Military ranks of the Philippines
The following list presents the ranks and insignia of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, one of Asia's oldest armed services.
Introduction
The current Philippine military ranks are inspired partially by the very first military insignia used by the military forces during the Philippine Revolution of 1896 and the Philippine–American War, and the insignia used by the Philippine Constabulary raised in 1902 during the final days of the Philippine–American War. The ranks used by these forces were designed by Americans under the tutelage of Captain Henry T. Allen, the "father of the Philippine Constabulary". The original Philippine military ranks are those actually worn by the Philippine Revolutionary Army, the nemesis of the Philippine Constabulary. The Philippine Constabulary is one of the predecessors of the present day Armed Forces of the Philippines. Elements of both the US army ranks and the old Philippine Army appear in the current ranks; this was reflected at the general officers insignia and enlisted ranks that resembled those of the US military, the field officers [like colonels], whose insignia are suns, use those insignia used by general officers of the Revolutionary Army. Company rank insignia[i.e. captain], consisting of a silver triangle, are a recent creation. Both company grade and field grade officer insignia have the baybayin letter ka (K) in the middle, another throwback to the days of the war for independence, and even in the medal used by second-level members of the Katipunan during meetings, in which the letter is in the center.
Revolutionary Army ranks
These were the ranks used from late 1896 to 1898. Ranks were then wore on the sleeves of all uniforms. New rank insignia for the nascent army were created in late 1898.
Officer ranks
Revolutionary Army ranks | Tagalog Name | Spanish Name | Sleeve insignia |
---|---|---|---|
Minister Marshal |
Ministrong Mariskal | Ministro Mariscal | |
Captain General | Kapitan Heneral | Capitán general | |
Lieutenant General | Tenyente Heneral | Teniente General | |
Major General | Magat Heneral | General de Division | |
Brigadier General | Brigadyer Heneral | General de Brigada | |
Colonel | Koronel | Coronel | |
Lieutenant Colonel | Tiniente Koronel | Teniente Coronel | |
Major | Komandante | Comandante | |
Captain | Kapitan | Capitan | |
Lieutenant | Tiniente | Alferez | |
Revolutionary Army enlisted ranks
Air force ranks | Tagalog Name | Spanish Name | Collar insignia | Sleeve insignia |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sergeant | Sarhento | Sargento | ||
Corporal | Kabo | Cabo |
Army and Marine Corps ranks
These are the ranks used by the Philippine Army and Philippine Marine Corps. For officers, Army shoulder insignia are in green on duty dresses and blue and gold on full dresses and Marine Corps shoulder insignia, dark blue on all uniforms. General officer epaulettes are gold on the full dress and in the service color in the duty and everyday dress uniforms.
Officer ranks
Ground forces ranks | Tagalog Name | Spanish Name | Battledress collar insignia (Army and Marines) |
Army Shoulder insignia (Full dress) |
Army Shoulder insignia (Service dress) |
Marine Corps insignia (Full-shoulder and service-collar dress) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
General | Heneral | General | ||||
Lieutenant General | Tenyente Heneral | Teniente General | ||||
Major General | Magat Heneral | General de Division | ||||
Brigadier General | Brigadyer Heneral | General de Brigada | ||||
Colonel | Lakan | Coronel | ||||
Lieutenant Colonel | Kalakan | Teniente Coronel | ||||
Major | Magat | Comandante | ||||
Captain | Kamagat | Capitan | ||||
First Lieutenant | Pulimagat | Teniente | ||||
Second Lieutenant | Himagat | Alferez | ||||
Enlisted Ranks
Army enlisted ranks are in green while those of the Marines are in red with yellow piping. While the Army's enlisted rank insignia are similar to those used by the United States Army in the First World War (without the curve), those used by the Philippine Marine Corps today mirror those used by the United States Marine Corps but with a difference: Master Sergeants and above have special insignia in the chevrons, in recent times they are also the only ones sporting the curved sleeve insignia.
Ground forces ranks | Tagalog Name | Spanish Name | Collar and sleeve insignia (Army) | Collar and sleeve insignia (Marine Corps) |
---|---|---|---|---|
First Chief Master Sergeant | Unang Tsip Master Sarhento | Sargento Maestre Jefe de Primera | ||
Chief Master Sergeant | Tsip Master Sarhento | Sargento Maestre Jefe | ||
Senior Master Sergeant | Senyor Master Sarhento | Sargento Maestre Mayor | ||
Master Sergeant | Master Sarhento | Sargento Maestre | ||
Technical Sergeant | Sargento TĂ©cnico | |||
Staff Sergeant | Sargento del Personal | |||
Sergeant | Sarhento | Sargento | ||
Corporal | Kabo | Cabo | ||
Private First Class | Praybayt ng Unang Klase | Soldado de primera | ||
Private | Praybayt | Soldado | ||
The top FCMS of the Army or the Marines holds the Command Sergeant Major of the Armed Forces of the Philippines appointment.
Air Force ranks
These are the ranks used by the Philippine Air Force. Officer ranks are in air force blue on all shoulder board epaulettes in all uniforms (general officers use gold epaulettes on the full dress only) while enlisted sleeve insignia, formerly on raised chevrons, now uses inverted air force blue chevrons increasing by rank, using the air force roundel.
Officer ranks
Air force ranks | Collar insignia (Battledress) | Shoulder insignia (Full dress) | Shoulder insignia (Everyday/working dress) |
---|---|---|---|
General | |||
Lieutenant General | |||
Major General | |||
Brigadier General | |||
Colonel | |||
Lieutenant Colonel | |||
Major | |||
Captain | |||
First Lieutenant | |||
Second Lieutenant | |||
Air force enlisted ranks
Air force ranks | Spanish Name | Battledress collar insignia | Service sleeve insignia |
---|---|---|---|
First Chief Master Sergeant | Sargento Maestre Jefe de Primera | ||
Chief Master Sergeant | Sargento Maestre Jefe | ||
Senior Master Sergeant | Sargento Maestre Mayor | ||
Master Sergeant | Sargento Maestre | ||
Technical Sergeant | Sargento Tecnico | ||
Staff Sergeant | Sargento de Estado Mayor | ||
Sergeant | Sargento | ||
Airman First Class | Avionero Primero | ||
Airman Second Class | Avionero Segundo | ||
Airman Recruit | Avionero Recluta |
Air Force FCMSs are also eligible for the CSMAFP appointment.
Naval ranks and ratings
These are the ranks and ratings used in the Philippine Navy. All officer insignia use both the United States Navy officer rank insignia system (using a sun instead of the five pointed star or staff corps insignia) and normal AFP rank insignia in the shoulders of the dress and duty whites, on the collars of the khaki uniforms (for officers and CPOs), and on the sleeves of the dress blues. NCO ratings, in raised chevrons increasing by rating, are in dark blue on all uniform sleeves, sleeves of the dungaree uniforms (for lower ranked NCOs and Seamen) and also on dark blue shoulder epaulettes only for senior ratings, which also wear collar insignia in almost all uniforms including the khaki uniform only used for CPOs and above. Chevrons for ratings are similar to those used in the Army and the Marine Corps, with the speciality badge in the middle.
Naval officer ranks
Navy ranks | Tagalog name | Spanish name | Collar insignia (Khaki dress) | Shoulder insignia (Full dress) | Shoulder insignia (Duty dress) | Shoulder insignia (Everyday/working dress) | Sleeve insignia |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Admiral | Admiral | Almirante | |||||
Vice Admiral | Vicealmirante | ||||||
Rear Admiral | Contraalmirante | ||||||
Commodore | Komodor | Comodoro | |||||
Captain | Kapitan | Capitan | |||||
Commander | Kumander | Comandante | |||||
Lieutenant Commander | Tinyente Kumandante | Teniente Comandante | |||||
Lieutenant (senior grade) | Tinyente | Teniente de Navio | |||||
Lieutenant (junior grade) | Tinyente (Mababang baitang) | Teniente de Fragata | |||||
Ensign | Alperes | Alférez de Navio | |||||
Naval enlisted ratings
Naval enlisted ratings | Filipino name | Spanish name | Collar insignia | Sleeve insignia | Shoulder insignia (for senior rank holders only) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
First Master Chief Petty Officer | Maestre Contramaestre Jefe de Primera | ||||
Master Chief Petty Officer | Maestre Contramaestre Jefe | ||||
Senior Chief Petty Officer | Contramaestre Jefe Mayor | ||||
Chief Petty Officer | Contramaestre Jefe | ||||
Petty officer, first class | Contramaestre de Primera | All petty officers and seamen of the Navy sport NO shoulder insignia. | |||
Petty officer, second class | Contramaestre de Segunda | ||||
Petty officer, third class | Contramaestre de Tercera | ||||
Seaman First Class | Marinero de Primera | ||||
Seaman Second Class | Marinero de Segunda | ||||
Seaman | Marinero | ||||