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A NATO standard grade scale is used by the NATO and its partners for the purpose of comparing military ranks across the member nations militaries, as well as for a number of administrative tasks.

Rank codes

NATO maintains a "standard rank scale" which is also known as a "standardized reference system" in an attempt to standardize NATO codes of rank for military personnel and indicated correspondence with nations ranks. NATO's standardized reference system is intended to be used "by nations when preparing personnel tables, requisitions, reports and returns destined for NATO nations, organizations and commands."

The NATO rank reference code categories were established in 1978 in STANAG 2116 (formally titled NATO Codes for Grades of Military Personnel). The current- 7th - edition is just the cover, and the core of the standard is in set out in "NATO Codes For Grades Of Military Personnel" (APersP-01).

The NATO codes assigned for each grade are based on the agreed corresponding army grades with the naval and air forces grades determined from them by "national regulations".

Officers codes

OF-10 – OF-1 (highest to lowest rank code) are used for commissioned officers:

• OF-10 – OF-6: General officers
• OF-5 – OF-3: Senior officers
• OF-2 – OF-1: Junior officers

Other ranks codes

OR-9 – OR-1 (highest to lowest rank code) are used for other ranks (enlisted ranks and non-commissioned officers (NCO)):

• OR-9 – OR-5: Non-commissioned officers
• OR-4 – OR-1: Other ranks/enlisted ranks

For NATO purposes, NCOs are ranked OR-5 to OR-9. However, national rank structures might differentiate from this.

In the U.S. armed forces warrant officer is a separate and distinct category of officers. This officer rank and precedence is below those of officer personnel, but above that of non-officer personnel, and has a special group of codes (W-1 – W-5). In the Commonwealth tradition (for NATO the British Armed Forces and Canadian Armed Forces) warrant officers are the highest other ranks.

In the British Armed Forces senior non-commissioned officers are in OR-5 to OR-7 and junior non-commissioned officers (eg corporals) are in OR-3 and OR-4. In the U.S. military OR-5 and above are non-commissioned officers for the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force but in the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy (both parts of the Department of the Navy), OR-4 and above are non-commissioned officers.

Comparison to US system

The numbers in the system broadly correspond to the U.S. uniformed services pay grades, with OR-x replacing E-x. The main difference is in the commissioned officer ranks, where the US system recognises two ranks at OF-1 level (O-1 and O-2), meaning that all O-x numbers after O-1 are one point higher on the US scale than they are on the NATO scale (e.g. a major is OF-3 on the NATO scale and O-4 on the US scale).

Officer rank code application

Appendix B of the APP-06 (related to STANAG 2019) standard lists 11 formation/unit groups (13 in US Armed Forces) and identifies the command level of seven of them:

This is a general NATO practice, which does not prevent individual branches of the armed forces, for example, the British Army, the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps, from having their own approaches to the positions held by certain officers and NCOs.

Non-officer rank code criteria

In 2010, Allied Command Operations and Allied Command Transformation produced NATO NCO Bi-SC Strategy and Recommended NCO Guidelines. The current Bi-SC joint document (19 December 2023) Directive 040-002 "NATO Non-Commissioned Officer and Junior Officer Bi-Strategic Command Employment and Development Strategy", describes the NATO rank indicators for NCOs:

• OR-1 — OR-3: "These are the basic entry ranks into the military structure."
• OR-4: "The first level of leadership within the NATO NCO ranks."
• OR-5: "The OR-5 is the first NATO designated NCO grade and the level of leadership with the greatest impact on subordinate ranks."
• OR-6: "This is the first grade at which OR should be considered for Staff NCO duties at NATO higher headquarters employment. As such some NATO nations may recognize OR-6 through OR-9 as Senior NCOs (SNCO) or Warrant Officers (WO)."
• OR-7: "The OR-7 is empowered and considered a key element within the command structure. At this level, SNCOs are expected to be able to provide sound advice to their leadership. While no formal mandate exists, this is the level at which, when consistent with their national authorities, SNCOs start to provide mentorship/assistance for Junior Officers (OF-1/OF-2)."
• OR-8: "Uses enhanced leadership skills and broad operational experience to advise unit/element leaders and commanders on organizational effectiveness. OR-8s are expected to merge subordinates talents, skills, and resources with other NATO cross functional team(s) and organization(s) to implement planning and management processes for collective mission accomplishment."
• OR-9: "The most experienced SNCO within the NATO NCO structure. This grade is normally utilized in an advisory capacity when assigned to a higher headquarters."

Specific roles:

• Staff NCO: "When assigned to the NATO Command Structure (NCS), the Staff NCO performs technical duties and project or portfolio management based upon their education, training, and experience. Based on the depth of their tactical experience, Staff NCO should participate in relevant working groups across the higher headquarters or NATO organisations".
• Senior Enlisted Leader: "While traditionally an ancillary duty, this individual serves as an advisor to the senior staff directorate or element leadership".
• Command Senior Enlisted Leader (CSEL): "The CSEL, at the pinnacle of the NCO Ranks, serves on the Command Team as an advisor to the commander and the staff element leadership".

Non-NATO use of NATO rank codes

Based on the intentions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Ukraine to join NATO, NATO codes for military ranks have been officially introduced in these countries. Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted a corresponding law in 2005. In Ukraine, the introduction of NATO codes for military ranks took place in two stages. Firstly in 2020, the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) amended the structure of military ranks which was followed in January 2021, by the Minister of Defense of Ukraine approving the compliance of military ranks with NATO codes by order though the order had a confidential status.

Some European NATO partners such as Austria and Ireland describe their ranks in terms of NATO rank codes for comparison with NATO forces. Finland also had a conversion table to NATO standards prior to becoming a NATO member.

Mapping to "star ranks"

General officer grades are usually defined by the number of stars they ‘wear’. In the first version of the STANAG, OF-6 to OF-10 were described as "to be used for one to five star ranks or equivalents respectively". Some countries don't use star insignia for their general ranks.

Comparative ranks of member armed forces

• Ranks and insignia of NATO member army officers
• Ranks and insignia of NATO member army enlisted
• Ranks and insignia of NATO member air force officers
• Ranks and insignia of NATO member air force enlisted
• Ranks and insignia of NATO member navy officers
• Ranks and insignia of NATO member navy enlisted

See also

• Air officer
• Comparative military ranks
• Flag officer

Notes

1. superseding Edition 6 of February 25, 2010
2. ^ the meaning of brigade and regiment differs across armies and branch of service, and other names may be used.
3. ^ depending on army and service arm may be known by other names.
4. Among the orders of the Minister of Defense for 2019, posted on the website of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, order No. 1 is missing

1. STANAG 2116 (7), p. 11-1.
2. STANAG 2116 (7).
3. ^ APersP-01, p. 1-1.
4. APersP-01, p. А-10.
5. APersP-01, pp. D-1, D-3.
6. APersP-01, pp. D-8, Е-7, F-7.
7. "U.S. Military Rank Insignia". Official Website U.S. Department of Defense. 2020. Archived from the original on 2020-04-14. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
8. APP-06(E)(1), pp. 795–796.
9. "Rank Structure". British Army. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
10. "U.S. Army Ranks". Official Website U.S. Army. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
11. "Ranks". Official Website U.S. Marine Corps. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
12. Bi-SC NCO Guidelines 2017, p. 1.
13. Bi-SC Directive 040-002, pp. 7–8.
14. Bi-SC Directive 040-002, p. 9.
15. Law on Service in the Armed Forces of B&H, pp. 33–34.
16. Law of Ukraine dated 04.06.2020 No. 680-IX.
17. "Ukrainian military ranks replaced with NATO military rank codes". Rubryka. 6 January 2021.
18. "Rank Insignias". Official Website Austrian Armed Forces. 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-06-27. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
19. RDFRA 2021, pp. 42–43.
20. De Barra 2022, pp. 99–100.
21. Pulkki, Arto (30 January 2009). "NATO-Maiden Sotilas- Ja Palvelusarvot" (PDF). Helsingin Reservin Sanomat (in Finnish): 12–13. ISSN 0355-824X. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 23 September 2022.
22. NATO (October 1975). STANAG 2116 (PDF) (3rd ed.). Brussels, Belgium: NATO Standardization Agency. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.

References

• STANAG 2116: NATO Codes for Grades of Military Personnel (7th ed.). Brussels, Belgium: NATO Standardization Office. 13 January 2021.
• NATO Codes For Grades Of Military Personnel. Brussels, Belgium: NATO Standardization Office. 16 June 2022. APersP-01(A)(3).
• NATO Joint Military Symbology. Brussels, Belgium: NATO Standardization Office. 11 October 2023. APP-06(E)(1). Retrieved 11 August 2024.
• NATO Non-Commissioned Officer and Junior Officer Bi-Strategic Command Employment and Development Strategy (PDF). Allied Command Operations, Allied Command Transformation. 19 December 2023. Bi-SC Directive 040-002.
• NATO Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) Bi-Strategic Command Strategy and NCO Guidelines (PDF). Allied Command Operations, Allied Command Transformation. 15 September 2017.
• Zakon o službi u Oružanim snagama Bosne i Hercegovine [Law on Service in the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina] (PDF) (in Bosnian). 5 October 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-06-18. Retrieved 2024-07-04.
• "Zakon Ukrainy vid 04.06.2020 № 680-IX. Pro vnesennia zmin do deiakykh zakonodavchykh aktiv Ukrainy shchodo viiskovykh zvan viiskovosluzhbovtsiv" [Law of Ukraine dated 04.06.2020 No. 680-IX. On amendments to some legislative acts of Ukraine regarding the military ranks of military personnel] (in Ukrainian). Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. 2020. Retrieved 2024-07-04.
• RDFRA submission to the Commission on the Defence Forces (PDF). Reserve Defence Force Representative Association. January 2021.
• De Barra, Ruairi (2022). "From Aspiration to Action. Exploring New Horizons for the Defence Forces Senior Enlisted Leaders" (PDF). Defence Forces review 2022. pp. 97–104.

External links

• "NATO Standard APP-06, NATO Joint Military Symbology (current ed./ver.)". nso.nato.int. STANAG 2019. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
• "NATO Standard APersP-01, NATO Codes for Grades of Military Personnel (current ed./ver.)". nso.nato.int. STANAG 2116. Retrieved 2024-06-30.

• Military ranks of NATO