Alikersantti (
Undersergeant in Swedish) is the lowest
Finnish non-commissioned officer military rank.
Alikersantti is one rank above a
Korpraali (
Lance-Corporal) and one below a
Kersantti (
Sergeant
Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...
). A holder of this rank is typically a squad leader, assistant squad leader, gun section leader or a fighting vehicle commander.
Obtaining the rank
Conscripts are first given basic military training for 2 months. About 30% are selected for NCO training (''aliupseerikoulu'' or ''AUK''), which lasts 4 months. Most ''alikersantti''s are posted to companies for squad leader duty. This is the most common conscript leader rank. Additionally, in many specialist branches with a 12-month service the rank is given automatically and the ''alikersantti'' is not given a command, e.g. assistant mechanic (''apumekaanikko'') in the Air Force.
It is also the highest rank that can be given to a soldier that has not completed any NCO course.
History and related ranks
See also
*
Finnish military ranks
The Military ranks of Finland are the military insignia used by the Finnish Defence Forces. The ranks incorporates features from Swedish, German, and Russian armed forces. In addition, the system has some typically Finnish characteristics that are ...
References
Military ranks of Finland
Military insignia
{{mil-rank-stub
fi:Alikersantti
