US_Navy_030611-N-3160B-003_Signalman_Seaman_Adrian_Delaney_practices_his_semaphore

Signalman was a U.S. Navy

rating A rating is an evaluation or assessment of something, in terms of quality, quantity, or some combination of both. Rating or ratings may also refer to: Business and economics * Credit rating, estimating the credit worthiness of an individual, ...

for sailors that specialized in visual communication. See

Signaller A signaller, signalman, colloquially referred to as a radioman or signaleer in the armed forces is a specialist soldier, sailor or airman responsible for military communications. Signallers, a.k.a. Combat Signallers or signalmen or women, are ...

for more about the roles of Signalmen.

United States usage

U.S. Navy

signal lamp Signal lamp training during World War II A signal lamp (sometimes called an Aldis lamp or a Morse lamp) is a semaphore system using a visual signaling device for optical communication, typically using Morse code. The idea of flashing dots and da ...

(also called an Signal Searchlight) is a visual signaling device for

optical communication Optical communication, also known as optical telecommunication, is communication at a distance using light to carry information. It can be performed visually or by using electronic devices. The earliest basic forms of optical communication date ...

In the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

, "signalman" (nicknamed "Sigs", "Flags", or "Skivvy Waver") was a job field combining both visual communications, and advanced lookout skills. While there was certainly a Signalman rating before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

(the Signalman rating is one of the oldest in the Navy), a specialized Signalman rating was established shortly after the war. Then, Signalmen were identified by the symbol of two crossed semaphore flags on the left sleeve of the uniform, integrated with their rank insignia. Signalmen were responsible for transmitting, receiving, encoding, decoding, and distributing messages obtained via the visual transmission systems of

flag semaphore Flag semaphore (from the Ancient Greek () 'sign' and - (-) '-bearer') is a semaphore system conveying information at a distance by means of visual signals with hand-held flags, rods, disks, paddles, or occasionally bare or gloved hands. Informa ...

, visual

Morse code Morse code is a method used in telecommunication to encode text characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations, called ''dots'' and ''dashes'', or ''dits'' and ''dahs''. Morse code is named after Samuel Morse, one ...

, and flaghoist signalling. The U.S. Navy disestablished the rating of Signalman in late 2003, reassigning visual communications duties to the Quartermaster rating. Signalmen were either absorbed into the

Quartermaster Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land armies, a quartermaster is generally a relatively senior soldier who supervises stores or barracks and distributes supplies and provisions. In ...

rating, or allowed to switch to other job fields in the Navy.Signalmen Shine a Fading Light
Story Number: NNS031114-17, Journalist Seaman Mark A. Catalano, USS Theodore Roosevelt Public Affairs, 2003-11-14 Many chose the

Master-at-Arms A Master-at-Arms (US: MA; UK & some Commonwealth: MAA) may be a naval rating, responsible for law enforcement, regulating duties, security, anti-terrorism/force protection (AT/FP) for/of a country's navy; an army officer responsible for physical ...

rating, which expanded dramatically to meet the needs of the Navy in the

War on Terror The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant ...

Australian usage

Royal Australian Navy

Signalman was a trade category in use by the

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister o ...

until its amalgamation with the Radio Operator category in 1999. This new category, known as Communications and Information Systems, has retained traditional means of transmitting and receiving messages, such as flashing light and flags.

Australian Army

In the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (CA), who ...

, a Signalman (or "sigs") is an Other Rank (OR) that specialises in varied forms of

communication Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inqui ...

. All signalmen are part of the Royal Australian Corps of Signals. Signalmen have a worn rank of Private.

British usage

British Army

In the British Army's

Royal Corps of Signals The Royal Corps of Signals (often simply known as the Royal Signals – abbreviated to R SIGNALS or R SIGS) is one of the combat support arms of the British Army. Signals units are among the first into action, providing the battlefield commun ...

, a private soldier's rank is a ''Signalman''. Non-Royal Signals operators are referred to as

s; this is a qualification and not a rank.

References

Military ranks Military ranks of Ireland {{mil-rank-stub