Rear admiral (lower half), abbreviated RAdm (, Fljam; ) is a one-star

flag officer A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark the position from which that officer exercises command. Different countries use the term "flag officer" in different ways: * ...

in the

Swedish Navy The Swedish Navy () is the maritime service branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet (), formally sometimes referred to as the Royal Navy () – as well as marine units, the Amph ...

. Rear admiral (lower half) ranks above

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

and below

rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

. The rank is equivalent to brigadier general in the

Swedish Army The Swedish Army () is the army, land force of the Swedish Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Sweden. Beginning with its service in 1521, the Swedish Army has been active for more than 500 years. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1 ...

Swedish Air Force The Swedish Air Force ( or just ) is the air force Military branch, branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. History The Swedish Air Force was created on 1 July 1926 when the aircraft units of the Army and Navy were merged. Because of the escalatin ...

and the

Swedish Amphibious Corps The Amphibious Corps (, Amf) is the Marines, marine infantry arm of the Swedish Navy, with an emphasis on coastal defence. It has its roots in the Swedish Coastal Artillery, coastal artillery (, KA) but after the end of the Cold War it was seen as ...

History

In 1972, the so-called employment reform (''tjänstställningsreformen'') was implemented. In connection with the

Swedish Armed Forces The Swedish Armed Forces (, literally ''Defence Force'') are the Military, armed forces of the Kingdom of Sweden. It consists of four separate military branches, the Swedish Army, the Swedish Navy, the Swedish Air Force and the Home Guard (Swed ...

' increasing involvement in international operations with UN battalions and observers, it became increasingly clear that the Swedish service system did not quite correspond to what was common in other countries. A Swedish

had basically the same training and service as a

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 ...

in other countries' defense forces. In many cases, a Swedish

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

had tasks that in other armed forces were performed by brigadier generals. During the 1960s, this was solved many times by the Swedish officers being given a higher rank during their service abroad. The Supreme Commander suggested to the Swedish government that the Swedish service system should be changed, so that the captains would receive the rank of major and the majors would receive the rank of lieutenant colonel. He further proposed that a new general, brigadier general, be introduced. The government approved the Supreme Commander's proposal regarding captains and majors. No new general rank was introduced. The motivation for the government not following the Supreme Commander's proposal in this respect was that it did not want to contribute to an increase in the number of generals and admirals in the

. However, the government decided to introduce the rank of ''

kommendör av 1. graden ''Kommendör av 1. graden'' was a senior captain rank of the Swedish Navy, ranking below Rear admiral (Sweden), rear admiral (1972–2000) and Flottiljamiral, rear admiral (lower half) (since 2000), and above Kommendör, captain. History In 1972 ...

'' (

senior captain Senior captain is a rank which is used in some countries' armed forces, navies, merchant marines, civil aviation and in the airline industry. Army In some armies of the world, "senior captain" is a rank between a regular captain and a major. The ...

) for the navy and ''

överste av 1. graden ''Överste av 1. graden'' was a senior colonel rank of the Swedish Army, Swedish Air Force and Swedish Amphibious Corps, ranking below major general (1972–2000) and brigadier general (since 2000), and above colonel. History In 1972, the so ...

'' (

senior colonel __NOTOC__ Senior colonel is an officer rank usually placed between a regular colonel and a British brigadier or American brigadier general. Use Most western militaries tend to equate a senior colonel as being on the level of a "brigadier general ...

) for the army. The reform was implemented on 1 July 1972. During the 1990s, the Swedish government raised the issue of introducing a rank for professional officers called

flotilla admiral Flotilla admiral is the lowest flag rank, a rank above captain, in the modern navies of Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Sweden and Lithuania. It corresponds to the rank of commodore in the navies of the United Kingdom and certai ...

and brigadier general, respectively, and stated there, among other things, the following. For a few years, the Swedish Armed Forces had in various ways announced that they wished to change the current rank level system for professional officers. The idea was that the rank of ''kommendör av 1. graden'' and ''överste av 1. graden'' would be abolished and instead replaced with the rank of rear admiral (lower half) and brigadier general. The reason for this was stated to be that then almost only Sweden did not have this rank. The increased international cooperation was thus considered to have been made more difficult.

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

and

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

had recently introduced the brigadier general's rank. The government stated in the same bill that the issue should be prepared further before a position was taken on the proposal. In 1999, the government stated that the said rank should now be introduced and intended to make changes to the bill (1994:642) with instructions for the Swedish Armed Forces and the Officers Ordinance (1994:882) with effect from 1 July 2000. The rank was finally introduced in 2000 and replaced the old rank of ''kommendör av 1. graden''. Anyone who, according to older regulations, held the rank of ''kommendör av 1. graden'' would continue to hold that rank until otherwise decided. Thus, the rank of ''kommendör av 1. graden'' was placed between the rank of rear admiral and the rank of

. In everyday speech, rear admirals (lower half) are addressed as admirals.

Promotion

Unlike

rear admirals Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by Comparative navy officer ranks of Anglophone countries, English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to ...

vice admirals A vice is a practice, behaviour, habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhealthy habit. Vices a ...

major generals 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 music ...

and

lieutenant generals A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, security services and police forces. The rank ...

, which are appointed by the government, rear admirals (lower half) are appointed by the

themselves. The

Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces The Chief of Defence, formerly the Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces (; acronym: ÖB) is the highest ranked professional military officer in the Swedish Armed Forces, and is by NATO terminology the Sweden, Swedish chief of defence, c ...

, or the person he or she decides, decides on promotion to rear admiral (lower half) according to Chapter 9, Section 1 of FFS 2018:7 (''Swedish Armed Forces' regulations on promotion and constitution'').

Uniform

Shoulder mark

The

shoulder mark A shoulder mark, also called a rank slide or slip-on, is a flat cloth sleeve worn on the shoulder strap of a uniform. It may bear rank or other insignia. A shoulder mark should not be confused with a (an elaborate shoulder strap), a (a brai ...

of a Swedish rear admiral (lower half) contains a 45 mm

galloon Galloon (sometimes spelled galon in British English) is a heavily-decorated woven or braided trim, typically made of, or featuring, gold or silver thread, which may be woven or embroidered. Galloon trim is used in the trim of military and poli ...

m/51 and one 25 mm star m/30 in silver embroidery on a white background. File:OF-6_Flottiljamiral_FL_hylsa.jpg, Shoulder mark

Sleeve insignia

A flag officer wears on the sleeves a 45 mm

(''GALON M/51 45MM K'') and a rank insignia (''GRADBETECKNING M/02 TILL ÄRM FLOTTAN'') (round loop, the Amphibious Corps has a pointed loop in form of a grenade). For a rear admiral (lower half), the loop is directly attached to the 45 mm gallon. File:OF-6_Flottiljamiral_FL_arm.jpg, Sleeve insignia File:US Navy 100819-N-8273J-054 Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Gary Roughead, second from left, poses for a photo prior to boarding the Swedish Navy Visby Corvette HSwMS NYKOPING (cropped).jpg, Rear admiral (lower half) Andreas Olsson showing sleeve insignia

Hats

Peaked cap

A flag officer wears as embellishments a gold embroidered oak leaf wreath (known as

scrambled egg Scrambled eggs is a dish made from eggs (usually chicken eggs), where the whites and yolks have been stirred, whipped, or beaten together (typically with salt, butter or oil, and sometimes water or milk, or other ingredients), then heated so ...

) on the visor of the

peaked cap A peaked cap, peaked hat, service cap, barracks cover, or combination cap is a form of headgear worn by the armed forces of many nations, as well as many uniformed civilian organisations such as law enforcement agencies and fire departments. It d ...

(''skärmmössa m/48''). It also fitted with a hat badge (''mössmärke m/78 off för flottan'') and with a strap in form of a golden

braid A braid (also referred to as a plait; ) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing three or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair. The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strand ...

. File:Ericson, Stig Hson (1955).jpg, Peaked cap worn by Stig H:son Ericson. File:Mössmärke m78 FL Officer.png, Hat badge

Side cap and winter hat

An officer wears a hat badge (''mössmärke m/78 off'') for the navy and another (''mössmärke m/87 off'') for amphibious units on the side cap (''båtmössa m/48'') and on the winter hat (''vintermössa m/87'').

Personal flags

The command flag of a rear admiral (lower half) (and a brigadier general) is a double swallowtailed

Swedish flag The national flag of Sweden () consists of a yellow or gold Nordic cross (i.e. a horizontal cross extending to the edges, with the crossbar closer to the hoist than the fly) on a field of light blue. The Nordic cross design traditionally represe ...

. In the first blue field 1 five-pointed white star. A flag officer who holds the position of Supreme Commander, Chief of Operations, Chief of Navy, Chief of

Maritime Component Command Maritime Component Command (, MTS) was a part of the Joint Forces Command of the Swedish Armed Forces. The staff was located at the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters in Stockholm and is headed by the Chief of Navy. The Maritime Component Comman ...

or naval force commander, may carry an admiral flag on a car in which the commander in question travels in uniform. On airplanes/helicopters, rear admirals (lower half) (flag officers) may carry a command sign in the form of an image of an admiral flag. File:Naval_Rank_Flag_of_Sweden_-_Flottiljamiralsflagga.svg, Rear admiral (lower half)/ Brigadier general flag
(2000–present)

Footnotes

References

Notes

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* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rear admiral (lower half) (Sweden) Military ranks of the Swedish Navy One-star officers sv:Flottiljamiral