Major general (United States)
| Major general |
|
|---|---|
Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force two-star insignia of the rank of major general. Style and method of wear may vary between the services.
|
|
| Country |
 United States
|
| Service branch | |
| Rank | Two-star |
| NATO rank | OF-7 |
| Non-NATO rank | O-8 |
| Next higher rank | Lieutenant general |
| Next lower rank | Brigadier general |
| Equivalent ranks | |
In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general. A major general typically commands division-sized units of 10,000 to 15,000 soldiers. Major general is equivalent to the two-star rank of rear admiral in the United States Navy and United States Coast Guard and is the highest permanent rank during peacetime in the uniformed services. (The higher ranks are temporary ranks linked to specific positions, although virtually all officers who have been promoted to those ranks are approved to retire at their highest earned rank.)
The United States Code explicitly limits the total number of general officers that may be on active duty at any given time. The total number of active duty general officers is capped at 231 for the Army, 61 for the Marine Corps, and 198 for the Air Force. Some of these slots are reserved or finitely set by statute. For example, the Deputy Judge Advocate General of the Army is a major general in the Army; the same rank is held by the Deputy Judge Advocate General of the Air Force; the Army's Chief of Engineers is also appointed as a major general and thereafter promoted to lieutenant general.
The United States Code also limits the total number of general officers that may be on the Reserve Active Status List (RASL) in the Reserve Component, which is defined in the case of general officers as the Army National Guard, Army Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Air National Guard, and Air Force Reserve.
...
Wikipedia