The military rank of lieutenant , in the United States Armed Forces military branches of the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and the several uniformed civilian commissioned services of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration with their National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA-COO), and the medical United States Public Health Service with their United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHS-CC), is divided between the following:
In the United States Army, Air Force, and the Marine Corps, it is divided between:
During the American Civil War (1861–1865), brevet second lieutenants in the federal Union Army and southern Confederate States Army were sometimes also known as "third lieutenants".
Civilian police and fire departments in the United States may also use the rank of lieutenant.
The United States has eight federal uniformed services that commission officers as defined by Title 10 and subsequently structured and organized by Titles 10, 14, 32, 33, and 42 of the U.S. Code.
Commander is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries, this naval rank is termed as a frigate captain.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps is one of eight federal uniformed services of the United States, and operates under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a scientific agency overseen by the Department of Commerce. The NOAA Corps is made up of scientifically and technically trained officers. The NOAA Corps and the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps are the only U.S. uniformed services that consist only of commissioned officers, with no enlisted or warrant officer ranks. The NOAA Corps' primary mission is to monitor oceanic conditions, support major waterways, and monitor atmospheric conditions.
First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment.
Lieutenant junior grade is a junior commissioned officer rank used in a number of navies.
Ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was traditionally the carrier of the regimental colours, the rank acquired the name. This rank has generally been replaced in army ranks by second lieutenant. Ensigns were generally the lowest-ranking commissioned officer, except where the rank of subaltern existed. In contrast, the Arab rank of ensign, لواء, liwa', derives from the command of units with an ensign, not the carrier of such a unit's ensign, and is today the equivalent of a major general.
The United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps is the uniformed service branch of the United States Public Health Service and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. The commissioned corps' primary mission is the protection, promotion, and advancement of health and safety of the general public.
A 5⁄16 inch star (9.7mm) is a miniature gold or silver five-pointed star that is authorized by the United States Armed Forces as a ribbon device to denote subsequent awards for specific decorations of the Department of the Navy, Coast Guard, Public Health Service, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A gold star indicates a second or subsequent decoration, while a silver star is worn in lieu of five gold stars.
In the uniformed services of the United States, captain is a commissioned-officer rank. In keeping with the traditions of the militaries of most nations, the rank varies between the services, being a senior rank in the naval services and a junior rank in the ground and air forces. Many fire departments and police departments in the United States also use the rank of captain as an officer in a specific unit.
A direct commission officer (DCO) is a United States uniformed officer who has received an appointed commission without the typical prerequisites for achieving a commission, such as attending a four-year service academy, a four-year or two-year college ROTC program, or one of the officer candidate school or officer training school programs, the latter OCS/OTS programs typically slightly over three months in length.
Scrambled eggs or scrambled egg is a slang term for the typically leaf-shaped embellishments found on the visors of peaked caps worn by military officers and for the senior officers who wear them. The phrase is derived from the resemblance that the emblems have to scrambled eggs, particularly when the embellishments are gold in color.
A rear admiral in four of the uniformed services of the United States is one of two distinct ranks of commissioned officers; "rear admiral (lower half)," a one-star flag officer, and "rear admiral" (sometimes referred to as "rear admiral (upper half)"), a two-star flag officer. The two ranks are only utilized by the United States Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps. In contrast, in most other nations' rank-bearing services, the term "rear admiral" refers exclusively to two-star flag officer rank.
In the United States, commander is a military rank that is also sometimes used as a military billet title—the designation of someone who manages living quarters or a base—depending on the branch of service. It is also used as a rank or title in non-military organizations, particularly in law enforcement.
Lieutenant commander (LCDR) is a senior officer rank in the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard, the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, with the pay grade of O-4 and NATO rank code OF-3. Lieutenant commanders rank above lieutenants and below commanders. The rank is also used in the United States Maritime Service. The rank is equivalent to a major in the United States Army, United States Air Force, United States Marine Corps, and United States Space Force.
Vice admiral is a three-star commissioned officer rank in the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard, the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, and the United States Maritime Service, with the pay grade of O-9. Vice admiral ranks above rear admiral and below admiral. Vice admiral is equivalent to the rank of lieutenant general in the other uniformed services.
The United States Coast and Geodetic Survey was the first scientific agency of the United States Government. It existed from 1807 to 1970, and throughout its history was responsible for mapping and charting the coast of the United States, and later the coasts of U.S. territories. In 1871, it gained the additional responsibility of surveying the interior of the United States and geodesy became a more important part of its work, leading to it being renamed the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1878.
Lieutenant (abbreviated Lt, LT (U.S.), LT(USN), Lieut and LEUT, depending on nation) is a commissioned officer rank in many English-speaking nations' navies and coast guards. It is typically the most senior of junior officer ranks. In most navies, the rank's insignia may consist of two medium gold braid stripes, the uppermost stripe featuring an executive curl in many Commonwealth of Nations; or three stripes of equal or unequal width.
An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service.
In the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, captain is the senior-most commissioned officer rank below that of flag officer. The equivalent rank is colonel in the United States Army, Air Force, Space Force, and Marine Corps.
The United States Department of the Navy Police is the uniformed security police program of the United States Navy. It provides professional, civilian, federal police officers to serve and protect U.S. Navy personnel, properties, and installations. DoN Police personnel represent the Department of the Navy's contribution to the Department of Defense Police program. DoN Police officers primarily work alongside U.S. Navy masters-at-arms, the military police of the U.S. Navy. Although under the Department of the Navy, the United States Marine Corps (USMC) maintains its own civilian law enforcement program for Marine Corps-centric installations, the USMC Civilian Police. Despite both employing civilian special agents, neither the Naval Criminal Investigative Service nor the USMC Criminal Investigation Division fall-under the auspices of the DoN/DoD Police; both agencies have their own chains of command.