Tag: junior officer

A junior officer is a member of the lower echelons among commissioned officers, ranking above warrant officers and below senior officers. Commissioned officers are the senior portion of a military force, whose authority stems from a commission received from the head of state. Strictly speaking, only commissioned officers are actual officers, but the term "commissioned officer" is used to distinguish them from lower ranks to whom the term "officer" may also be applied; those are warrant officers, who are designated by warrant, and non-commissioned officers, senior enlisted who have received authority through promotion.

For tagging purposes, a junior officer holds any of the following three ranks, or their equivalents:

• Imperial Japanese 少尉 (shoui), Japanese SDF 3尉 / 三尉 (san'i), North Atlantic Treaty Organization code OF-1 (lower part).
• Imperial Japanese 中尉 (chuui), Japanese SDF 2尉 / 二尉 (nii), North Atlantic Treaty Organization code OF-1 (upper part).
• Imperial Japanese 大尉 (taii), Japanese SDF 1尉 / 一尉 (ichii), North Atlantic Treaty Organization code OF-2.

Their English-language equivalents include:

• Shoui/san'i: ensign or midshipman (navy), second lieutenant (army), second lieutenant or pilot officer (air force).
• Chuui/nii: lieutenant junior grade or sub-lieutenant (navy), lieutenant or first lieutenant (army), lieutenant or first lieutenant or flying officer (air force).
• Taii/ichii: lieutenant (navy), captain (army), captain or flight lieutenant (air force).

Please note that, due to overlap in meanings for the names of certain ranks in English (such as different forces using the same names for different ranks, or the words also holding meanings that are unrelated to the ranks themselves), foreign dubs and subs are generally not considered valid sources on military ranks; please refer to the original audio instead.