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Careers: Military--Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard/Officer candidates
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Question
Where do officer candidates fit on the rank ladder in the Air Force? I've heard that technically, they outrank enlisted personnel. I've also heard the opposite.
While I know the easy answer is just to be respectful to everyone, I just want to know the answer for clarity's sake.
Hi Steven,
Officer Candidates *don't* fit into the rank structure. Officer candidates, whether Air Force Academy students, ROTC students, or OTS (Officer Training School Students) are outside of the active duty chain of command. They are "cadets" (officers in training).
Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), they are not authorized to issue orders to anyone, except other cadets.
In the Air Force, the correct term of address for a cadet is "Mr.," or "Miss," or "Cadet." Enlisted personnel are not required (nor expected) to address cadets as "Sir," or "Ma'am," nor are they subject to orders issued by cadets. (In fact, cadets are often subject to orders by enlisted personnel, if the enlisted person is assigned as an instructor for the training program, which is sometimes the case).
Hope this helps!
Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com
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Answers by Expert:
Rod Powers
Expertise
Rod Powers is considered one of the premire experts about U.S. Military career information on the planet. He has more than 30,000 articles about U.S. Military career information on the About.com U.S. Military Careers Information website at: http://usmilitary.about.com. Additionally, he is the author of "ASVAB for Dummies," "ASVAB AFQT for Dummies," (available in Dec 2009), and "Veteran Benefits for Dummies," all published by Wiley Publishing. He is also the author of "Barrons' Guide to Officer Candidate School Tests," published by Barron's Educational Series.
Experience
Rod Powers is a retired Air Force first sergeant, with 23 years of active duty service, 11 of those years as an Air Force First Sergeant. He has helped thousands of military members, recruits, and military applicants since he took over the About.com U.S Military Careers Information site in 1999. He has a reputation for "telling it like it is," so questions may not be answered based on "what you want to hear," but will be answered based of the bast available information, concerning the service/situation.
Education/Credentials
Rod is a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Noncommissioned Officers Academy, the Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and the Air Force First Sergeant Academy. He also holds an Associates Degree in Personnel Administration from the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF).
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