Kapitan 1st rank

Kapitan 1st rank in the Russian navy
(shoulder board)    (sleeve insignia)
Rank insignia	Russian Navy
Introduction	1971
Rank group	Staff officer
Army / Air Force	Polkovnik
NATO equivalent	OF-5

Kapitan 1st rank (Russian: Капитан 1-го ранга; literal: captain of the 1st rank) is in the Navy of the Russian Federation the designation to the most senior rank in the staff officer´s career group. The rank is equivalent to Polkovnik in Army and Air Force. The rank might be comparable to Captain (naval) (OF-5) in Anglophone/NATO naval forces.

The rank was introduced in Russia by Peter the Great in 1713. By decision of the so-called military navy commission (ru: Воинская морскaя комиссия) in 1732 the sequence of Kapitan ranks was abolished. However, until 1752 the grade rank Kapitan 1st rank was corresponding to Fleet kapitan (ru: Флота капитан). Finally, the Kapitan ranks were reintroduced September 5 (16), 1751. The Red Army introduced the Kapitan 1st rank rank in 1935, together with a number of other former Russian ranks, and it has been used in many ex-USSR countries, including Russia, to the present day.

The first OF-5 equivalent rank in the Soviet Navy (from 1918 to 1935) was Ship komandir 1st rank, also Ship commander 1st rank, (ru: Командир корабля 1-ого ранга; literal: Commander of the ship 1st rank).

This particular rank was introduced by disposal of the Central Executive Committee of the Soviet Union and the Council of People's Commissars, from September 22, 1935.

Pertaining to Engineer aboard of war ships the equivalent rank designation in the Soviet Navy was Kapitan 1st rank-engineer. Any other naval personnel of OF-5 on-shore assignments (e.g. medical service, chemical defence, marines, and naval aviation) have been entitled Polkovnik.

In the navy of the Russian Federation there are three ranks in the staff officer´s (until 1917: stab-ofizer, derived from German Stabsoffizier) career group, which means: