Air Chief Marshal

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Air Chief Marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a senior air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force (RAF).^[1] The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. Officers in the rank of Air Chief Marshal typically hold appointments such as the air force or armed forces commander in those nations which have significant military capability. An Air Chief Marshal may be described generically as an "Air Marshal".

Contents 1 Seniority 2 Origins 3 RAF usage 4 Other air forces 4.1 English-speaking countries 4.1.1 Royal Australian Air Force 4.1.2 Royal Canadian Air Force 4.2 Use in non-English-speaking countries 5 Notable air chief marshals 6 See also 7 References and notes

[edit] Seniority

Air Chief Marshal is a 4 star rank and has a NATO ranking code of OF-9. An Air Chief Marshal is equivalent to a full Admiral or a full General.

The rank of Air Chief Marshal is immediately senior to the rank of Air Marshal but subordinate to Marshal of the Royal Air Force (or other national equivalent - see Marshal of the Air Force). Although no RAF officer has been promoted to Marshal of the Royal Air Force since the British defence cuts of the 1990s, British Air Chief Marshals are not the most senior officers in the RAF as several retired officers continue to retain the RAF's highest rank. Equally, in the Indian Air Force, the honorary promotion of Arjan Singh to Marshal of the Indian Air Force in 2002 resulted in Indian Air Chief Marshals no longer being the most senior IAF officers.

Common military ranks
Navies1	Armies2	Air Forces3
Admiral of the Fleet	Field Marshal	Marshal of the Air Force
Admiral	General	Air Chief Marshal
Vice Admiral	Lt. General	Air Marshal
Rear Admiral	Major General	Air Vice-Marshal
Commodore	Brigadier	Air Commodore
Captain	Colonel	Group Captain
Commander	Lt. Colonel	Wing Commander
Lt. Commander	Major	Squadron Leader
Lieutenant	Captain	Flight Lieutenant
Sub-Lieutenant	Lieutenant	Flying Officer
Warrant Officer	Sergeant Major	Warrant Officer
Petty Officer	Sergeant	Sergeant
Leading Rate	Corporal	Corporal
Seaman	Private	Aircraftman
1 in the English-speaking world          2 also some Air Forces 3 In many Commonwealth countries

[edit] Origins

Prior to the adoption of RAF-specific rank titles in 1919, it was suggested that the RAF might use the Royal Navy's officer ranks, with the word "Air" inserted before the naval rank title. For example, the rank that later became Air Chief Marshal would have been Air Admiral. The Admiralty objected to any use of their rank titles, including this modified form, and so an alternative proposal was put forward: Air Officer ranks would be based on the term "Ardian", which was derived from a combination of the Gaelic words for "chief" (ard) and "bird" (eun), with the unmodified word "Ardian" being used specifically for the equivalent to full Admiral and General. However, Air Chief Marshal was preferred and was adopted on 1 August 1919. The rank was first used on 1 April 1922.

[edit] RAF usage

In the RAF, the rank of Air Chief Marshal is held by the current Chief of the Air Staff and the Commander-in-Chief of Air Command. Additionally, RAF officers serving in British 4 star rotational posts hold the rank.

The rank insignia consists of three narrow light blue bands (each on a slightly wider black band) over a light blue band on a broad black band. This is worn on the both the lower sleeves of the service dress jacket or on the shoulders of the flying suit or the casual uniform. The command flag for an RAF Air Chief Marshal is defined by the two broad red bands running through the centre of the flag. The vehicle star plate for an RAF Air Chief Marshal depicts four white stars (Air Chief Marshal is equivalent to a four star rank) on an air force blue background.

An RAF Air Chief Marshal's sleeve/shoulder insignia

An RAF Air Chief Marshal's command flag

An RAF Air Chief Marshal's star plate

[edit] Other air forces

[edit] English-speaking countries

The rank of Air Chief Marshal is also used in the air forces of many countries which have English as an official language and were under British influence around the time their air force was founded. This includes many the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. Officers have served in the rank of Air Chief Marshal in the Indian Air Force, Pakistan Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force, Sri Lanka Air Force and the Air Force of Zimbabwe. It is also maintained as a rank in the Bangladesh Air Force, Ghana Air Force, Nigerian Air Force and Royal New Zealand Air Force but not all of these air forces have ever actually used it.

[edit] Royal Australian Air Force

Main article: Air Chief Marshal (Australia)

In Australia, this rank is only used when the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF) is an Air Force Officer.^[2] When this is not the case, the senior ranking Air Force officer is the Chief of Air Force, an Air Marshal.

[edit] Royal Canadian Air Force

The Royal Canadian Air Force used this rank until the 1968 unification of the Canadian Forces, when Army-type rank titles after the American pattern were adopted and an Air Chief Marshal became a General.^[3]

[edit] Use in non-English-speaking countries

The rank of Air Chief Marshal is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In such situations, it is sometimes the case that the non-English rank might also be translated as "general". Nonetheless, it is commonly found in English translations relating to officers in the following air forces:

• Egyptian Air Force^{[citation needed]}
• Hellenic Air Force (Greek: Pterarchos)
• Indonesian Air Force (Indonesian: Marsekal - literally just "Marshal")^{[citation needed]}
• Royal Thai Air Force (Thai: Phon Akat Ek)

A Hellenic Air Force air chief marshal's rank insignia

A Royal Thai Air Force air chief marshal's rank insignia

[edit] Notable air chief marshals

• Hugh Dowding, commander of Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain.
• Lloyd Samuel Breadner, the first Canadian to hold the rank.^[4]
• Angus Houston, current Chief of the Australian Defence Force.

[edit] See also

• RAF officer ranks
• Ranks of the RAAF
• Comparative military ranks

[edit] References and notes

v • d • e Commissioned Officer ranks of the British Armed Forces
	Student Officer	OF(D)	OF-1		OF-2	OF-3	OF-4	OF-5	OF-6	OF-7	OF-8	OF-9	OF-10
Royal Navy	O Cdt	Mid	SLt		Lt	Lt Cdr	Cdr	Capt	Cdre	RAdm	VAdm	Adm	Adm of the Fleet
Royal Marines			2Lt	Lt	Capt	Maj	Lt Col	Col	Brig	Maj-Gen	Lt Gen	Gen
Army	O Cdt		2Lt	Lt	Capt	Maj	Lt Col	Col	Brig	Maj-Gen	Lt Gen	Gen	FM
Royal Air Force	OC		APO / Plt Off	Fg Off	Flt Lt	Sqn Ldr	Wg Cdr	Gp Capt	Air Cdre	AVM	Air Mshl	Air Chf Mshl	MRAF