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As a military service of the United States, the United States Coast Guard follows a naval rank structure similar to the United States Navy. Additionally, certain titles denote specific position responsibilities.

Flag Officers
Flag Officers serve as the senior executives of the United States Coast Guard and hold the ranks of Admiral, Vice Admiral, and Rear Admiral. There are 44 Flag Officers in the U.S. Coast Guard. Flag officers are addressed as "Admiral". There are also 12 civilian executives of the Senior Executive Service, the civilian equivalent of flag officers, that hold senior Coast Guard positions. 

Admiral
The Commandant of the Coast Guard is the only Coast Guard officer with the rank of Admiral. Admiral is pay grade O-10, appreviated as ADM.

Vice Admiral
There are four Vice Admirals in the Coast Guard. Vice-Admiral is pay grade O-9, abbreviated as VADM. They include the Vice-Commandant of the Coast Guard, the Coast Guard Chief of Staff, and the Commanders of Atlantic Area and Pacific Area.

The Vice-Commandant of the Coast Guard is Vice Admiral Vivien S. Crea. The Coast Guard Chief of Staff is Vice Admiral Robert J. Papp, Jr.

The Commander of the Atlantic Area / Defense Force East is Vice Admiral D. Brian Peterman. The Commander of the Pacific Area / Defense Force West is Vice Admiral Charles D. Wurster.

Rear Admiral
There are 39 Rear Admirals in the Coast Guard, composed of both Rear Admiral (Upper Half), which is pay grade O-8 and is abbreviated as RADM, and Rear Admiral (Lower Half), which is pay grade O-7 and is abbreviated as RDML. Nine Rear Admirals serve as District Commanders.

The Superintendent of the United States Coast Guard Academy is Rear Admiral J. Scott Burhoe.

Commodore
The rank of Commodore is no longer used in the regular Coast Guard. The equivalent rank is Rear Admiral (Lower Half) (RDML). The chief elected officers of the Coast Guard Auxiliary are called Commodores (COMO). This is not a military rank, however.

The title of Commodore is occasionally granted to senior officers (typically of pay grade 0-6, which is a Captain) who are placed in command of a group or squadron of cutters. It is not a flag rank, but rather a title used to signify command of multiple units afloat.

Senior officers
Senior officers represent the senior field leadership in the Coast Guard and hold command authority for most day-to-day operations. Senior officers are addressed by their rank.

Captain
Coast Guard [[Captain]s (CAPT) rank immediately below Rear Admiral (Lower Half). Coast Guard Captains command most large operational units -- sectors, large cutters, large air stations, integrated support commands, training centers and large headquarters units.  Captains also direct most headquarters, area and district staff elements.  Most captains have served in the Coast Guard for 21 to 30 years.

By maritime tradition, the commanding officer of a ship is also called "captain," regardless of actual rank held. Thus, a young junior officer commanding a patrol boat is properly called "captain" even if his or her actual rank is Lieutenant, or Lieutenant (Junior Grade). This tradition has also carried over to many shore units. Occasionally, terms like "old man" and "skipper" are also used, though not usually in the presence of the "captain." However, in current usage, the person in charge of a Coast Guard or Coast Guard Auxiliary boat is the "coxswain" (pronounced cok-sun).

Commander
Coast Guard Commanders (CDR) may head departments in large operational units or staff positions, or they may be the Commanding Officer of a medium-sized unit. The term Commander is also associated with specific commanding officer positions, such as District Commander (usually a Rear Admiral) or Sector Commander (usually a Captain).

Junior officers
The other commissioned officer ranks are (from senior to junior)
 * Lieutenant Commander (LCDR)
 * Lieutenant (LT)
 * Lieutenant Junior Grade (LTJG)
 * Ensign (ENS)

A junior officer may be addressed by rank or simply by "Mr." or "Ms."

Chief Warrant Officers
The Coast Guard has three ranks of Chief Warrant Officers. Chief Warrant Officers are commissioned officers and are promoted from senior enlisted ranks. The ranks of Warrant Officer (WO1) and Chief Warrant Officer 5 (CWO5) are not used in the Coast Guard. The three ranks in use are (from senior to junior):
 * Chief Warrant Officer 4 (CWO4)
 * Chief Warrant Officer 3 (CWO3)
 * Chief Warrant Officer 2 (CWO2)

A Chief Warrant Officer is not addressed as "Chief", a title that is normally reserved for the enlisted rank of Chief Petty Officer (E-7). The proper way to address a Chief Warrant Officer is to refer to their title (CWO, CWO3) or to address them as "Mr." or "Ms."

Chief Petty Officers
The most senior enlisted ranks of the Coast Guard are Master Chief Petty Officer (addressed as "Master Chief"), Senior Chief Petty Officer (addressed as "Senior Chief" or simply "Senior"), and Chief Petty Officer (addressed as "Chief).

The Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard (MCPOCG) is the senior enlisted person of the Coast Guard and serves as an advisor to the Commandant. Like the Commandant, the MCPOCG serves a four-year term. The current MCPOCG is Charles (Skip) W. Bowen. The Master Chief of the Coast Guard Reserve is MCPO Jeff Smith.

Chief Petty Officers are the leadership backbones of the Coast Guard. Chiefs are well versed in most areas of service, and the old adage of "go ask the Chief" holds true today. Chiefs are Officers-in-Charge of Motor Lifeboat Stations, act as Executive Petty Officers on Patrol Boats, and keep larger Coast Guard cutters on a true head bearing as Deck Watch Officers.

Petty Officers
Petty Officer inludes individuals in the pay grades E-4 through E-6 and make up the majority of the U.S. Coast Guard. All petty officers are part of a rating or specialty that determine their specific job responsibilities.

Non-Rates
Upon completing basic training many Coast Guardsmen have the rank of Seaman Apprentice (SA) (pay grade E-2) and fill general labor positions ashore and at sea. With time and/or training, SAs can promote to the pay grade E-3 ranks of Seaman (SN), Fireman (FN), or Airman (AN), depending on career intentions. Those in this rank usually have not qualified to be part of a rating yet, so are typically called non-rates.