Lt. Cmdr.
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Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a
commissioned officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent context ...
rank in many
navies A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It includ ...
. The rank is
superior Superior may refer to: *Superior (hierarchy), something which is higher in a hierarchical structure of any kind Places *Superior (proposed U.S. state), an unsuccessful proposal for the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to form a separate state *Lake ...
to a lieutenant and subordinate to a
commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...
. The corresponding rank in most armies and air forces is
major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
, and in the Royal Air Force and other
Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...
air forces is squadron leader. The NATO rank code is mostly OF-3. A lieutenant commander is a department officer or the
executive officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer, o ...
(
second-in-command Second-in-command (2i/c or 2IC) is a title denoting that the holder of the title is the second-highest authority within a certain organisation. Usage In the British Army or Royal Marines, the second-in-command is the deputy commander of a unit, ...
) on many warships and smaller shore installations, or the
commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...
of a smaller ship/installation. They are also department officers in naval aviation squadrons.


Etymology

Most Commonwealth and other navies address lieutenant commanders by their full rank or the positions they occupy ("captain" if in command of a vessel). The United States Navy, however, addresses officers by their full rank or the higher grade of the rank. For example, oral communications in formal and informal situations, a lieutenant (junior grade) is abbreviated as "lieutenant," and a lieutenant commander is abbreviated as "commander."


Origins

Lieutenants were commonly put in command of smaller vessels not warranting a commander or
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
. Such a lieutenant was called a "lieutenant commanding" or "lieutenant commandant" in the United States Navy, and a "lieutenant in command," "lieutenant and commander," or "senior lieutenant" in the Royal Navy. The USN settled on "lieutenant commander" in 1862 and made it a distinct rank. The RN followed suit in March 1914.


Canada

In the Royal Canadian Navy, the rank is the
naval A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
rank equal to
major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
in the army or air force and is the first senior officer rank. Lieutenant commanders are senior to lieutenants (N) and to army and air force
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
s, and are junior to
commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...
s and
lieutenant colonels Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
.


United Kingdom


Royal Navy

The insignia worn by a Royal Navy lieutenant commander is two medium
gold braid A braid (also referred to as a plait) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing two or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair. The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strande ...
stripes with one thin gold stripe running in between, placed upon a navy blue/black background. The top stripe has the ubiquitous loop used in all RN officer rank insignia, except for the rank of Midshipman. The RAF follows this pattern with its equivalent rank of squadron leader. Having fewer officer ranks than the army, the RN previously split some of its ranks by seniority (time in rank) to provide equivalence: hence a lieutenant with fewer than eight years seniority wore two stripes, and ranked with an army captain; a lieutenant of eight years or more wore two stripes with a thinner one in between, and ranked with a major. This distinction was ostensibly abolished when the rank of lieutenant commander was introduced, although promotion to the latter rank was automatic following accumulation of eight years’ seniority as a lieutenant. Automatic promotion was stopped at the start of the 21st Century and promotion is now only awarded on merit.


Royal Observer Corps

Throughout much of its existence, the British Royal Observer Corps (ROC) maintained a rank of observer lieutenant commander. The ROC wore a Royal Air Force uniform and their rank insignia appeared similar to that of an RAF squadron leader except that the stripes were shown entirely in black. Prior to the renaming, the rank had been known as ''observer lieutenant (first class)''.


United States

In the United States, the rank of lieutenant commander exists in the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps. Within the U.S. Navy, lieutenant commanders are listed as
junior officers Junior officer, company officer or company grade officer refers to the lowest operational commissioned officer category of ranks in a military or paramilitary organization, ranking above non-commissioned officers and below senior officers. The ...
. There are two insignia used by U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard lieutenant commanders. On service khakis and all working uniforms, lieutenant commanders wear a gold oak leaf collar device, similar to the ones worn by
major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
s in the United States Air Force and United States Army, and identical to that worn by majors in the United States Marine Corps. In all dress uniforms, they wear sleeve braid or shoulder boards bearing a single gold quarter-inch stripe between two gold half-inch strips (nominal size). Above or inboard of the stripes, they wear their speciality insignia (i.e., a star for officers of the line, single oak leaf for medical with silver acorn for Medical Corps, crossed oak leaves for Civil Engineer Corps, United States shield for the Coast Guard, etc.) The Uniformed Services of the United States designate the rank as O-4.


Gallery

File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Antigua and Barbuda Coast Guard) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Royal Australian Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Royal Bahamas Defence Force) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Bangladesh Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Barbados Coast Guard The Barbados Coast Guard is the maritime element of the Barbados Defence Force. Its responsibilities include territorial defence, patrolling Barbados' territorial waters and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), as well as conducting maritime law enforce ...
) File:Belize Coast Guard OF-3.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Belize Coast Guard The Belize Coast Guard (until 2016, the Belize National Coast Guard Service) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and the maritime and law enforcement service branch of Belize. The new service began operations with seven impounded Eduar ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg,
( Royal Brunei Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
)
( Royal Canadian Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg,
( Royal Danish Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg,

(
Ethiopian Navy The Ethiopian Navy (), known as the Imperial Ethiopian Navy until 1974, was a branch of the Ethiopian National Defense Force founded in 1955. It was disestablished in 1996 after the independence of Eritrea in 1991 left Ethiopia landlocked. The ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Republic of Fiji Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Gambian Navy The Gambia Armed Forces, also known as the Armed Forces of The Gambia, consists of three branches: the Gambia National Army (GNA), the Gambia Navy, and the Republican National Guard (RNG). It formerly included the Gambia National Gendarmerie (GNG) ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Ghana Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Guyanan Coast Guard) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Indian Navy) File:Generic-Navy-(star)-O4.svg, Lieutenant commander
)
(
Irish Naval Service The Naval Service ( ga, An tSeirbhís Chabhlaigh) is the maritime component of the Defence Forces of Ireland and is one of the three branches of the Irish Defence Forces. Its base is in Haulbowline, County Cork. Though preceded by earlier mar ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Jamaican Coast Guard) File:Generic-Navy-6.svg,
( Latvian Naval Forces) File:Generic-Navy-(star)-O4.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Liberian National Coast Guard The Liberian National Coast Guard is the naval force of Liberia, part of the Armed Forces of Liberia. Its main duties are law enforcement along Liberia's coast and in its maritime area, and aiding those in distress. History The Liberian National C ...
) File:Generic-Navy-6.svg,
( Lithuanian Naval Force) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg,
(
Royal Malaysian Navy The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN, ms, Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia; TLDM; Jawi: ) is the naval arm of the Malaysian Armed Forces. RMN is the main agency responsible for the country's maritime surveillance and defense operations. RMN's area of o ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Namibian Navy The Namibian Navy is the maritime warfare branch of the Namibian Defence Force. History Development of Namibia's navy has been slow, and the force was only formally established on 11 September 1998 as a maritime wing and in 2004 as a fully f ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Royal New Zealand Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Nigerian Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Pakistan Navy ur, ہمارے لیے اللّٰہ کافی ہے اور وہ بہترین کارساز ہے۔ English language, English: Allah is Sufficient for us - and what an excellent (reliable) Trustee (of affairs) is He!(''Quran, Qur'an, Al Imran, 3:173' ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Papua New Guinea Maritime Element) File:Generic-Navy-11.svg,
( Polish Navy) File:Romania-Navy-OF-3-Sleeve.svg,
( Romanian Naval Forces) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Saint Kitts and Nevis Coast Guard The Saint Kitts and Nevis Defence Force is the military of Saint Kitts and Nevis. It currently consists of an infantry unit (the St. Kitts Nevis Regiment) and a maritime unit (the St. Kitts Nevis Coast Guard). Both units having regular and reserv ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Sierra Leone Navy The Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF) are the armed forces of Sierra Leone, responsible for the territorial security of Sierra Leone's borders and defending the national interests of Sierra Leone, within the framework of the 1991 Si ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
South African Navy The South African Navy (SA Navy) is the naval warfare branch of the South African National Defence Force. The Navy is primarily engaged in maintaining a conventional military deterrent, participating in counter-piracy operations, fishery prot ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Sri Lanka Navy) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Tanzania Naval Command The Tanzania Naval Command ( sw, Kamandi ya Jeshi la Majini) is the naval military branch of the Tanzania People's Defence Force (TPDF). It was established in 1971 with assistance from China. History In the years immediately following independ ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Tongan Maritime Force) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
(
Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard The Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force (TTDF) is the military organization responsible for the defence of the twin island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It consists of the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment, the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard, the Tr ...
) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Royal Navy) File:U.S. Navy O-4 insignia.svg, Lieutenant commander
( United States Navy) File:USCG O-4 insignia.svg, Lieutenant commander
( United States Coast Guard) File:Generic-Navy-5.svg, Lieutenant commander
( Vanuatu Maritime Wing)


References

{{US officer ranks, collapse=collapsed Naval ranks Military ranks of Australia Military ranks of Denmark