Stan187

I believe in English, the equivalent of Undercolonel or Sub-Colonel (Podpolkovnik), is Lieutenant Colonel. Also sometimes informally known in the Soviet Army as ComBat (Comandir Battaliona--> Battalion Commander). Polk=regiment. Polkovnik=Regimental Commander. Pod=Under/Sub. So Podpolkovnik=commander on one level of organization below regiment, hence battalion commander. There is some terminological entymology for ya people, whether you asked for it or not.

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The Russian Navy is still a threat, but only to those unlucky enough to be Russian sailors.-highsea

RustyBattleship

We call junior and senior lieutenants 2nd and 1st Lieutenants. 2nd "Louies" are the worst in demanding exact discipline because they want to advance in rank.

Reminds me of a story. It was at night on the Army base and the private wanted to have a cigarette but was out of matches. Another soldier walked by and he said, "Hey Buddy. You got a light?"

The other soldier pulled out his lighter and the private saw two silver stars on the man's collar indicating he was a General. He snapped to attention and said, "I'm sorry Sir. I did not see your rank in the dark."

The General laughed and said, "No problem soldier. Just be glad I wasn't a Second Lieutenant."

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Able to leap tall tales in a single groan.

Shek

Rusty,

Those were different times as far as 2LTs go. It has long been an automatic promotion to 1LT unless you screw something up bigtime. Thus, the saying that "rank among lieutenants is like virtue among whores" - it doesn't exist.

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"So little pains do the vulgar take in the investigation of truth, accepting readily the first story that comes to hand." Thucydides 1.20.3

RustyBattleship

Are you accusing me of being an old f**t?

Hmmm. Maybe I am. After all, my time in uniform was over half a century ago.

Albany Rifles

We called that promotion the Fog The Mirror Promotion...i.e., if you were breathing you got promoted.

The way to tell a senior captain from a junior captain? Easy..the senior captain usually has a coffee mug in his hand and a disgruntled look on his face as he is posting on blogs and ticked off that he has already commanded and has to sit in this stupid staff job while the junior captain has all of the fun and is out with the troops in a combat unit.

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“When the gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers.” — Oscar Wilde