Military ranks of Brazil
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This article presents the insignia and ranks of the Brazilian military. These ranks originate from those adopted upon Brazil's independence from Portugal in 1822. Nowadays they are defined by Act no. 6880 of December 9, 1980.[1] The following ranks show Brazil's military insignia and its corresponding NATO codes.
Air Force ranks date from 1941, when the Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira) was organized as a merger of the Navy's Aeronaval Force and the Army's Aviation Service.[2]
Rank table
The shoulder epaulette pads from Navy and Air Force indicate both rank and specialty branch. The air force examples below are shown without branch designation marks on the epaulettes, with the exception of the ranks of Air Lieutenant-Brigadier and Air Marshall, which can only be occupied by pilots. Army shoulder pads do not represent branch, as this is indicated elsewhere in the uniform like on the cuff and sleeves of the dress and everyday uniforms.
Officers
All officer ranks differ per service as shown in the colors used in the epaulette pads. The Navy also uses cuff rank insignia like most navies everywhere. The Brazilian Marine Corps, as part of the Navy, uses naval ranks save for its basic enlisted ranks, thus Seamen and Seamen Recruits are called as Privates (Soldado FN) and Recruits (Recruta FN) respectively.
| Brazilian Navy | Brazilian Army | Brazilian Air Force | Brazilian Military Police and Military Firefighters |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Officers and Flag Officers | |||
 OF-10 Grand Admiral (Almirante) Wartime use only |
 OF-10 Marshal (Marechal) Wartime use only |
 OF-10 Marshal of the Air Force (Marechal-do-Ar) Wartime use only |
(No equivalent) |
 OF-9 Admiral (Almirante-de-esquadra) |
 OF-9 General (General-de-exército) |
 OF-9 Air Chief Marshal (Tenente-Brigadeiro-do-Ar) |
(No direct rank equivalent; equates to some senior appointments of Colonel) |
 OF-8 Vice Admiral (Vice-almirante) |
 OF-8 Lieutenant General (General-de-divisão) |
 OF-8 Air Marshal (Major-Brigadeiro) |
(No direct rank equivalent; equates to some senior appointments of Colonel) |
 OF-7 Counter Admiral (Contra-almirante) |
 OF-7 Major General (General-de-brigada) |
 OF-7 Air Vice Marshal (Brigadeiro) |
(No direct rank equivalent; equates to some senior appointments of Colonel) |
| Senior Officers | |||
 OF-5 Captain of Sea and War (Capitão-de-mar-e-guerra) |
 OF-5 Colonel (Coronel) |
 OF-5 Colonel (Coronel) |
 Colonel (Coronel) |
 OF-4 Frigate Captain (Capitão-de-fragata) |
 OF-4 Lieutenant Colonel (Tenente-coronel) |
 OF-4 Lieutenant Colonel (Tenente-coronel) |
 Lieutenant Colonel (Tenente-coronel) |
 OF-3 Corvette Captain (Capitão-de-corveta) |
 OF-3 Major (Major) |
 OF-3 Major (Major) |
 Major (Major) |
| Intermediary Officers | |||
 OF-2 Captain Lieutenant (Capitão-tenente) |
 OF-2 Captain (Capitão) |
 OF-2 Captain (Capitão) |
 Captain (Capitão) |
| Subaltern Officers | |||
 OF-1 First Lieutenant (Primeiro-tenente) |
 OF-1 First Lieutenant (Primeiro-tenente) |
 OF-1 First Lieutenant (Primeiro-tenente) |
 First Lieutenant (Primeiro-tenente) |
 OF-1 Second Lieutenant (Segundo-tenente) |
 OF-1 Second Lieutenant (Segundo-tenente) |
 OF-1 Second Lieutenant (Segundo-tenente) |
 Second Lieutenant (Segundo-tenente) |
| Special non-commissioned officers[3] | |||
 OF-D Midshipman (Guarda-marinha) |
 OF-D Aspirant Officer (Aspirante-a-oficial) |
 OF-D Aspirant (Aspirante) |
 Aspirant Officer (Aspirante-a-oficial) |
Non-commissioned ranks / Enlisted grades
| Brazilian Navy | Brazilian Army | Brazilian Air Force | Brazilian Military Police and Military Firefighters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-commissioned ranks | |||
 Sub-officer (Suboficial) |
 Sublieutenant (Subtenente) |
 Sub-officer (Suboficial) |
 Sublieutenant (Subtenente) |
Brazilian Army
| First Sergeant (primeiro-sargento) |
Second Sergeant (segundo-sargento) |
Third Sergeant (terceiro-sargento) |
Corporal (cabo) or Senior Specialist (taifeiro-mor) |
Soldier (soldado) or Specialist (taifeiro) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |  |
Brazilian Navy
| First Sergeant (primeiro-sargento) |
Second Sergeant (segundo-sargento') |
Third Sergeant (terceiro-sargento) |
Corporal (cabo) | Seaman (marinheiro), or Marine Corps Private (Soldado Fuzileiro Naval) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |  |
Brazilian Air Force
| First Sergeant (primeiro-sargento) |
Second Sergeant (segundo-sargento) |
Third Sergeant (terceiro-sargento) |
Corporal (cabo) or Senior Specialist (taifeiro-mor) |
Airman (soldado) or Specialist (taifeiro) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |  |
Brazilian Military Police
| First Sergeant (primeiro Sargento) |
Second Sergeant (segundo Sargento) |
Third Sergeant (terceiro Sargento) |
Corporal (cabo) |
Soldier (soldado) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |
|
See also
Notes
- ↑ Act no. 6880 of December 9, 1980.
- ↑ Instituto Histórico e Cultural da Aeronáutica, História geral da aeronáutica brasileira, v. 3
- ↑ As treated by Act 6880/1980, the "special non-commissioned officers" listed here are non-commissioned officers that are on their way to become full-fledged commissioned officers. As such, in most instances they are treated the same as subaltern officers and take on basically the same tasks. As a rule, however, special non-commissioned officers do not take on command jobs.
External links
- Brazilian Ministry of Defence Ministério da Defesa (in Portuguese)
- Military Orders and Medals from Brazil (in Portuguese)
