General of the Air Force (United States)

General of the Air Force (GAF)[1] is a five-star general officer rank and is the highest possible rank in the United States Air Force. General of the Air Force ranks immediately above a general and is equivalent to General of the Army in the United States Army and fleet admiral in the United States Navy; there is no established equivalent five-star rank in the other four uniformed services (Marine Corps, Coast Guard, PHSCC, and NOAA Corps). The General of the Air Force rank is not currently active.

Contents

History

The insignia for General of the Army and General of the Air Force were originally the same. The insignia for General of the Air Force was slightly modified in the 1950s for wear on the new blue Air Force dress uniform. The insignia of General of the Air Force, however, has never been worn by an officer of the present day (1947 - ) Air Force on active duty. Public Law 333 of the 79th Congress changed the five-star rank to a permanent grade, and established that officers placed on the retirement list while in that grade would receive full pay and allowances (under Public Law 282 first establishing this grade, retirement had been at 75 per centum).

The only person to hold the rank of General of the Air Force has been Henry H. Arnold. Arnold was a General of the Army (promoted 21 December 1944 under Public Law 282 of the 78th Congress) and was placed on the retired list on 30 June 1946 while the United States Army Air Forces were a component of the U.S. Army. On 7 May 1949, under Public Law 58 of the 81st Congress, his rank was re-designated General of the Air Force, and Arnold was photographed in an Air Force uniform wearing the insignia of that rank.

During the Cold War, with the rise of the Strategic Air Command, it was proposed but not authorized by law that General of the Air Force be granted to General Curtis LeMay, with the rank continued for use and granted to such senior generals such as the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, the commander of the Strategic Air Command (SAC) and the commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). As a result, General of the Air Force can be seen on modern insignia charts and it is still considered an official rank of the United States Air Force.

Equivalent Ranks

The Air Force's rank of General of the Air Force is equivalent to the U.S. Army's rank of General of the Army and the U.S. Navy's rank of fleet admiral.

The United States' rank of General of the Air Force is equivalent to the air force rank of marshal of the Air Force in other countries.

See also

References

  1. ^ Professional Development Guide, Air Force Pamphlet 36-2241 dated 1 July 2009, Randolph AFB, TX

Sources

Pay Grade / Branch of Service Officer
Candidate		 O-1 O-2 O-3 O-4 O-5 O-6 O-7 O-8 O-9 O-10 O-11 (special) O-12 (special) O-12 (historical)
Approximate insignia (no universal insignia)
Air Force CDT / OT 2d Lt 1st Lt Capt Maj Lt Col Col Brig Gen Maj Gen Lt Gen Gen GAF[1] [3] [3]
Army CDT / OC 2LT 1LT CPT MAJ LTC COL BG MG LTG GEN GA[1] GAS[1] GAS[1]
Marine Corps Midn / Cand 2ndLt 1stLt Capt Maj LtCol Col BGen MajGen LtGen Gen [3] [3] [3]
Navy MIDN / OC ENS LTJG LT LCDR CDR CAPT RDML RADM VADM ADM FADM[1] AN[1] [3]
Coast Guard CDT / OC ENS LTJG LT LCDR CDR CAPT RDML RADM VADM ADM [3] [3] [3]
Public Health Service [3] ENS LTJG LT LCDR CDR CAPT RADM RADM VADM ADM [3] [3] [3]
National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration		 [3] ENS LTJG LT LCDR CDR CAPT RDML RADM VADM[1]
 [2] [3] [3] [3]
Grade is inactive; requires Congressional approval for re-activation [1]
Grade is authorized by the U.S. Code for use but has not been created [2]
Grade has never been created or authorized [3]
W-1 W-2 W-3 W-4 W-5
Air Force WO1[1] CWO2[1] CWO3[1] CWO4[1] CWO5[1]
Army WO1 CW2 CW3 CW4 CW5
Marine Corps WO1 CWO2 CWO3 CWO4 CWO5
Navy WO1[1] CWO2 CWO3 CWO4 CWO5
Coast Guard WO1[1] CWO2 CWO3 CWO4 [2]
Public Health Service [2] [2] [2] [2] [3]
National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration		 [3] [3] [3] [3] [3]
Grade inactive [1]
Grade is authorized for use by U.S. Code but has not been created [2]
Grade never created or authorized [3]