A field officer, field grade officer, or senior officer is an army, marine, or air force commissioned officer senior in rank to a company officer but junior to a general officer. In most armies this corresponds to the ranks of major, lieutenant colonel and colonel, or their equivalents. Some countries also include brigadier in the definition.
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Historically, a regiment or battalion's field officers made up its command element.
Canada
In the Canadian Armed Forces, the equivalent of field officers are senior officers (French: Officiers supérieurs); they include the army and air force ranks of Major, Lieutenant-Colonel, and Colonel, and the naval ranks of Lieutenant-Commander, Commander, and Captain.
France
In the French Forces, field officers are called officiers supérieurs (Senior Officers). There are three ranks, in ascending order : Commandant, Lieutenant-colonel and Colonel (Capitaine de corvette, Capitaine de frégate and Capitaine de vaisseau in the naval forces).
Germany
In the German forces, officers from Major to Colonel in the Army and Air Force, or from Lieutenant Commander to Captain in the Navy are known as Stabsoffiziere which is translated as Field Officers.
Russia
Field officer (Russian: Штаб-офицер, Shtabofitser; derived from German: Stabsoffizier; translation en: Field officer), was the designation of a particular officers rank category (OF-3 to OF-5) of the Russian Imperial Army and Navy until 1917.
United Kingdom and some Commonwealth countries
The British Army (in which these officers are called officers of field rank), and some others in the Commonwealth (including the Australian Army and New Zealand Army), also include the brigadier in this category: the equivalent in other armies is a general officer (the brigadier general).
United States
Today, a field officer in the United States (here called field grade) Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force is typically a major, lieutenant colonel, or a colonel:
The [U.S.] commissioned officer corps is divided into 10 pay grades (O-1 through O-10 or WO-1 through CW-5). Officers in pay grades O-1 through O-3 or WO-1 and WO-2 are considered company grade officers in the Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force. These pay grades correspond to the ranks of second lieutenant (O-1), first lieutenant (O-2), captain (O-3), Warrant Officer 1 (WO-1) and Warrant Officer 2 (WO-2) Officers in the next three pay grades (O-4 through O-6 or CW-3 through CW-5) are considered field grade officers in the Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force. These pay grades correspond to the ranks of major (O-4), lieutenant colonel (O-5), colonel (O-6) Chief Warrant Officer 3 (CW-3), Chief Warrant Officer 4 (CW-4) and Chief Warrant Officer 5 (CW-5).The divisions of company grade and field grade are not used by the Navy or Coast Guard. In those services the divisions are junior officers and senior officers. Officers in pay grades O-1 through O-4 or WO-1 and WO-2 are considered junior officers ensign, lieutenant junior grade, lieutenant and lieutenant commander. Officers in the following pay grades (O-5 and O-6 or CW-3 through CW-5) are considered senior officers commander and captain. The highest four pay grades are reserved for general officers in the Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force, and flag officers in the Navy and Coast Guard. The ranks associated with each pay grade are as follows: in the Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force, brigadier general (O-7), major general (O-8), lieutenant general (O-9), and general (O-10); in the Navy and Coast Guard, rear admiral-lower half, rear admiral-upper half, vice admiral, and admiral.