Common military ranks
Navies1	Armies2	Air Forces3
Admiral of the Fleet	Field Marshal	Marshal of the Air Force
Admiral	General	Air Chief Marshal
Vice Admiral	Lt. General	Air Marshal
Rear Admiral	Major General	Air Vice-Marshal
Commodore	Brigadier	Air Commodore
Captain	Colonel	Group Captain
Commander	Lt. Colonel	Wing Commander
Lt. Commander	Major	Squadron Leader
Lieutenant	Captain	Flight Lieutenant
Sub-Lieutenant	Lieutenant	Flying Officer
Warrant Officer	Sergeant Major	Warrant Officer
Petty Officer	Sergeant	Sergeant
Leading Rate	Corporal	Corporal
Seaman	Private	Aircraftman
1 in the English-speaking world          2 also some Air Forces 3 In many Commonwealth countries

This article is about the air force rank. Military rank is a system of hierarchical relationships in Armed forces or civil institutions organized along military lines An Admiral of the Fleet or Fleet Admiral is a military Naval officer of the highest rank For other meanings see Field Marshal (disambiguation Field marshal is a military officer rank Marshal of the Air Force may be used as a generic term for a rank in some Air forces which use a similar title with their air force's name inserted as their most senior rank Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks of the highest Naval officers Air Chief Marshal ( Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a senior Air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force (RAF Vice Admiral is a naval rank equivalent to Lieutenant General in seniority Lieutenant General is a Military rank used in many countries The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the Rear admiral is a Naval Commissioned officer rank above that of a Commodore and Captain, and below that of a Vice Admiral. Major General or Major-General is a Military rank used in many countries Air Vice-Marshal ( AVM) is an Air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. Commodore is a Military rank used in many navies for officers whose position exceeds that of a navy captain, but is less than This article refers to the military rank For the Doctor Who character known as the Brigadier see Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. Air Commodore ( Air Cdre in the RAF, AIRCDRE in the RNZAF and RAAF, A/C in the former RCAF) is a rank in For information specifically on the Royal Navy rank of captain see Captain (Royal Navy. Colonel ( RP ˈkɜnəl GA ˈkɜrnəl is a Military rank of a Commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every country Group Captain ( Gp Capt in the RAF and Indian Air Force, GPCAPT in the RNZAF and RAAF, G/C in the former Commander is a Military rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service Lieutenant Colonel ( Lieutenant-Colonel in English from the French grade 's spelling is a rank of Commissioned officer in the armies Wing Commander ( Wg Cdr in the RAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, W/C in the former RCAF) is a commissioned Lieutenant Commander ( Lieutenant-Commander in the Royal Navy) is a Commissioned officer rank in many navies Superior Major is a Military rank the use of which varies according to country Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence Lieutenant (abbreviated Lt or Lieut) is a Military, Naval, Paramilitary, Fire service, Emergency medical services Flight Lieutenant ( Flt Lt in the RAF; FLTLT in the RAAF and RNZAF, F/L in the former RCAF) is a junior Sub-Lieutenant is a military rank It is normally a junior officer rank Lieutenant (abbreviated Lt or Lieut) is a Military, Naval, Paramilitary, Fire service, Emergency medical services Flying Officer ( Fg Off in the RAF FLGOFF in the RAAF FGOFF in the RNZAF F/O in the former RCAF and frequently in the RAF is a junior commissioned A Warrant Officer ( WO) is a member of a military organization holding one of a specific group of ranks. A Sergeant Major is a rank or appointment in many militaries around the world A Warrant Officer ( WO) is a member of a military organization holding one of a specific group of ranks. A Petty Officer is a noncommissioned officer or equivalent in many navies. Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries police forces and other uniformed organizations around the world Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries police forces and other uniformed organizations around the world Leading Rating (or Leading Rate) is the most senior of the junior rates in the British Royal Navy. Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and also by some police forces or other uniformed organizations Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and also by some police forces or other uniformed organizations Seaman as a rate refers to one of the lowest rates in a Navy. A Private is a Soldier of the lowest Military rank (equivalent to NATO Rank Grades OR-1 to OR-3 depending on the force served in Aircraftman ( AC) or Aircraftwoman ( ACW) is the lowest rank in the Royal Air Force and the Air forces of several other Commonwealth Air marshal (or sky marshal) is also the term given to American federal security agents who travel undercover aboard commercial airliners. The Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS is a United States federal government Law enforcement agency under the supervision of the Transportation A sky marshal (also known as air marshal or flight marshal) is an undercover law enforcement or security officer on board a commercial Aircraft to

For information on air force officers in the rank of Marshal, see Marshal of the Air Force. Marshal of the Air Force may be used as a generic term for a rank in some Air forces which use a similar title with their air force's name inserted as their most senior rank

Air Marshal (Air Mshl or AM) is an air officer rank in the Royal Air Force^[1] as well as in air forces of many Commonwealth nations. An Air Officer is a British Royal Air Force officer of rank Air Commodore or higher Officers in the ranks of Air Chief Marshal and Air Vice-Marshal are sometimes considered generically to be air marshals.

Contents 1 Seniority 2 Origins 3 RAF Insignia, command flag and star plate 4 Other air forces 4.1 Royal Australian Air Force 4.2 Canadian Air Force 5 See also 6 References

Seniority

Air Marshal is equivalent to a 3 star rank and has a NATO ranking code of OF-8, equivalent to a Vice-Admiral in the Royal Navy or a Lieutenant-General in the British Army or the Royal Marines. An officer of 3 star rank is a very senior commander in many of the armed services holding a rank described by the NATO code of OF-8. The North Atlantic Treaty Vice Admiral is a naval rank equivalent to Lieutenant General in seniority The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) Lieutenant General is a Military rank used in many countries The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. The Royal Marines ( RM) are the marine corps and amphibious Infantry of the United Kingdom and along with the Royal Navy

The rank of Air Marshal is immediately senior to the rank of Air Vice-Marshal and immediately subordinate to the rank of Air Chief Marshal. Air Vice-Marshal ( AVM) is an Air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. Air Chief Marshal ( Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a senior Air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force (RAF

Origins

Prior to the adoption of RAF-specific rank titles in 1919, it was suggested that the RAF might use the Royal Navy's officer ranks, with the word "Air" inserted before the naval rank title. For example, the rank that later became Air Marshal would have been Air Vice-Admiral. The Admiralty objected to any use of their rank titles, including this modified form, and so an alternative proposal was put forward: Air Officer ranks would be based on the term "Ardian", which was derived from a combination of the Gaelic words for "chief" (ard) and "bird" (eun), with the term "Wing Ardian" being used specifically for the rank equivalent to a Vice-Admiral and Lieutenant-General. An Air Officer is a British Royal Air Force officer of rank Air Commodore or higher The Goidelic languages, (also sometimes called particularly in colloquial situations the Gaelic languages or collectively Gaelic) historically formed a Dialect However, Air Marshal was preferred and was adopted on 1 August 1919. Events 30 BC - Octavian (later known as Augustus enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The rank of Air Marshal has been used continuously since 11 August 1919. Events 2492 BC - Traditional date of the defeat of Bel by Hayk, progenitor and founder of the Armenian nation Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

RAF Insignia, command flag and star plate

The rank insignia consists of two narrow light blue bands (each on a slightly wider black band) over a light blue band on a broad black band. This is worn on the both the lower sleeves of the tunic or on the shoulders of the flying suit or the casual uniform.

The command flag for an Air Marshal is defined by the single broad red band running in the centre of the flag.

The vehicle star plate for an Air Marshal depicts three white stars (Air Marshal is equivalent to a three star rank) on an air force blue background.

An RAF air marshal's sleeve/shoulder insignia

An RAF air marshal's command flag

An RAF air marshal's star plate

Other air forces

The rank of Air Marshal is also used in a number of the air forces in the Commonwealth, including the Bangladesh Air Force (BAF), Indian Air Force (IAF), Pakistan Air Force (PAF), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). The Bangladesh Air Force (বাংলােদশ িবমান বািহনী Bangladesh Biman Bahini in Bangla) is the tactical and strategic air branch The Indian Air Force (Devanāgarī भारतीय वायु सेना IAST Bhartiya Vāyu Senā is the air arm of the Armed Forces of India and has the Pakistan Air Force ( Urdu: پاک فضائیہ, Pak Faza'ya) ( PAF) is the Aviation branch of the Pakistan armed forces The Royal Australian Air Force ( RAAF) is the Air Force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The Royal New Zealand Air Force ( RNZAF) is the air arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. It is also used in the Egyptian Air Force, Nigerian Air Force, Ghana Air Force, Hellenic Air Force, Air Force of Zimbabwe and the Royal Thai Air Force. The Egyptian Air Force, or EAF (القوات الجوية المصرية) is the aviation branch of the Egyptian armed forces. The Nigerian Air Force is the air arm of the Nigerian military. The Ghana Air Force ( GAF) is the Air force of the African nation of Ghana. The Hellenic Air Force ( HAF) (in Πολεμική Αεροπορία ( ΠΑ) Polemikí Aeroporía, literally "Military Aviation" The Air Force of Zimbabwe ( AFZ) is the Air force of Zimbabwe. The Royal Thai Air Force or RTAF ( Thai: กองทัพอากาศไทย Kong Thab Akat Thai is the Air force of the Kingdom of Thailand In the Indonesian Air Force,Malaysia Air Force the equivalent rank is Marsekal Madya (literally "Vice Marshal") which is often translated as Air Marshal in English. See also List of aircraft of the Indonesian Air Force The Indonesian Air Force ( Indonesian: Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Udara or The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF ( Malay: Tentera Udara DiRaja Malaysia or TUDM) was formed in 1958 as the Royal Malayan Air Force

An RAAF air marshal's sleeve/shoulder insignia

A Royal Thai Air Force Air Marshal's rank insignia

Royal Australian Air Force

Main article: Air Marshal (Australia)

In Australia, there are four appointments available for Air Marshals: the Chief of Air Force (CAF) and, at times when they are occupied by an Air Force officer, the Vice Chief of Defence Force (VCDF), the Chief of Joint Operations (CJOPS), and the Chief of the Capability Development executive (CCDE). See Air Marshal for other countries which use this rank Air Marshal is the second highest active rank of the Royal Australian Air Chief of Air Force (CAF is the most senior appointment in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF responsible to the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF and the The Vice Chief of the Defence Force (VCDF is the military deputy to the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF of Australia, and acts as the CDF in his absence under standing

Canadian Air Force

The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) used the rank until the 1968 unification of the Canadian Forces, when Army-type rank titles were adopted and an Air Marshal became a Lieutenant-General. The Canadian Forces (CF ( French: Forces canadiennes) are the unified Armed forces of Canada, governed by the National Defence Lieutenant General is a Military rank used in many countries The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the

See also

• RAF officer ranks
• Ranks of the RAAF
• Comparative military ranks

References

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