Lieutenant commander
{{Short description|Commissioned officer rank}}
{{Navalranks}}
{{Military ranks}}
Lieutenant Commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr,{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/28070/TriserviceOfficersRetiredPayandGratuitiesAFPS75.pdf |title=Triservice Officers Pay and Grade |access-date=25 April 2013 |publisher=UK Government |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055052/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/28070/TriserviceOfficersRetiredPayandGratuitiesAFPS75.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016}} LtCdr.,{{cite web |url=http://forsvaret.dk/LoyalMariner05/eng/News/Pages/2005-04-19vidar.aspx |title=A Dane giving the orders |access-date=25 April 2013 |publisher=Admiral Danish Fleet |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022211424/http://forsvaret.dk/LoyalMariner05/eng/News/Pages/2005-04-19vidar.aspx |archive-date=22 October 2013}} LCDR,{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.mil/navydata/nav_legacy.asp?id=266 |title=US Navy Ranks |access-date=2013-04-25 |publisher=United States Navy |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502085531/http://www.navy.mil/navydata/nav_legacy.asp?id=266 |archive-date=2 May 2013}}{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.gov.au/about/organisation/uniform-ranks |title=Uniform Ranks |access-date=25 April 2013 |publisher=Royal Australian Navy |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150124133502/http://www.navy.gov.au/about/organisation/uniform-ranks |archive-date=24 January 2015}} or LCdr{{cite web |title=Royal Canadian Navy ranks and badges |date=2023-08-30 |work=Department of National Defence (Canada) |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/services/defence/caf/military-identity-system/navy-ranks.html#step4 |access-date=2023-11-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230427104457/https://www.canada.ca/en/services/defence/caf/military-identity-system/navy-ranks.html#step4 |archive-date=2023-04-27 |url-status=live}}) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank in most armies and air forces is major, and in the Royal Air Force and other Commonwealth air forces is squadron leader. It is roughly equivalent to the Corvette Captain rank in central European countries and the Captain 3rd rank rank in eastern European/CIS countries.
The NATO rank code is mostly OF-3.{{cite web |url=http://www.militaria.lv/stanag.htm |title=NATO Standard Agreement (STANAG) 2116: NATO Codes for Grades of Military Personnel |date=13 March 1996 |publication-date=25 February 2010 |work=NATO standardization agreement |publisher=NATO Standardization Agency |edition=5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110901032935/http://www.militaria.lv/stanag.htm |archive-date=1 September 2011 |url-status=live |access-date=13 July 2017 }}
A Lieutenant Commander is a department officer or the executive officer (second-in-command) on many warships and smaller shore installations, or the commanding officer of a smaller ship/installation.{{cite web |url=https://www.federalpay.org/military/navy/lieutenant-commander |title=United States Navy - O-4 Lieutenant Commander |access-date=22 May 2017 |publisher=FederalPay.org |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180508013312/https://www.federalpay.org/military/navy/lieutenant-commander |archive-date=8 May 2018}} They are also department officers in naval aviation squadrons.
Protocol
Some navies address Lieutenant Commanders by their full rank or the positions they occupy ("captain" if in command of a vessel).
In the British Royal Navy, United States Navy and Commonwealth Navies however, officers are addressed by their full rank if their full name is being used, or the higher grade of the rank if the officer is being addressed or referred to in shorthand. Therefore Lieutenant Commander John Smith Royal Navy is addressed as "Commander" or "Commander Smith", and referred to as "Commander Smith".{{cite web|url=http://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/reference/milpersman/5000/Documents/5000-010.pdf |title=MILPERSMAN 5000-010 |date=22 Aug 2002 |publisher=U.S. Navy |access-date=28 June 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161006095700/http://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/reference/milpersman/5000/Documents/5000-010.pdf |archive-date=6 October 2016}}Debrett's Correct Form: An Inclusive Guide to Everything from Drafting Wedding Invitations to Addressing an Archbishop. (1976). United Kingdom: Debrett's Peerage Limited. pp172
Famous examples of this are:
- Lieutenant Commander Lionel Crabb Royal Navy who in conversation, biopics, Admiralty correspondence and even statements in Parliament by the Prime Minister is almost invariably referred to as “Commander Crabb”.{{cite web|url= https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1956/may/14/the-case-of-commander-crabb|title= THE CASE OF COMMANDER CRABB (Hansard, 14 May 1956)}}
- Acting Temporary Lieutenant Commander Ewen Montagu RNVR, who is routinely referred to as "Commander Montagu" in historical and contemporary records, and in interviews by his colleagues on Operation Mincemeat. {{cite web|url= https://www.thetimes.com/article/jean-leslie-qx0k0hrrm85|title= Jean Leslie Obituary, The Times}} Note how in her interviews she always refers to Montagu as "Commander Montagu"
Origins
Lieutenants were commonly put in command of smaller vessels not warranting a commander or captain. Such a lieutenant was called a "lieutenant commanding" or "lieutenant commandant" in the United States Navy, and a "lieutenant in command", "lieutenant and commander", or "senior lieutenant" in the Royal Navy. The USN settled on "lieutenant commander" in 1862 and made it a distinct rank. The RN followed suit in March 1914.{{cite web |title=Lieutenant Commander mokong Ibana |url=http://www.history.navy.mil/trivia/triv4-5g.htm |access-date=6 October 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090527232842/http://www.history.navy.mil/trivia/triv4-5g.htm |archive-date=27 May 2009}}
Canada
{{Main|Lieutenant-commander (Canada)}}
In the Royal Canadian Navy, the rank of lieutenant-commander (LCdr) is the naval rank equal to major in the army or air force and is the first senior officer rank. Lieutenant commanders are senior to lieutenants (N) and to army and air force captains, and are junior to commanders and lieutenant colonels.
United Kingdom
=Royal Navy=
{{Main|Lieutenant commander (Royal Navy)}}
The insignia worn by a Royal Navy lieutenant commander is two medium gold braid stripes with one thin gold stripe running in between, placed upon a navy blue/black background. The top stripe has the ubiquitous loop used in all RN officer rank insignia, except for the rank of Midshipman. The RAF follows this pattern with its equivalent rank of squadron leader.
Having fewer officer ranks than the army, the RN previously split some of its ranks by seniority (time in rank) to provide equivalence: hence a lieutenant with fewer than eight years seniority wore two stripes, and ranked with an army captain; a lieutenant of eight years or more wore two stripes with a thinner one in between, and ranked with a major. This distinction was ostensibly abolished when the rank of lieutenant commander was introduced, although promotion to the latter rank for officers on a full career commission (FCC) was automatic following accumulation of eight years' seniority as a lieutenant. Automatic promotion officially ceased in the early 21st century and promotion is ostensibly now only awarded on merit.
=Royal Observer Corps=
Throughout much of its existence, the British Royal Observer Corps (ROC) maintained a rank of observer lieutenant commander. The ROC wore a Royal Air Force uniform and their rank insignia appeared similar to that of an RAF squadron leader except that the stripes were shown entirely in black. Prior to the renaming, the rank had been known as observer lieutenant (first class).
United States
{{Main|Lieutenant commander (United States)}}
In the United States, the rank of lieutenant commander exists in the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps.
Within the U.S. Navy, lieutenant commanders are listed as junior officers. There are two insignia used by U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard lieutenant commanders. On service khakis and all working uniforms, lieutenant commanders wear a gold oak leaf collar device, similar to the ones worn by majors in the United States Air Force and United States Army, and identical to that worn by majors in the United States Marine Corps. In all dress uniforms, they wear sleeve braid or shoulder boards bearing a single gold quarter-inch stripe between two gold half-inch strips (nominal size). Above or inboard of the stripes, they wear their speciality insignia (i.e., a star for officers of the line, single oak leaf for medical with silver acorn for Medical Corps, crossed oak leaves for Civil Engineer Corps, United States shield for the Coast Guard, etc.) The Uniformed Services of the United States designate the rank as O-4.{{cite web|url=http://www.defenselink.mil/prhome/poprep2000/html/chapter4/chapter4_2.htm|title=United States Department of Defense |website=www.defenselink.mil |access-date=8 May 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041230015239/http://www.defenselink.mil/prhome/poprep2000/html/chapter4/chapter4_2.htm |archive-date=30 December 2004}}
Gallery
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Antigua and Barbuda Coast Guard){{cite web |title=Paratus |author1=Antigua & Barbuda Defence Force |url=http://abdf.gov.ag/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/ABDF_mag_2011.pdf |publisher=Regional Publications Ltd. |access-date=2 March 2020 |pages=12–13 |archive-date=7 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220607174320/http://abdf.gov.ag/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/ABDF_mag_2011.pdf |url-status=dead }}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Royal Australian Navy){{cite web |title=Badges of rank |url=https://www.defence.gov.au/images/Badges_of_rank.pdf |website=defence.gov.au |publisher=Department of Defence (Australia) |access-date=31 May 2021}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Royal Bahamas Defence Force){{cite web |title=OFFICER RANKS |url=http://rbdf.gov.bs/officer/ |website=rbdf.gov.bs |publisher=Royal Bahamas Defence Force |access-date=14 January 2021}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Bangladesh Navy){{cite web |author1=Bangladesh Navy |title=Rank of Navy & Equivalent Rank |url=https://www.navy.mil.bd/Rank-of-Navy-&-Equivalent-Rank |website=navy.mil.bd |access-date=27 May 2021}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Barbados Coast Guard)
File:Belize Coast Guard OF-3.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Belize Coast Guard)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|{{lang|ms|Leftenan komander}}
(Royal Brunei Navy){{cite web |title=Admiralty Ranks |url=https://navy.mindef.gov.bn/Site%20Pages/Admiralty%20Ranks.aspx |website=navy.mindef.gov.bn |publisher=Royal Brunei Navy |access-date=1 September 2021}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant-commander
{{small|({{langx|fr|Capitaine de corvette}})}}
(Royal Canadian Navy){{cite web |title=Ranks and appointment |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/services/defence/caf/military-identity-system/rank-appointment-insignia.html |website=canada.ca |date=23 November 2017 |publisher=Government of Canada |access-date=28 May 2021}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|{{lang|da|Kaptajnløjtnant}}
(Royal Danish Navy)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|{{lang|am|ሌፍተናንት ኮማንደር}}
{{lang|am|Lēfitenaniti komanideri}}
(Ethiopian Navy)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Republic of Fiji Navy)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Gambian Navy)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Ghana Navy)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Guyanese Coast Guard)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Indian Navy){{cite web |title=Ranks & Insignia |url=https://www.joinindiannavy.gov.in/en/about-us/ranks-insignia.html |website=Join Indian Navy |access-date=12 April 2021}}
File:Generic-Navy-(star)-O4.svg|Lieutenant commander
{{small|({{langx|ga|Lefteanant-cheannasaí}})}}
(Irish Naval Service){{cite web |title=Naval Service Rank Markings |url=http://www.military.ie/fileadmin/user_upload/images/Info_Centre/Posters/rank_markings/NS_Rank_Markings.png |website=military.ie |publisher=Defence Forces (Ireland) |access-date=26 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160425021602/http://www.military.ie/fileadmin/user_upload/images/Info_Centre/Posters/rank_markings/NS_Rank_Markings.png |archive-date=25 April 2016}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Jamaican Coast Guard){{cite web |title=BADGES OF RANK |url=https://www.jdfweb.com/badges-of-rank/ |website=Official Jamaica Defence Force Website |access-date=16 November 2019 |date=2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200820143541/https://www.jdfweb.com/badges-of-rank/ |archive-date=20 August 2020}}
File:Generic-Navy-6.svg|{{lang|lv|Komandleitnants}}
(Latvian Naval Forces){{cite web |title=Pakāpju iedalījums |url=https://www.mil.lv/lv/aktivais-dienests/dienesta-gaita/dienesta-pakapes/pakapju-iedalijums |website=mil.lv/lv |publisher=Latvian National Armed Forces |access-date=26 May 2021 |language=lv}}
File:Generic-Navy-(star)-O4.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Liberian National Coast Guard){{cite web |url=http://www.vertic.org/media/National%20Legislation/Liberia/LR_Defense%20Act%20of%202008.pdf |title=Defense Act of 2008 |date=3 September 2008 |page=8 |access-date=20 November 2017}}
File:Generic-Navy-6.svg|{{lang|lt|Komandoras leitenantas}}
(Lithuanian Naval Force){{cite web |title=Karių laipsnių ženklai |trans-title=Marks of soldiers |url=http://kariuomene.kam.lt/lt/kariuomenes_atributika/kariu_laipsniu_zenklai_3554.html |website=kariuomene.kam.lt |publisher=Ministry of National Defence (Lithuania) |access-date=26 May 2021 |language=lt}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|{{lang|ms|Leftenan komander}}
(Royal Malaysian Navy){{cite web |title=Pangkat |url=http://www.mafhq.mil.my/index.php/my/mengenai-kami/kerjaya/pangkat |website=mafhq.mil.my |publisher=Malaysian Armed Forces |access-date=4 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200429231449/http://www.mafhq.mil.my/index.php/my/mengenai-kami/kerjaya/pangkat |archive-date=29 April 2020 |language=ms}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Namibian Navy){{cite magazine |title=Government Notice |magazine=Government Gazette of the Republic of Namibia |date=20 August 2010 |volume=4547 |pages=99–102 |url=http://www.lac.org.na/laws/2010/4547.pdf |access-date=20 December 2021}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Royal New Zealand Navy){{cite web |title=Badges of Rank |url=https://www.nzdf.mil.nz/corporate-documents/badges-of-rank/ |website=nzdf.mil.nz |publisher=New Zealand Defence Force |access-date=11 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200703193648/https://www.nzdf.mil.nz/corporate-documents/badges-of-rank/ |archive-date=3 July 2020}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Nigerian Navy){{cite book |author-last1=Smaldone |author-first1=Joseph P. |editor-last1=Metz |editor-first1=Helen Chapin |editor-link=Helen Chapin Metz |title=Nigeria: a country study |series=Area Handbook |date=1992 |publisher=Library of Congress |location=Washington, D.C. |lccn=92009026 |pages=296–297 |edition=5th |url=https://www.loc.gov/resource/frdcstdy.nigeriacountryst00metz_0/?sp=340 |access-date=21 October 2021 |chapter=National Security}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Pakistan Navy){{cite web |title=LIFE IN PN:RANKS |url=https://www.paknavy.gov.pk/ranks.html |website=www.paknavy.gov.pk |publisher=Pakistan Navy Official Website |access-date=7 August 2018}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Papua New Guinea Maritime Element)
File:Generic-Navy-11.svg|{{lang|pl|Komandor porucznik}}
(Polish Navy){{cite web |title=Sposób noszenia odznak stopni wojskowych na umundurowaniu Marynarki Wojennej |trans-title=The way of wearing badges of military ranks on the uniform of the Navy |url=https://www.wojsko-polskie.pl/iwsp/u/27/96/27964313-a4b1-4c28-9ea2-08de33e7aa58/08c_oznaki_stopni_wojskowych_na_umundurowaniu_mw_ok.pdf |website=wojsko-polskie.pl |publisher=Armed Forces Support Inspectorate |access-date=7 June 2021 |language=pl}}
File:Romania-Navy-OF-3-Sleeve.svg|{{lang|ro|Locotenent-comandor}}
(Romanian Naval Forces){{cite web |title=Grade militare (Military ranks) |url=https://www.defense.ro/foto/album6 |website=defense.ro |publisher=Romanian Defence Staff |access-date=1 February 2021 |language=ro}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Saint Kitts and Nevis Coast Guard)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Sierra Leone Navy)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(South African Navy){{cite web |title=Rank Insignia |url=http://www.navy.mil.za/aboutus/Rank_Insignia.gif |website=navy.mil.za |publisher=Department of Defence (South Africa) |access-date=29 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190518212959/http://www.navy.mil.za/aboutus/Rank_Insignia.gif |archive-date=18 May 2019}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Sri Lanka Navy){{cite web |title=Branches/ Ranks |url=https://www.navy.lk/branches-ranks.html |website=navy.lk |publisher=Sri Lanka Navy |access-date=24 September 2021 |archive-date=19 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220619063013/https://www.navy.lk/branches-ranks.html |url-status=dead }}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Tanzania Naval Command)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Tongan Maritime Force){{cite journal |title=Tonga Defence Services (Amendment) Regulations 2009 |journal=Tonga Government Gazette Supplement Extraordinary |date=10 May 2010 |volume=5 |pages=151–153 |url=https://ago.gov.to/cms/phocadownload/2010-regulations/TongaDefenceServices(Amendment)Regulations2009s.pdf |access-date=26 September 2021}}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard){{cite web |title=Rank Chart (Commissioned Officers) |url=http://69.0.195.188/HQ/Our-Organisation/Ranks-Chart-(Commissioned-Officers).aspx |website=69.0.195.188 |publisher=Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force |access-date=27 May 2021 }}{{Dead link|date=May 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Royal Navy){{cite web |title=Shaping your career |url=https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/careers/navy-life/shaping-your-career |website=royalnavy.mod.uk |publisher=Royal Navy |access-date=24 September 2021}}
File:U.S. Navy O-4 insignia.svg|Lieutenant commander
(United States Navy){{cite web |title=U.S. Military Rank Insignia |url=https://www.defense.gov/Resources/Insignia/ |website=defense.gov |publisher=Department of Defense |access-date=13 January 2022}}
File:USCG O-4 insignia.svg|Lieutenant commander
(United States Coast Guard)
File:Generic-Navy-5.svg|Lieutenant commander
(Vanuatu Maritime Wing)