Aflag officeris acommissioned officerin a nation'sarmed forcessenior enough to be entitled to fly aflagto mark the position from which that officer exercises command.
Different countries use the term "flag officer" in different ways:
- In many countries, a flag officer is a senior officer of thenavy,specifically one holding any of theadmiralranks; the term may or may not include therankofcommodore.
- In some countries, such as theUnited States,India,andBangladesh,the designation may apply in allarmed forces,not just in the navy. This means generals can also be considered flag officers.
- In most Arab armies,liwa(Arabic: لواء), which can be translated as "flag officer", is a specific rank, equivalent to amajor general.However,"ensign"is debatably a more exact literal translation of the word. In principle, aliwacommands several units called "flags" or "ensigns" (i.e. brigades, also calledliwa).
- Russian navies refer to the approximate equivalent of a British Royal Navy flag officer as aflagman(флагман).[1]Before the formation of theSoviet Navyin 1918, theImperial Russian Navyalso had officers with the function of aflag-ofitser(флаг-офицер), subordinate to aflagmanand especially charged with adjutant duties and signals.[2]
General usage
editThe generic title of flag officer is used in many modern navies andcoast guardsto denote those who hold the rank ofrear admiralor its equivalent and above, also called "flag ranks". In some navies, this also includes the rank ofcommodore.Flag officer corresponds to the generic termsgeneral officer,used by land and some air forces to describe all grades of generals, andair officer,used by other air forces to describe all grades ofair marshalsandair commodores.
A flag officer sometimes is ajunior officer,called aflag lieutenantorflag adjutant,attached as a personaladjutantoraide-de-camp.
Canada
editIn theCanadian Armed Forces,a flag officer (French:officier général,"general officer" ) is anadmiral,vice admiral,rear admiral,orcommodore,the naval equivalent of ageneral officerof the army or air force. It is a somewhat counterintuitive usage of the term, as only flag officers in command of commands or formations actually have their own flags (technically a commodore has only abroad pennant,not a flag), and army and air force generals in command of commands or formations also have their own flags, but are not called flag officers. Base commanders, usually fullcolonels,have a pennant that flies from the mast or flagpole on the base, when resident, or on vehicles that carry them.[3]
A flag officer's rank is denoted by a wide strip of gold braid on the cuff of the service dress tunic, one to four goldmaple leavesover a crossed sword and baton, all beneath a royal crown, onepaulettesandshoulder boards;and two rows of gold oak leaves on the peak of the service cap.[4]Since theunification of the Canadian Forcesin 1968, a flag officer's dress tunic had a single broad stripe on the sleeve and epaulettes.
In May 2010 the naval uniform dark dress tunic was adjusted—exterior epaulettes were removed, reverting to the sleeve ring andexecutive curl-rank insignia used by most navies.commodores' uniforms display a broad stripe, and each succeeding rank receives an additional sleeve ring. There are no epaulettes on the exterior of the tunic, but they are still worn on the uniform shirt underneath.[5]
India
editIn theIndian Armed Forces,it is applied tobrigadiers,major generals,lieutenant generalsandgeneralsin theArmy;commodores,rear admirals,vice admiralsandadmiralsin theNavy;andair commodores,air vice marshals,air marshalsandair chief marshalsin theAir Force.Each of these flag officers are designated with a specific flag. India's honorary ranks (five star ranks) arefield marshalin the Army,Marshal of the Indian Air Forcein the Air Force andadmiral of the fleetin the Navy. A similar equivalence is applied to senior police officers of rankDeputy Inspector General (DIG),Inspector General (IG),Additional Director General (ADG)andDirector General (DG).
United Kingdom
editIn the United Kingdom, the term is only used for theRoyal Navy,with there being a more specific distinction between a "flag officer" and an "officer of flag rank". Formerly, all officers promoted to flag rank were considered to be "flag officers".[6]The term is still widely used to refer to any officer of flag rank. Present usage is thatrear admiralsand above are officers of flag rank, but only those officers who are authorised to fly a flag are formally called "flag officers" and have different flags for different ranks ofadmiral.[7]
Of the 39 officers of flag rank in the Royal Navy in 2006, very few were "flag officers" with entitlement to fly a flag. For example, aCommander-in-Chief Fleetflies an admiral's flag whether ashore or afloat and is a "flag officer". The chief of staff (support), a rear admiral, is not entitled to fly a flag and is an "officer of flag rank" rather than a "flag officer".List of fleets and major commands of the Royal Navylists most admirals who were "flag officers". A flag officer's junior officer is often known as "Flags".[citation needed]Flag Officers in the Royal Navy are considered as Rear-Admirals and above.[8]
Equivalent ranks in theBritish ArmyandRoyal Marinesare calledgeneral officerrather than flag officers, and those in theRoyal Air Force(as well as the rank ofair commodore) are calledair officers,although all are entitled to fly flags of rank.[citation needed]
United States
editCaptain was the highest rank in theUnited States Navyfrom its beginning in 1775 until 1857, whenCongresscreated the temporary rank of flag officer, which was bestowed on senior Navycaptainswho were assigned to lead a squadron of vessels in addition to command of their own ship.[9]This temporary usage gave way to the permanent ranks of commodore and rear admiral in 1862.
The term "flag officer" is still in use today, explicitly defined as an officer of the U.S. Navy or Coast Guard serving in or having the grade of admiral, vice admiral, rear admiral, or rear admiral (lower half),[10]equivalent to general officers of an army.
In the United StatesArmy,Air Force,andMarine Corps,the term "flag officer" generally is applied to all general officers authorized to fly their owncommand flags—i.e.,brigadier general,or pay grade O-7, and above.[11][12]As a matter of law,Title 10 of the United States Codemakes a distinction between general officers and flag officers (general officer for the Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force; flag officer for the Navy and Coast Guard).[10]Non-naval officers usually fly their flags from their headquarters, vessels, or vehicles, typically only for the most senior officer present.[13][14]
In the United States all flag and general officers must be nominated by thePresidentand confirmed by theSenate.Each subsequent promotion requires renomination and re-approval. For the Navy, each flag officer assignment is usually limited to a maximum of two years, followed by eitherreassignment, reassignment and promotion, or retirement.[15]
References
edit- ^ флагман
- ^ Флаг-офице́р состоящий при флагмане, для сигналов и в виде адъютанта.
- ^Canada – National Defence: A-AD-200-000/AG-000 The Heritage Structure of the Canadian Forces, Chapter 14, Section 3.
- ^Canada - National Defence: "Navy Rank and Appointment Insignia: NavyArchived2011-08-14 at theWayback Machine"
- ^Note: The referenced website, above, has not yet been updated to reflect the change as of July 9, 2010.
- ^See e.g.King's Regulations and Admiralty Instructions Volume I 1913.,§192
- ^"BRd 2 THE QUEEN'S REGULATIONS FOR THE ROYAL NAVY Version 5"(PDF).royalnavy.mod.uk.UK Defence Council. 1 April 2017. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 9 November 2020.Retrieved9 November2020.
Flag Officer. An officer of the rank of Rear-Admiral or above.
- ^"BRd 2 THE QUEEN'S REGULATIONS FOR THE ROYAL NAVY Version 5"(PDF).royalnavy.mod.uk.UK Defence Council. 1 April 2017. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 9 November 2020.Retrieved9 November2020.
Flag Officer. An officer of the rank of Rear-Admiral or above.
- ^"Naval History and Heritage Command - Navy Captain".History.navy.mil.13 May 2014.Archivedfrom the original on 23 October 2016.Retrieved8 June2016.
- ^ab"§101 of Title 10, US Code on law.cornell.edu".Archivedfrom the original on 2023-03-24.Retrieved2017-05-09.
- ^Offenhauer, Priscilla (December 2007)."General and flag officer authorizations for the active and reserve components: A comparative and historical analysis"(PDF).Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress.Archived(PDF)from the original on 7 August 2015.Retrieved15 August2015.
- ^Kapp, Lawrence.General and Flag Officers in the U.S. Armed Forces: Background and Considerations for CongressArchived2016-06-11 at theWayback Machine,Congressional Research Service, February 18, 2016.
- ^Army Regulation 840-10, Flags, Guidons, Streamers, Tabards, and Automobile and Aircraft PlatesArchived2010-06-07 at theWayback Machine
- ^Department of the Army Institute of Heraldry website on General Officer FlagsArchived2008-06-14 at theWayback Machine
- ^"Chief of Naval Operations. Navy Military Personnel Assignment Policy"(PDF).2006. p. 6. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2013-02-24.Retrieved2013-09-19.