Why does the Navy have diff military ranks?

Page 2 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.

LeadMagnet

Platinum Member
Mar 26, 2003
2,348
0
0
Originally posted by: BoomerD
Acause theyz differunt...While the Marines may be a department of the Navy, (the MEN'S department) they serve vastly different roles.




The reason the Marines are on Navy ships is because...




































Sheep are too obvious. :)
 

CorCentral

Banned
Feb 11, 2001
6,415
1
0
Any info on the SeaBees? (lvl back then?)
My dad was a Seabee back in the 50's and he told me not many made it in because of the math tests overall, etc.
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
62,051
10,225
136
Originally posted by: LeadMagnet
Originally posted by: BoomerD
Acause theyz differunt...While the Marines may be a department of the Navy, (the MEN'S department) they serve vastly different roles.




The reason the Marines are on Navy ships is because...



Sheep are too obvious. :)



Yup, but squids serve just as well...although they don't usually smell nearly as good as the sheep...;)
 

QED

Diamond Member
Dec 16, 2005
3,428
3
0
All this Navy/Marines talk reminded me of an old joke my dad (a 26-year Navy vet) used to tell me (although it's older than the hills, and I'm sure has been modified and used by every branch of service ):

In a restaurant just outside of a Navy base, a young boy was playing around in the restroom when a marine in his full dress uniform walked in.

"Wow mister!", exclaimed the boy. "Are you a real marine?"

"Yes, I am!", replied the marine. "Would you like to wear my hat?".

"Thanks, mister!", said the boy, who proudly donned the hat and admired himself in the mirror.

Shortly after the marine entered a stall, a sailor walked in.

"Wow mister!", exclaimed the boy. "Are you a real sailor?".

"Yes, I am!", replied the sailor, staring at the boy's marine hat. "Why, do want to have sex with me?".

"Oh, no!", said the boy. "I'm not really a marine, I'm just wearing his hat."



 

marvdmartian

Diamond Member
Apr 12, 2002
5,541
15
81
Originally posted by: BoomerD
A Navy captain is about the same rank as a Marine Corps Major...maybe a Colonel, depends on the job.


Um.....NO. A marine Major is equivalent to a navy Lt Commander (gold oak leaf). USMC Lt Colonet = Navy Commander (silver oak leaf), and USMC Colonel = Navy Captain (eagles). There's no way a major = captain, in any service.

What you might be thinking of is that on smaller ships, a navy LCDR or CDR can be the commanding officer, oftentimes reffered to as "Captain". Not an official rank, just a label.


Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
If a major outranks a lieutenant why does a lieutenant general outrank a major general?

That goes back to revolutionary war days, when the general rank structures went as such:

1 star = brigadier general
2 stars = sergeant major general
3 stars = lieutenant general
4 stars = general of the army
(for the most part, they didn't wear the stars back then, but I reference it so it's easier for the layman to understand it)

Eventually, the sergeant major general rank was shortened to major general, but kept below the level of a lieutenant general. :)


So far as the Seabees go, they have the same rank structure as the rest of the navy. The non-rated/non petty officer ranks are different, depending on the job they have (or, at least, were 28 years ago, when I enlisted).
Seabees = Constructionman
Engineers = Fireman
Aviation types = Airman
Everyone else = Seaman
and are, in order from E1 to E3, a recruit, an apprentice, then the name listed above (in other words, seabees are Constructionman Recruit, Constructionman Apprentice, then Constructionman).


Oh, and the reason the navy has to give the marines a ride everywhere is because the jarheads kept getting lost........or at least, that was their official excuse for hunting beer! ;)
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
62,051
10,225
136
Originally posted by: marvdmartian
Originally posted by: BoomerD
A Navy captain is about the same rank as a Marine Corps Major...maybe a Colonel, depends on the job.


Um.....NO. A marine Major is equivalent to a navy Lt Commander (gold oak leaf). USMC Lt Colonet = Navy Commander (silver oak leaf), and USMC Colonel = Navy Captain (eagles). There's no way a major = captain, in any service.

What you might be thinking of is that on smaller ships, a navy LCDR or CDR can be the commanding officer, oftentimes reffered to as "Captain". Not an official rank, just a label.


Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
If a major outranks a lieutenant why does a lieutenant general outrank a major general?

That goes back to revolutionary war days, when the general rank structures went as such:

1 star = brigadier general
2 stars = sergeant major general
3 stars = lieutenant general
4 stars = general of the army
(for the most part, they didn't wear the stars back then, but I reference it so it's easier for the layman to understand it)

Eventually, the sergeant major general rank was shortened to major general, but kept below the level of a lieutenant general. :)


So far as the Seabees go, they have the same rank structure as the rest of the navy. The non-rated/non petty officer ranks are different, depending on the job they have (or, at least, were 28 years ago, when I enlisted).
Seabees = Constructionman
Engineers = Fireman
Aviation types = Airman
Everyone else = Seaman
and are, in order from E1 to E3, a recruit, an apprentice, then the name listed above (in other words, seabees are Constructionman Recruit, Constructionman Apprentice, then Constructionman).


Oh, and the reason the navy has to give the marines a ride everywhere is because the jarheads kept getting lost........or at least, that was their official excuse for hunting beer! ;)

Yeah, that's why I put in the bolded bit. I knew a Navy Captain was heavy brass, I just couldn't remember the exact comparison to an officer in the real military...;)

I thought a Navy Captain was an O5, same as a Marine Lt. Colonel though...Marine Colonel is O-6, same as a Navy Rear Admiral. (lower half)
WTF did they get that BS...rear admiral...lower and upper halves? :roll:

Fortunately, I never really had to memorize Navy rates & ranks, but did learn all the appropriate officers "stars & bars" back in the day.
 

ICRS

Banned
Apr 20, 2008
1,328
0
0
Originally posted by: BoomerD
Originally posted by: marvdmartian
Originally posted by: BoomerD
A Navy captain is about the same rank as a Marine Corps Major...maybe a Colonel, depends on the job.


Um.....NO. A marine Major is equivalent to a navy Lt Commander (gold oak leaf). USMC Lt Colonet = Navy Commander (silver oak leaf), and USMC Colonel = Navy Captain (eagles). There's no way a major = captain, in any service.

What you might be thinking of is that on smaller ships, a navy LCDR or CDR can be the commanding officer, oftentimes reffered to as "Captain". Not an official rank, just a label.


Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
If a major outranks a lieutenant why does a lieutenant general outrank a major general?

That goes back to revolutionary war days, when the general rank structures went as such:

1 star = brigadier general
2 stars = sergeant major general
3 stars = lieutenant general
4 stars = general of the army
(for the most part, they didn't wear the stars back then, but I reference it so it's easier for the layman to understand it)

Eventually, the sergeant major general rank was shortened to major general, but kept below the level of a lieutenant general. :)


So far as the Seabees go, they have the same rank structure as the rest of the navy. The non-rated/non petty officer ranks are different, depending on the job they have (or, at least, were 28 years ago, when I enlisted).
Seabees = Constructionman
Engineers = Fireman
Aviation types = Airman
Everyone else = Seaman
and are, in order from E1 to E3, a recruit, an apprentice, then the name listed above (in other words, seabees are Constructionman Recruit, Constructionman Apprentice, then Constructionman).


Oh, and the reason the navy has to give the marines a ride everywhere is because the jarheads kept getting lost........or at least, that was their official excuse for hunting beer! ;)

Yeah, that's why I put in the bolded bit. I knew a Navy Captain was heavy brass, I just couldn't remember the exact comparison to an officer in the real military...;)

I thought a Navy Captain was an O5, same as a Marine Lt. Colonel though...Marine Colonel is O-6, same as a Navy Rear Admiral. (lower half)
WTF did they get that BS...rear admiral...lower and upper halves? :roll:

Fortunately, I never really had to memorize Navy rates & ranks, but did learn all the appropriate officers "stars & bars" back in the day.

0-6 is Naval Captain, Rear Admiral (Lower) is O-7. I believe this use to be refered to as Commondor
 

chusteczka

Diamond Member
Apr 12, 2006
3,400
1
71
The rank of Commodore was originally used for a senior Captain, in charge of a small group of ships. This position was temporary. Commodore became a permanent rank during the American Civil War. Because the Commodore essentially held the position of an Admiral but was not internationally recognized as such by foreign militaries, the Commodore was changed to Rear Admiral in 1899 but without the pay of a Rear Admiral. Thus, the lower pay level created a Lower Half of Rear Admirals.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commodore_(United_States)
Present Day Usage
The Navy no longer maintains a rank of Commodore but the term has survived as a title. Modern-day commodores are senior captains in command of Destroyer/Cruiser/Amphibious Squadrons, Coastal Warfare Groups, Submarine Squadrons, Aircraft Wings, and Naval Construction Regiments. Such officers are referred to, both verbally and in correspondence, as "Commodore," but wear the rank insignia of a captain.
 

marvdmartian

Diamond Member
Apr 12, 2002
5,541
15
81
Commodore was brought back (yes, as an O-7) for a short time in the 80's, then retired back to obscurity in favor of the lower/upper half rear admiral concept again. So it goes:
O-7 = rear admiral lower half
O-8 = rear admiral upper half
O-9 = vice admiral
O-10 = admiral (this is the rank held by the commanders in charge of the major fleets, i.e. CINCPACFLT [commander in chief, pacific fleet] and CINCLANTFLT [commander in chief, Atlantic fleet]). I believe the last person to hold the 5-star admiral rank was Chester Nimitz, during WW2.

And, of course, each service branch has the top enlisted and top officer ranks as well, with pay ranks of E-10 and O-11. In the navy, it's the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (enlisted) and the Chief of Naval Operations (officer). The air force has their Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force (enlisted) and Chief of Staff (officer). Anyone know what the Army & Marine Corps has??
 

Perknose

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
Forum Director
Oct 9, 1999
45,858
8,226
136
Originally posted by: Imp
So confusing. I know my army ranks pretty well. Still no clue on navy.

Don't be so hard on yourself. Give it another decade, don't be afraid to sound out all the words as you do your intensive research, and get back to us in 2018! :laugh:

 

imported_Imp

Diamond Member
Dec 20, 2005
9,148
0
0
Originally posted by: Perknose
Originally posted by: Imp
So confusing. I know my army ranks pretty well. Still no clue on navy.

Don't be so hard on yourself. Give it another decade, don't be afraid to sound out all the words as you do your intensive research, and get back to us in 2018! :laugh:

I'll mark my calendar!