Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

Johan Norlén (born 22 January 1971) is a

Swedish Navy The Swedish Navy () is the maritime service branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet (), formally sometimes referred to as the Royal Navy () – as well as marine units, the Amph ...

officer. He currently serves as Chief of Navy. Norlén became a naval officer in 1994 and has held various roles aboard surface combat ships and within military staffs. He pursued advanced studies in France and Sweden, including at the ''

École de Guerre École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * Éco ...

'' and the

Swedish Defence University The Swedish Defence University (, FHS) is situated on Drottning Kristinas väg 37 in Östermalm, Stockholm City Centre, next to the campus of the Royal Institute of Technology. History Today's Swedish Defence University marks the latest devel ...

. Promoted to captain in 2020 and rear admiral (lower half) in 2023, he served in key leadership positions, including commanding the 31st Corvette Division and later acting as a military adviser at the

Ministry for Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral rela ...

. On 14 November 2024, he became Chief of Navy, succeeding Rear Admiral Ewa Skoog Haslum.

Early life

Norlén graduated from Lerums gymnasium in

Lerum Lerum is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Lerum Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 43 570 inhabitants in 2024. Overview Lerum has a station on the Gothenburg commuter rail system and is a suburb of Gothenburg ...

in 1990.

Career

Norlén became a naval officer in 1994 and served in various roles aboard surface combat ships and within different staffs. He attended the ''

École militaire École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * Éco ...

'' and the '' Ecole de Guerre'' in France. From 2006 to 2008, he studied at the

, earning a bachelor's degree, and later attended the in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

from 2009 to 2010. In March 2016, he assumed command of the 31st Corvette Division (''31. korvettdivisionen'') in

Karlskrona Karlskrona (, , ) is a locality and the seat of Karlskrona Municipality, Blekinge County, Sweden with a population of 66,675 in 2018. It is also the capital of Blekinge County. Karlskrona is known as Sweden's only baroque city and is host to ...

, a position he held until September 2017. During this time, from October 2014 to August 2016, he also served as commanding officer of the corvette . From October 2017 to December 2019, Norlén served as Chief of the Planning Section in the Naval Staff. On 1 January 2020, he was promoted to captain and assigned to the Materiel and Logistics Division, Defense Logistics Office (''Material- och logistikdivisionen, Försvarslogistikdetaljen'') within the Defence Staff's Plans and Finance Department (LEDS PLANEK) at the

Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters The Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters (, HKV) is the highest level of command in the Swedish Armed Forces. Established in 1994, its primary task is to command operations, but is also involved in areas such as military strategy, the overall devel ...

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

. On 1 December 2021, he was appointed Head of P/G within the same department. In September 2022, Norlén attended the ''

Institut des hautes études de défense nationale An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...

'' and the in Paris, completing his studies there between 2022 and 2023. He was promoted to rear admiral (lower half) on 15 October 2023, and the following day was seconded to the

as a military adviser. On 14 November 2024, Norlén succeeded Rear Admiral Ewa Skoog Haslum as Chief of Navy. The handover ceremony took place at

Berga Naval Base Berga Naval Base () is a naval base of the Swedish Navy located in the Hårsfjärden fjard near Berga, Haninge Municipality, Berga, Haninge Municipality. Today it is the home of the 4th Naval Warfare Flotilla (Sweden), 4th Naval Warfare Flotilla, ...

, during which he was promoted to rear admiral.

Dates of rank

*1994 – Acting sub-lieutenant *?– Sub-lieutenant *? –

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

*? – Lieutenant commander *? –

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

*1 January 2020 –

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

*15 October 2023 –

Rear admiral (lower half) A rear admiral in four of the uniformed services of the United States is one of two distinct ranks of commissioned officers; "rear admiral (lower half)," a one-star flag officer, and "rear admiral" (sometimes referred to as "rear admiral (upper ha ...

*14 November 2024 –

Rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

Awards and decorations

* King Carl XVI Gustaf's Jubilee Commemorative Medal II (23 August 2013) * Seraphimerorden ribbon

H. M. The King's Medal, 8th size gold (silver-gilt) medal worn on the chest suspended by the Order of the Seraphim ribbon (2022) *

For Zealous and Devoted Service of the Realm ribbon

For Zealous and Devoted Service of the Realm * Swedish Armed Forces Conscript Medal * FMintBM bar

Swedish Armed Forces International Service Medal * Order_of_the_Dannebrog_K

Commander of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

United Nations Medal A United Nations Medal is an international decoration awarded by the United Nations (UN) to the various world countries members for participation in joint international military and police operations such as peacekeeping, humanitarian efforts, a ...

(

MINUSMA The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (, MINUSMA) was a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali. MINUSMA was established on 25 April 2013 by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2100 to stabilise ...

)

Honours

*Member of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences (2023) *Member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences () is one of the Royal Academies in Sweden and was founded on 12 November 1796 by Gustaf Wilhelm af Tibell. The academy is an independent organization and a forum for military (army and air force) and de ...

, Department II (22 May 2024)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Norlén, Johan 1971 births Living people Swedish Navy rear admirals Members of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Alumni of military academies in France