NATO OF-5
The NATO code for the top field officer grade, colonel and naval captain.
Overview
OF-5 is the summit of field rank: colonel in armies, captain in navies, group captain in Commonwealth air forces. Officers at this grade command brigades in some configurations, major warships, air wings, and senior staff divisions. The NATO code reconciles the famous captain collision: a naval OF-5 captain outranks an army OF-2 captain by three full grades, which the code makes obvious at a glance. STANAG 2116 lists all member mappings. Above OF-5 the officer enters general and flag rank, with command of thousands and a star on the shoulder, so OF-5 is the last grade before the pyramid narrows to the select few.
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