Second lieutenant Pilot officer | ||
Second lieutenant (called lieutenant in some countries) is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1b rank.
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Australia
Like the United Kingdom, the rank of second lieutenant replaced the rank of ensign and cornet in 1871. The rank of second lieutenant was phased out in the Australian Regular Army in 1986.
Canada
The Canadian Forces adopted the rank with insignia of a single gold ring around the service dress uniform cuff for both army and air personnel upon unification in 1968 until the late 2000s. For a time, naval personnel used this rank but reverted to the Royal Canadian Navy rank of acting sub-lieutenant, though the CF green uniform was retained until the mid-1980s. Currently, the Canadian Army insignia for second lieutenant is a pip and the Royal Canadian Air Force insignia for lieutenant is one thick braid. The equivalent rank for the Royal Canadian Navy is acting sub-lieutenant. Also known as an Ensign in the Foot Guards units. (Canadian Grenadier Guards & Governor General's Foot Guards )
France
The insignia consists of a metal-colored bar in accordance with the color of the ceremonial uniform buttons and hat's symbol.
For example, for the infantry, gold being the metal of the ceremonial dress' buttons, the symbol on the képi being a golden grenade with two crossed rifles, therefore the Sous-Lieutenant's insignia is a gold-colored bar.
For cavalry or forest rangers (light infantry mobilised from the Water and Forests Corp), ceremonial dress' buttons were silver, as was the hunting horn on the forest commissioned officer's képi, therefore the Sous-Lieutenant's insignia is a silver-colored bar.
Greece
The insignia consists of a single silver star (or a star and a bar for reserve officers). Officers holding this rank should be addressed as "Kyrie Anthypolochage" (Κύριε Ανθυπολοχαγέ) by their subordinates, or "Anthypolochage + family name" by their superior officers.
Indonesia
In Indonesia, "Second lieutenant" is known as Letnan Dua (Letda) which is the most junior ranked officer in the Indonesian Military. Cadets who graduate from the Indonesian Military Academy achieve this rank as young officers. Senior Non-commissioned officers promoted to becoming commissioned officers go to the Officer's Candidate School (Sekolah Calon Perwira) in Bandung for achieving the Second Lieutenant rank. The Lieutenant rank has two levels, which are Second lieutenant (Letda) and First lieutenant (Lettu). Lieutenants in Indonesia usually command a Platoon level of troops and are referred to as "Danton" abbreviated from Komandan Pleton (Platoon Commander) in Indonesian.
Israel
Since 1951 in the Israel Defense Forces (סגן-משנה (סג"מ segen mishne (sagam) has been equivalent to a second lieutenant (NATO OF-1). From 1948 – 1951 the corresponding rank was that of a (סגן) segen, which since 1951 has been equivalent to lieutenant. Segen mishne means "junior lieutenant" and segen literally translates as "assistant". Typically it is the rank of a platoon commander. Note that the IDF uses this rank across all three of its services.
Norway
The equivalent rank in Norway (O-1) is "fenrik". This is the first rank, where they are commanding officer. Fenriks are usually former experienced sergeants but to become a fenrik one has to go through officer's training and education. Fenriks fill roles as second in command within a platoon. Fenriks are in some cases executive officers. Most fenriks have finished the War Academy as well, and are fully trained officers. To qualify for the Military Academy, Fenriks are required to do minimum 6 months service in international missions, before or after graduation.
Pakistan
The Pakistan Army follows the British pattern of ranks. A second lieutenant is represented by one metal pip on each shoulder in case of "khaki uniform" and one four quadric printed star on the chest in case of camouflage combat dress. However a second lieutenant in the Pakistan Army is usually promoted to lieutenant 6 months after commissioning.
United Kingdom and Commonwealth
The rank of second lieutenant (2Lt; colloquially known as a "one-pip") was introduced throughout the British Army in 1877 to replace the short-lived rank of sub-lieutenant, although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers, Fusilier and Rifle regiments. At first the rank bore no distinct insignia. In 1902 a single Bath star (now commonly referred to as a pip) was introduced; the ranks of lieutenant and captain had their number of stars increased by one to (respectively) two and three. The rank is also used by the Royal Marines.
New British Army officers are normally commissioned as second lieutenants at the end of their commissioning course at RMA Sandhurst, and continue with specific training with their units, often with mentoring from senior NCOs. Progression to lieutenant rank usually occurs after about a year. In the British armed forces, "second lieutenant" is a rank which is not used as a form of address. Instead a second lieutenant named for example Smith is addressed and referred to as "Mr Smith", with the exception that the alternative titles "ensign" and "cornet" are still used verbally in the Foot Guards and the Blues and Royals respectively. As these form six of the seven regiments that comprise the Household Division, the Life Guards are therefore the only Household regiment to which the exception does not apply.
In the Royal Air Force the comparable rank is pilot officer. The Royal Navy has no exact equivalent rank, and a second lieutenant is senior to a Royal Navy midshipman but junior to a sub-lieutenant. The Royal New Zealand Navy – breaking with Royal Navy tradition – uses the ensign grade for this rank equivalent. The Royal Australian Navy uses the equivalent rank of acting sub lieutenant, which also used to be used by the Royal Navy.
United States
In the United States, second lieutenant is the normal entry-level rank for most commissioned officers in the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps and is equivalent to the rank of ensign in the Navy and Coast Guard.
In the Army and Marine Corps, a second lieutenant typically leads a platoon-size element (16 to 44 soldiers or Marines). In the army, until December 1917, the rank bore no insignia other than a brown sleeve braid on blouses and an officer's cap device and hat cord. In December 1917, a gold-colored bar similar to the silver-colored bar of a first lieutenant was introduced.
In the Air Force, depending upon the career field, a second lieutenant (2d Lt) may supervise flights (of varying sizes) as a flight leader or deputy flight leader, or may work in a variety of administrative positions at the squadron, group, or wing level. A significant number of Air Force second lieutenants are full-time flight students in training for eventual designation as USAF pilots, combat systems officers or air battle managers.
Insignia
The following are a selection of second lieutenant rank insignia, attempting to illustrate the range of variation (and similarity) between the insignia. Note that although many air forces use the rank of second lieutenant, in most Commonwealth air forces the equivalent rank of pilot officer is used. Very few navies use the rank "second lieutenant".