, short: KptLt/in lists: KL, ( or ''lieutenant captain'') is an officer grade of the captains' military hierarchy group () of the modern German . The rank is rated

OF-2 A NATO standard grade scale is used by the NATO and its partners for the purpose of comparing military ranks across the member nations militaries, as well as for a number of administrative tasks. Rank codes NATO maintains a "standard rank sc ...

STANAG 2116
/ref> in

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

, and equivalent to in the Heer and

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

. It is grade A11 or A12 in the pay rules of the Federal Ministry of Defence. The rank first appeared in the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

and continued in use through the Weimar Republic and into the

Third Reich Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

Address

In line with ZDv 10/8, the formal manner of addressing people with the rank is "''Herr/Frau Kapitänleutnant''". However, in German tradition and in line with seamen's language, the title is abbreviated to "''Herr/Frau Kaleu''" in verbal communication (contemporary usage). Historically, in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

, the abbreviation spoken was "''Herr Kaleun''".

Rank and assignment

The

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

's rank of

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 ...

is equal to in NATO's military hierarchy (classed as OF-2). However, German Navy might be assigned to the so-called "line officer career" (de: Truppendienstlaufbahn or Truppendienstoffizier) or "officer specialist career" (de: Fachdienstlaufbahn or Fachdienstoffizier, officially: Offizier des militärfachlichen Dienstes). Its rank insignia, worn on the sleeves and shoulders, are one golden five-pointed star above two golden stripes with one half stripes between them (without the star when rank loops are worn).

Line Officer career

A (line officer) may command smaller ships (e.g. submarine class 206A, minehunter class 332) or serve as principal warfare officer on larger warships, giving the rank responsibilities more along those of a Lieutenant commander in the U.S. or Royal navies. The sequence of ranks (top-down approach) in that particular group is as follows: *OF-5:

Kapitän zur See Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The rank is equal to the army rank of colonel and air force rank of group captain. Equivalent ranks worldwide include ...

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German language, German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Colonel. It is currently used by both the Army, ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, a ...

*OF-4: /

Oberstleutnant () (English: Lieutenant Colonel) is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to lieutenant colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, ...

*OF-3:

Korvettenkapitän (; ) is the lowest ranking Field officer, senior officer in the German navy. Germany Korvettenkapitän, short: KKpt/in lists: KK, () is the lowest senior officer military rank, rank () in the German Navy. Address The official manner, in li ...

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

*OF-2: /

Officer Specialist career

might be a senior officer specialist

rank A rank is a position in a hierarchy. It can be formally recognized—for example, cardinal, chief executive officer, general, professor—or unofficial. People Formal ranks * Academic rank * Corporate title * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy ...

, comparable to US

warrant officer Warrant officer (WO) is a Military rank, rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ...

, however, junior to . Military people of the "line officer career" skip over the rank , by regular promotion from (OF-2) to

(OF-3). The sequence of ranks (top-down approach) in that particular group is as follows: *OF-2a: /

Stabshauptmann () is a German language variant of senior captain. History Historically, a rank named "Stabshauptmann" (also: "Stabskapitän") existed in several German armies in the 18th century. However, while the modern Stabshauptman is a Senior Captain sen ...

*OF-2b: / *OF-1a: / *OF-1b:

Leutnant zur See is a military rank, used in a number of navies. Belgium Germany (''Lt zS'' or ''LZS'') is the lowest officer rank in the German Navy, grouped as OF1 in NATO. The rank was introduced in the German Imperial Navy by renaming the former ...

Leutnant () is the lowest junior officer rank in the armed forces of Germany ( Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the military of Switzerland. History The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") from Middle High German «locum ...

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kapitanleutnant Naval ranks of Germany