the same rank insignia, with minor color difference in insignia background. Since, all services have at least three type of uniform (Service dress uniform (Pakaian Dinas Harian / PDH), Full dress uniform (Pakaian Dinas Upacara / PDU), and Field uniform (Pakaian Dinas Lapangan / PDL)), there are three different insignia style corresponding to type of uniform. Aside from type of the uniform above, The Navy has uniform for wear in oversea service, officially known as Black Navy. When wearing such uniform, officers wear their ranks as gold stripes on their lower sleeves. The number and width of the stripes for each rank is similar to that of the United States Navy.

Command and Staff rank

An example of a Second lieutenant rank (left) with red piping indicating a command rank. While (right) without red piping indicating a staff rank.

The rank insignia for same services are also differentiated by red piping (command) or no piping (staff) at the sides of the boards.

Note: Indonesia is not a member of NATO, so there is no official equivalence between the Indonesian military ranks and those defined by NATO. The displayed parallel is approximate and for illustration purposes only.

Commissioned officers

The following are the rank insignia for commissioned officers for the army, navy and air force respectively. ^{[7] [8] [9]}

Rank group	General / flag officers										Senior officers						Junior officers
Indonesian Army [10] v t e
	Jenderal besar		Jenderal		Letnan jenderal		Mayor jenderal		Brigadir jenderal		Kolonel		Letnan kolonel		Mayor		Kapten		Letnan satu			Letnan dua
Army rank insginia on PDU
Army rank insginia on PDL
Indonesian Navy [10] v t e
	Laksamana besar		Laksamana		Laksamana madya		Laksamana muda		Laksamana pertama		Kolonel		Letnan kolonel		Mayor		Kapten		Letnan satu			Letnan dua
Navy rank insginia on PDU
Navy rank insginia on PDL
Navy sleeve rank on Black Navy uniform	No insignia
Indonesian Air Force [10] v t e
	Marsekal besar		Marsekal		Marsekal madya		Marsekal muda		Marsekal pertama		Kolonel		Letnan kolonel		Mayor		Kapten		Letnan satu			Letnan dua
Air Force rank insginia on PDU
Air Force rank insginia on PDL
Rank group	General / flag officers										Senior officers						Junior officers

Enlisted personnel

The rank insignia for enlisted personnel for the army, navy and air force respectively. ^{[7] [8] [9]}

Rank group	Senior NCOs																						Junior NCOs						Enlisted
Indonesian Army [10] v t e
	Pembantu letnan satu			Pembantu letnan dua			Sersan mayor		Sersan kepala		Sersan satu						Sersan dua						Kopral kepala		Kopral satu		Kopral dua		Prajurit kepala			Prajurit satu			Prajurit dua
Army rank insginia on PDU
Army rank insginia on PDL
Indonesian Navy [10] v t e
	Pembantu letnan satu			Pembantu letnan dua			Sersan mayor		Sersan kepala		Sersan satu						Sersan dua						Kopral kepala		Kopral satu		Kopral dua		Kelasi kepala			Kelasi satu			Kelasi dua
Navy rank insginia on PDU
Navy rank insginia on PDL
Indonesian Air Force [10] v t e
	Pembantu letnan satu			Pembantu letnan dua			Sersan mayor		Sersan kepala		Sersan satu						Sersan dua						Kopral kepala		Kopral satu		Kopral dua		Prajurit kepala			Prajurit satu			Prajurit dua
Air Force rank insginia for PDU
Air Force rank insginia on PDL
Rank group	Senior NCOs																						Junior NCOs						Enlisted

See also

• Indonesian National Police ranks
• Indonesian Maritime Security Agency ranks

References

1. Peraturan Pemerintah RI tentang Peraturan Gaji Militer 1949 , Lampiran A (Government Regulation 21) (in Indonesian). 1949.
2. Peraturan Pemerintah No.24 Tahun 1957 tentang Peraturan Pangkat-pangkat Militer dalam Angkatan Perang Republik Indonesia (Government Regulation 24) (in Indonesian). 1957.
3. Peraturan Pemerintah No.24 Tahun 1973 Tentang Kepangkatan Militer/Polisi Dalam Angkatan Bersenjata Republik Indonesia (Government Regulation 24) (in Indonesian). 1973.
4. Peraturan Pemerintah No.6 Tahun 1990 Tentang Administrasi Prajurit Angkatan Bersenjata Republik Indonesia (Government Regulation 6) (in Indonesian). 1990.
5. Peraturan Pemerintah No.32 Tahun 1997 Tentang Administrasi Prajurit Angkatan Bersenjata Republik Indonesia (Government Regulation 32) (in Indonesian). 1997.
6. Peraturan Pemerintah RI Nomor 39 Tahun 2010 tentang Administrasi Prajurit Tentara Nasional Indonesia [Government Regulation No 39 Year 2010 on Administration of Armed Forces Personnel](PDF) (39) (in Indonesian). 2010.
7. "Pangkat Harian". tni.mil.id. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
8. "Pangkat Upacara". tni.mil.id. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
9. "Pangkat Lapangan". tni.mil.id. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
10. "Pangkat Harian". tni.mil.id (in Indonesian). Indonesian National Armed Forces. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 4 June 2021.

External links

• (in Indonesian) military rank at official sites of Tentara Nasional Indonesia
• (in Indonesian) military rank insignia at official sites of Indonesian Air Force