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Comparison of United Kingdom and United States military ranks


(Rank codes are at each side of the table.)

Not listed are U.S. warrant officers. A warrant officer is an officer who can and does command, carry out military justice actions and sits on both selection and promotion boards. A US warrant officer is a single-track specialty officer, initially appointed by the US Secretary of the Army; he/she receives a commission upon promotion to Chief Warrant Officer Two (CW2).

In the UK the separation between 'other' ranks and 'officer' ranks can on occasion become permeable. Notably, within the British armed services, both Sir Fitzroy Maclean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career progression with the British army, both rising from the rank of Private to Brigadier during World War II. In the US military such advancement is not uncommon, all four services maintaining programs that select promising enlisted men for the commissioned ranks.

Notes to table above

The British Armed Forces do not use the term Enlisted Ranks. The equivalent in the Royal Navy is Ratings and in the other services is Other Ranks (divided into Warrant Officers, Non-Commissioned Officers and Soldiers or Airmen).

UK and US ranks are categorised in the NATO rank code system OR-1 to OR-9. Ranks with the same code are equivalent. Within the US military, however, "E-1" to "E-9" is the more common usage.

Notes on comparison:

Addendum: In the US Army (but not the USMC) the term "Trooper/(Troop)" may be used informally for lower enlisted in Cavalry, Scout, Airborne, Air Assault, Ranger, and Special Forces Units, along with the occasional use for any soldier, particularly dismounted Infantry. The specific definition of "Troop" is a company sized unit of Cavalry, organizationally equivalent to "Battery" in Artillery units.

Notes to table above


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