Warrant Officer

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A Warrant Officer (WO) is a member of a military organization holding one of a specific group of ranks. In most countries they are effectively senior non-commissioned officers, although technically in a class of their own between NCOs and commissioned officers. In the military of the United States, however, officers at the Chief Warrant Officer level are in fact commissioned officers and are afforded the same privileges and courtesies, such as terms of address and salutes, as other commissioned officers.

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Australia

Warrant Officers in the Australian Defence Force are the senior non-commissioned ranks.

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Royal Australian Navy

The RAN has two Warrant Officer ranks. The first is Warrant Officer (WO), and is equivalent to an Army Warrant Officer Class One (WO1). The insignia for a WO in the RAN is the Australian coat of arms. Beneath the rank of WO, and equivalent to the Army's WO2 is Chief Petty Officer (CPO).

The RAN also has the more senior rank of Warrant Officer of the Navy (WO-N). It is the most senior non-commissioned rank in the RAN and is also a singular rank. That is, it is only held by one person at any time.

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Australian Army

The Australian Army has three Warrant Officer ranks. The most senior Warrant Officer rank is that of Warrant Officer (WO), introduced in 1991. This rank is held by the Regimental Sergeant Major of the Army (RSM-A). It is the most senior non-commissioned rank in the Australian Army and is only held by one person at a time.

A Warrant Officer Class One (WO1) can hold the position of Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) or Battalion Sergeant Major (BSM) of a battalion or equivalent unit, RSM of a brigade or larger formation, or occasionally a training or administrative position, particularly Quartermaster of a smaller unit. Warrant Officer Class Two (WO2) can hold the position of Company Sergeant Major, Squadron Sergeant Major or Battery Sergeant Major, or a number of training or administrative positions.

Army WO1s can be promoted to Captain, given what is known as a Prescribed Service Commission. It is rare for an officer promoted from WO1 to rise past Major, or to be given a command position.

The insignia of a WO2 is a crown. The insignia of a WO1 is the Australian coat of arms (changed from the royal coat of arms in 1976). The insignia for the RSM-A is the Australian coat of arms surrounded by a wreath. All these are worn on the sleeve on the upper arm.

Warrant Officers in the Army are addressed by subordinates as "Sir" or "Ma'am". They can be addressed by commissioned officers according to their appointment (e.g. "CSM" or "RSM").

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Royal Australian Air Force

The RAAF has two Warrant Officer ranks. The first is Warrant Officer (WOFF) which is equivalent to an Army WO1. The equivalent to the Army's WO2 is Flight Sergeant (FSGT). In day to day operations, however, a FSGT is more often associated with the rank of Sergeant (SGT) than WOFF.

The insignia of a WOFF is the Australian coat of arms.

The senior WO rank is Warrant Officer of the Air Force (WOFF-AF). It is the most senior non-commissioned rank in the RAAF and like the WO-N in the RAN and the RSM-A in the Army, there is only one WOFF-AF in the RAAF.

The insignia of the WOFF-AF is the Australian coat of arms surrounded by a wreath. The wreath denotes the singularity of the rank.

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Canada

In the Canadian Forces, Warrant Officers are the senior non-commissioned member (NCM) ranks. There are three ranks in this group: in the Army and Air Force, they are (in descending order):

Their Naval equivalents are, respectively:

Rank insignia is worn centred on the forearm of the service dress tunic; on other uniforms it is worn on slip-ons affixed to epaulets. An exception is for the Army dress shirt and sweater: miniature metal rank insignia are worn on the shirt collars, and the shirt and sweater slip-ons bear no rank.

A WO of the Canadian Grenadier Guards and the Governor General's Foot Guards is referred to and addressed as Colour Sergeant (CSgt). On ceremonial full dress and patrol dress uniforms, a Colour Sergeant wears a distinctive rank insignia, but on all other uniforms wears the WO's crown.

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Forms of address

The etiquette of addressing Warrant Officers is as follows (assuming a member named Bloggins):

  • Warrant Officer – initially as "Warrant Officer Bloggins" or "Warrant Bloggins", thereafter as "Warrant"; except in foot guards regiments, initially as "Colour Sergeant Bloggins", thereafter as "Colour Sergeant".
  • Petty Officer 1st Class – initially as "Petty Officer Bloggins" or "PO Bloggins", thereafter as "PO".
  • Chief Petty Officer 1st/2nd Class – initially as "Chief Petty Officer Bloggins" or "Chief Bloggins", thereafter as "Chief". The distinction between 1st and 2nd class (for both Chiefs and POs) is usually only made during formal awards, promotions or other presentations.
  • Master Warrant Officer – initially as "Master Warrant Officer Bloggins", thereafter as "Sir" or "Ma'am" by subordinates, and as "Master Warrant Officer" by superiors. May also be addressed as "Sergeant-Major" if s/he holds that appointment.
  • Chief Warrant Officer – initially as "Chief Warrant Officer Bloggins" by subordinates, thereafter as "Sir" or "Ma'am"; "Mr. Bloggins" by superiors; and, if s/he holds the title of Regimental Sergeant-Major, "RSM" by his/her Commanding Officer.
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Usage note

The term "Warrant Officer" can be ambiguous; care must be taken to distinguish between Warrant Officers as a particular Army and Air Force rank, and Warrant Officers as a cadre, consisting of all ranks mentioned above (including Warrant Officer). Generally, whether one is referring to the rank or the cadre will be determined by context.

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Republic of Singapore

In the Singapore Armed Forces, Warrant Officers are former non-commissioned officers (known as Specialists in Singapore) who have served for many years. Warrant Officers rank between specialists and commissioned officers, and can hold both specialist and officer positions. Thus one can see Warrant Officers serving as Regimental Sergeant Majors in certain units and Officers Commanding in other units.

There are four grades of warrant officer:

  • 2nd Warrant Officer (2WO): insignia is a point up chevron, an arc below, and a Singapore coat of arms in the middle
  • 1st Warrant Officer (1WO): insignia is two point up chevrons, an arc below, and a Singapore coat of arms in the middle
  • Master Warrant Officer (MWO): insignia is three point up chevrons, an arc below, and a Singapore coat of arms in the middle
  • Senior Master Warrant Officer (SWO): insignia is four point up chevrons, an arc below, and a Singapore coat of arms in the middle

Although Warrant Officers in the Singapore Armed Forces have a similar status to Warrant Officers in other Commonwealth Armed Forces, they are, unusually, members of the Officers Mess rather than the Specialists (i.e. NCOs) Mess. Warrant Officers wear their insignia on their epaulettes, like officers, instead of on the sleeve like specialists and other soldiers. This signifies that Warrant Officers often have similar responsibilities to commissioned officers.

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United Kingdom

In the British armed forces, a warrant officer is effectively a senior non-commissioned officer, although he or she holds the Queen's (or King's) warrant. Warrant officers are not saluted, but are usually addressed by their juniors as "Sir" or "Ma'am". Warrant officers have all been promoted from NCO rank.

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Royal Navy

The warrant officer corps began in the 13th century in the nascent English Royal Navy. At that time, noblemen with military experience took command of the new Navy, adopting the military ranks of lieutenant and captain. These officers often had no knowledge of life on board a ship—let alone how to navigate such a vessel—and relied on the expertise of the ship's Master and other seamen who tended to the technical aspects of running the ship. As cannon came into use, the officers also required gunnery experts.

These sailors became indispensable to the running of the ship and were rewarded with a royal warrant. The warrant was a special designation, designed to set them apart from other sailors, yet not violate the class system that was prevalent during the time.

Nevertheless, while the class distinctions embodied by the distinction between commission and warrant were important at Court and in society both at home and abroad, on board ship a person's status has always depended more on the practical importance of the job that he did rather than the formalities of commission or warrant. Admiralty commissions were therefore never accorded the unique status that the Queen's commission holds in the Army, and in the hierarchy of a Royal Navy ship important warrant officers such as the Master would outrank commissioned officers such as the marine Lieutenants.

Originally, warrant officers were as described at the top of this article: specialist professionals whose expertise and authority demanded formal recognition. They eventually developed into three categories:

  • Wardroom warrant officers
  • Standing warrant officers
  • Lower-grade warrant officers
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Wardroom Warrant Officers

Wardroom warrant officers, formerly called "Warrant Officers of Wardroom Rank", were accorded the same privileges as commissioned officers.

  • The Master, like a master of a merchant ship, responsible for the navigation and general sea-handling of the ship.
  • The Surgeon
  • The Chaplain
  • The Purser, responsible for the provisioning of the ship.

It may be noted that the positions listed above are equivalent to commissioned positions in the modern Royal Navy (i.e. navigating officer, surgeon, chaplain and supply officer).

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Standing Warrant Officers

The standing warrant officers generally remained with the ship even when she was out of commission, and often were involved in the initial fit-out.

  • The Boatswain, (pronounced bo'sun) responsible, under the master, for the rigging, sails and anchors of the ship.
  • The Carpenter
  • The Gunner, responsible for the maintenance of the guns, but not the actual firing of them.

The carpenter was rendered obsolete with the end of wooden sailing ships, but the roles of boatswain and the gunner in the Royal Navy are now carried out by commissioned officers.

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Lower-Grade Warrant Officers

Below the standing warrant officers were various warrant officers, such as the Master-at-Arms, the Sailmaker and the Armourer, although in the hierarchy of the ship these warrant officers might be junior to others who did not hold formal warrants, such as the master's mates or the midshipmen.

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The demise of the Royal Naval warrants

In 1843, the wardroom warrant officers were given commissioned status, while the lower-grade warrant officers were absorbed into the new rate of Chief Petty Officer in 1853. Standing warrant officers were first given wardroom status in the late 19th century, and by the time of the Second World War these had been divided into two grades: Warrant Officers and Commissioned Warrant Officers (strictly not warrant officers, but "Commissioned Officers from Warrant Rank"). Until 1949, WOs and CWOs carried swords, were saluted by ratings, had wardroom privileges and ranked above midshipmen.

WOs and CWOs ceased to be appointed from 1949, with the CWOs being regraded as Sub-Lieutenants (Special Duties) from 1956.

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Warrant Officers today

In 1973, warrant officers reappeared in the Royal Navy, but these appointments followed the Army model, with the new warrant officers being ratings rather than officers. They were initially known as Fleet Chief Petty Officers (FCPOs), but were renamed Warrant Officers in the 1980s. They always ranked with Warrant Officers Class I in the British Army and Royal Marines and with Warrant Officers in the Royal Air Force.

In 2004, the RN renamed the top rate Warrant Officer Class 1 and created the new rate of Warrant Officer Class 2 immediately below it, to replace the appointment of Charge Chief Petty Officer. The latter was a senior Chief Petty Officer, but not a substantive rank in its own right. Only those who held the specific appointment of Charge Chief Artificer (a CCPO in a skilled technical trade) gained partial recognition as NATO OR-8 equivalent, as with other WO2s.

Royal Navy warrant rates are thus now the same as those in the Army and Royal Marines, and wear the same rank insignia. Like RM WO2s (but unlike Army WO2s), all RN WO2s wear the crown-in-wreath variation of the rank insignia.

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Royal Marines

The Royal Marines originally followed the pre-1949 Royal Navy system of warrant officers, but now has the same warrant ranks as the Army, Warrant Officer Class 1 and Warrant Officer Class 2. The insignia are the same, but all RM WO2s wear the crown-in-wreath variation. As in the Army, all warrant officers have appointments by which they are known, referred to and addressed.

WO2 appointments are:

WO1 appointments are:

The rank below WO2 is Colour Sergeant, the RM equivalent of Staff Sergeant.

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British Army

In the British Army, there are two warrant ranks, Warrant Officer Class 2 (WO2) and Warrant Officer Class 1 (WO1), which is the senior of the two. It used to be more common to refer to these ranks as WOII and WOI (using Roman instead of Arabic numerals). The rank immediately below WO2 is Staff Sergeant.

Every warrant officer has an appointment, and is usually referred to by his appointment rather than by his rank.

Warrant officers were generally introduced throughout the British Army under Army Order 70 of 1915, although Regimental Sergeant Majors and a few other appointments (beginning in 1879, when Conductors of Stores and Supplies were warranted), had been warranted before that time. These earlier warranted appointments, and some others, became WOIs. The appointments that were designated WOIIs had previously been senior sergeants. Image:UK-Army-OR9.gif WO1s wear a royal coat of arms on the lower sleeve, which may be surrounded by a wreath depending on appointment. Appointments held by WO1s include: Image:UK-Army-OR9.png

Image:UK-Army-OR8a.gif WO2s wear a crown on the lower sleeve, surrounded by a wreath for Quartermaster Sergeants (for all WOIIs from 1938 to 1947). Appointments held by WO2s include: Image:UK-Army-OR8b.gif

From 1938, there was also a rank of Warrant Officer Class III. The only appointments held by this rank were Platoon Sergeant Major, Troop Sergeant Major and Section Sergeant Major. The WOIII wore a crown on his lower sleeve (which is why all WOIIs switched to a crown in a wreath during this period). The rank was placed in suspension in 1940 and no new appointments were made, but it was never officially abolished.

WOs are officially designated using their rank and appointment. For instance, WO2 (CSM) Smith or WO1 (BM) Jones. However, they would usually be referred to as "CSM Smith" and "Bandmaster Jones". WO2s holding Sergeant Major or Corporal Major appointments are often referred to as the "Sergeant Major" or the "Corporal Major", but WO1s are only ever referred to using their full appointment or its abbreviation (the "RSM" or the "Garrison Sergeant Major", for instance).

How warrant officers are addressed depends, as does much else in the British Army, on the traditions of their regiments or corps. However, there are some general rules of thumb:

  • WO1s are usually addressed as "Mr [surname]" by officers and by their peers, and as "sir" or "Mr [surname], sir" by their subordinates (for female WO1s, "Mrs or Miss [surname]", "ma'am", and "Mrs or Miss [surname], ma'am", respectively);
  • an RSM's Commanding Officer, and he alone, has the privilege of addressing him as "RSM"; all others use the normal form of address for WO1s;
  • WO2s are commonly addressed as "Sergeant Major", "Corporal Major" or "Q" (for Quartermaster Sergeants) as appropriate (or as "sir" or "ma'am").

The four most senior warrant officer appointments in the British Army are generally considered to be, in descending order of seniority:

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Royal Air Force

Image:RAFwo.jpg The Royal Air Force inherited the ranks of Warrant Officer Class I and II from the Royal Flying Corps, part of the Army, in 1918. It also inherited the rank badges of the Royal Arms and a crown respectively. Until the 1930s, these ranks were often known as Sergeant Major 1st and 2nd Class. In 1939 the RAF abolished the rank of WOII and retained WOI as simple Warrant Officer, which it remains to this day. The RAF has no equivalent to WO2 (NATO OR-8), WO being equivalent to WO1 (NATO OR-9) and wearing the Royal Arms. Warrant officers are addressed and referred to as "Mr", "Mrs" or "Miss" ("Mr Smith" etc), or as "sir" or "ma'am" by their juniors. They do not have appointments as in the Army or Royal Marines. They rank above Flight Sergeants and below Pilot Officers, the lowest commissioned rank. Image:RAFMastAircrew.jpg In 1946, the RAF renamed its aircrew warrant officers Master Aircrew, a designation which still survives. In 1950, it renamed warrant officers in technical trades Master Technicians, a designation which only survived until 1964.

Template:UK enlisted ranks

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United States

In the United States military, a warrant officer was originally, and strictly, a highly skilled, single-track specialty officer. But as many chief warrant officers assume positions as officer in charge or department head, along with the high number of bachelor's and master’s degrees held within the community, their contribution and expertise as a community is ever-increasing.

There are no "warrant officers" per se in the U.S. Navy, but rather the term "chief warrant officer" is correct. In the U.S. Navy, a sailor must be in one of the top three enlisted ranks to be eligible to become a chief warrant officer. In the U.S. Army, a person can progress to the warrant officer rank at a grade lower than E-7 thus having a longer career and greater opportunity to serve and grow. In the U.S. Marine Corps, after serving at least eight years of enlisted service, and reaching the grade of E-5 (sergeant), an enlisted Marine can apply for the Warrant Officer program.

Warrant officers in the U.S. Marines are sometimes informally referred to as "gunner," a term of respect similar to the informal "gunny" moniker frequently given to enlisted Gunnery Sergeants. The term is derived from one of the original functions of a warrant officer, that being the command of a gunnery or artillery detachment, although it is no longer technically accurate as warrant officers can and do hold a wide variety of billets. Although commonly used, "gunner" is traditionally reserved only for artillery and infantry weapons chief warrant officers.

Upon the initial appointment to WO1 a warrant is given by the secretary of the service, and upon promotion to chief warrant officer (CW2 and above) they are commissioned by the President of the United States, take the same oath and receive the same commission and charges as commissioned officers, thus deriving their authority from the same source.

Chief warrant officers can and do command detachments, units, activities, and vessels as well as lead, coach, train, and counsel subordinates. As leaders and technical experts, they provide valuable skills, guidance, and expertise to commanders and organizations in their particular field.

Even when commissioned, they remain specialists, in contrast to commissioned officers who are generalists, though many chief warrant officers fill lieutenant and lieutenant commander billets throughout the US Navy.

In the U.S. Army and U.S. Marines, CWOs may fill positions normally held by more senior officers as well. The US Army has many pilots within the warrant officer community, which differs in philosophy from the other uniformed services. Often in a battalion sized unit, the military personnel technician (adjutant), medical technician, and maintenance technician are warrant officers.

Each branch of the military "runs" the "Chief Warrant Officer" program in slightly different ways. Little is known or published concerning the chief warrant officer, and consequently they are often misunderstood by the un-indoctrinated.

A chief warrant officer's benefits and privileges are the same as those of a commissioned officer depending on warrant officer grade. Warrant Officers are paid closely to commissioned officer pay grades but because they normally have more years in service, their pay is often higher. A WO1 is paid slightly higher than an O-1 (second lieutenant or ensign), a CW2 is paid roughly the same as an O-3/O-4 (captain/major), a CW3 is paid approximately the same salary as an O-4/O-5 (major/lieutenant colonel), and a CW4 is paid roughly the same as an O-5/O-6 (lieutenant colonel/colonel).

In the United States Navy and United States Coast Guard one must have been a senior enlisted (E7 through E-9) to gain the commission.

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Air Force

Image:USAFWarrant.jpg The United States Air Force no longer employs warrant officers.

The USAF inherited warrant officer ranks from the U.S. Army at its inception in 1947, but their place in the Air Force structure was never made clear. When Congress authorized the creation of two new senior enlisted ranks in the late 1950s, Air Force officials privately concluded that these two new "supergrades" could fill all Air Force needs then performed at the warrant officer level, although this was not publicly acknowledged until years later. The Air Force stopped appointing warrant officers in 1959, the same year the first promotions were made to the new top enlisted grade, Chief Master Sergeant. Most of the existing Air Force warrant officers entered the commissioned officer ranks during the 1960s, but tiny numbers continued to exist for the next 21 years.

The last active duty Air Force warrant officer, CWO James H. Long, retired in 1980 and the last Air Force Reserve warrant officer, CWO Bob Barrow, retired in 1992. Since that point, the U.S. Air Force rank of Warrant Officer has been considered obsolete.

Perhaps an unintended result, the absence of warrant officers in the U.S. Air Force has made its enlisted structure somewhat "top-heavy" and the lower non-commissioned officer ranks can find promotions difficult to achieve at times.

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Army

The Army Warrant Officer program began with the warranted Headquarters Clerk in 1896. Over the years since the inception of the Warrant Officer corps, there have been a number of changes. In the past, the Army Warrant Officer was described as the unit's technical expert. Warrant Officers had served in senior NCO billets and then had been selected, often as a direct appointment, to serve as a Warrant Officer due to a demonstrated level of technical excellence. As opposed to other officers, who are expected to be more generalists and managers, Warrant Officers were expected to serve in one field for a career in mostly an advisory capacity. As the corps has evolved, more Warrant Officers are taking over the more traditional roles of officers in that they can be found leading troops, detachments and other units.

Today, approximately half of Army Warrant Officers serve as helicopter pilots. The other half of the corps serve in what are known as technical billets. In fact there is a different promotion track for aviation and technical Warrant Officers - aviation W.O.s must wait six years after promotion to be considered in the primary zone for promotion to the next level, whereas W.O.s in technical fields such as ordnance, maintenance, intelligence, and even aviation repair, need only wait five years.

The Army's Warrant Officer Candidate School is currently colocated with the Warrant Officer Career Center on Fort Rucker, Alabama.

Army Warrant Officers are officially addressed as either Mr. or Ms., although the informal and technically incorrect "Chief" is widely used.

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Marine Corps

The U.S. Marine Corps has warranted officers since 1916 as technical specialists who perform duties that require extensive knowledge, training and experience with particular systems or equipment. Marine warrant officers are selected from the ranks of non-commissioned officers and given additional training in leadership and management. The duties Marine warrant officers typically fulfill are those that would normally call for the authority of a commissioned officer, however, require an additional level of technical proficiency and practical experience that a commissioned officer would not have had the opportunity to achieve.

While Marine warrant officers may often be informally referred to as "gunner", this title is actually reserved for a special category of chief warrant officers known as the "Marine Gunner," or "Infantry Weapons Officer." These Marines serve as the senior weapons specialists in an infantry unit, advising the commanding officer and his staff on the proper use and deployment of the current Marine infantry weapon systems. The title "Gunner" is almost always used in lieu of a rank (i.e., "Gunner Smith" as opposed to "Chief Warrant Officer Smith"), and the rank insignia worn on the right collar or shoulder is replaced with a "bursting bomb", similar to the insignia inside the rank chevrons of a Master Gunnery Sergeant.

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Navy

In the U.S. Navy, warrant officers are technical specialists whose skills and knowledge were an essential part of the proper operation of the ship. Based on the British model, the U.S. Navy has had warrant officers among its ranks, in some form or another, since December 23, 1775, when John Berriman received a warrant to act as purser aboard the brig USS Andrea Doria. That warrant was considered a patent of trust and honor but was not considered a commission to command.

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Coast Guard

The Warrant Officers in the U.S. Coast Guard are similar to those in the Navy, but may be found in command of smaller stations. They wear insignia of their Navy equivalents, but add a shield above the specialty mark, as do Coast Guard Officers on Navy uniforms. It should be noted that the Coast Guard does not fall under the Department of Defense, but rather the Department of Homeland Security.

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Insignia

Abbreviation Paygrade and Rank Army Navy / Coast Guard Marine Corps
WO1 (USA) / WO (USMC) W1 - Warrant Officer 1 Image:USA WO 1.png Image:USNWarrant1.jpg Discontinued 1975 Image:USMC WO 1.png
CW2 (USA) / CWO2 (USN/USMC) W2 - Chief Warrant Officer 2 Image:USA CWO 2.png Image:USN-CG CWO 2.png Image:USMC CWO 2.png
CW3 (USA) / CWO3 (USN/USMC) W3 - Chief Warrant Officer 3 Image:USA CWO 3.png Image:USN-CG CWO 3.png Image:USMC CWO 3.png
CW4 (USA) / CWO4 (USN/USMC) W4 - Chief Warrant Officer 4 Image:USA CWO 4.png Image:USN-CG CWO 4.png Image:USMC CWO 4.png
CW5 (USA) / CWO5 (USN/USMC) W5 - Chief Warrant Officer 5 Image:ModernUSAWarrant.jpg Image:W5-clr.gif Image:Wo5-sb.gif Established 2002 Image:USMC CWO 5.png

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See also

Unites States Congressional Budget Office study on Warrant and Limited Duty Officers

http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/32xx/doc3287/WarrantOfficer.pdf

http://www.cbo.gov/showdoc.cfm?index=3287&sequence=0&from=0#anchor

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References

  1. DoD Almanac. The United States Military Officer Rank Insignia. United States Department of Defense.
  2. Australian Defence Force badges of rank. [1]de:Warrant Officer
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