General of the Air Force (United States)

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General of the Air Force is the highest rank in the United States Air Force. It is often referred to as a five-star general. It is immediately above the rank of General.

Contents 1 History 2 Modern use 3 Equivalent Ranks 4 See also

[edit] History

Following the establishment of the United States Air Force in 1947, the Air Force rank of General of the Air Force was established as an equivalent to the Army rank of General of the Army. The insignia for General of the Army and General of the Air Force were originally the same. The insignia for General of the Air Force was slightly modified in the 1950s for wear on the new blue Air Force dress uniform. General of the Air Force, however, has never been worn by an officer of the modern Air Force on active duty.

The only person to hold the rank of General of the Air Force was Henry H. Arnold. Arnold was a General of the Army and retired when the Army Air Force (AAF) was a component of the U.S. Army. But on May 7, 1949 he was awarded the rank of General of the Air Force after his retirement, and was photographed in an Air Force uniform wearing the insignia of that rank.

During the Cold War, with the rise of the Strategic Air Command, it was proposed that General of the Air Force be reestablished and granted to senior Air Force generals, such as the commander of NORAD. As a result, General of the Air Force can still be seen on modern insignia charts and it is still considered an official rank of the United States Air Force.

[edit] Modern use

This rank is only used in time of war where the commanding officer must be equal to or of higher rank than those commanding armies/air forces from other nations. The only officer to hold this rank served during and immediately following World War II.

[edit] Equivalent Ranks

The Air Force's rank of General of the Air Force is equivalent to the U.S. Army's rank of General of the Army and the U.S. Navy's rank of Fleet Admiral.

The United States' rank of General of the Air Force is equivalent to the Air Force rank of Marshal of the Royal Air Force in other countries.

[edit] See also

• List of United States four-star officers
• List of United States Air Force four-star generals
• List of United States military leaders by rank
• United States Air Force officer rank insignia

Image:Flag of the United States.svg U.S. commissioned officer ranks
	Student Officer	O-1	O-2	O-3	O-4	O-5	O-6	O-7	O-8	O-9	O-10	Special (wartime only)	Special (post war honor only)
		Image:US-OF1B.svg	Image:US-OF1A.svg	Image:US-OF3.svg	Image:US-OF4.svg	Image:US-OF5.svg	Image:Colonel insignia.svg	Image:US-OF7.svg	Image:US-OF8.svg	Image:US-OF9.svg	Image:US-OF10.svg	Image:US-OF11.svg
Army:	CDT/OC	2LT	1LT	CPT	MAJ	LTC	COL	BG	MG	LTG	GEN	GA	General of the Armies
Marine Corps:	Midn	2ndLt	1stLt	Capt	Maj	LtCol	Col	BGen	MajGen	LtGen	Gen	(no equivalent)	(no equivalent)
Navy:	MIDN/OC	ENS	LTJG	LT	LCDR	CDR	CAPT	RDML	RADM	VADM	ADM	FADM	Admiral of the Navy
Air Force:	Cadet (CDT)/OT	2nd Lt	1st Lt	Capt	Maj	Lt Col	Col	Brig Gen	Maj Gen	Lt Gen	Gen	Gen of the Air Force	(no equivalent)
Coast Guard:	CDT	ENS	LTJG	LT	LCDR	CDR	CAPT	RDML	RADM	VADM	ADM	(no equivalent)	(no equivalent)
PHSCC:	(no equivalent)	ENS	LTJG	LT	LCDR	CDR	CAPT	RDML	RADM	VADM	ADM	(no equivalent)	(no equivalent)
NOAA Corps:	(no equivalent)	ENS	LTJG	LT	LCDR	CDR	CAPT	RDML	RADM	VADM	(no equivalent)	(no equivalent)	(no equivalent)

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