Any defence force employees on here?

[R6_kid:Me]

man this is becoming a nice old rant in'it

[Hoon]

I'm in the Army Territorials as a Private in the Infantry. The only Officers I have any real contact with are my Platoon Commander and sometimes the OC (Company Commander). Every now and then some big wig Colonel might come down for a chat.
I can't comment on the Army as a career option but as a weekend job it rocks!! Can't complain with getting paid to shoot and blow shit up!!!

(My unit demonstrating a LAV3 assault at Big Boys Toys '04)

[sAsLEX]

Major General is the top officer rank- but at that level they are more politicians than army folks. The rank structure is divided into two lots- Ordinary Ranks (O.R's) and Officers .
The only rank higher for ORs than formation serjeant major is serjeant major of the army.
Technically any officer is senior to any OR, but some little 19 yr old kid with zits doesnt tell a 20 yr plus vet what to do-not more than once anyway !

Commissioned Ranks in the NZ Army
Lieutenant General
Major General
Brigadier
Colonel
Lieutenant Colonel
Major
Captain
Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant

from the horses mouth http://www.army.mil.nz/default.asp?C...ARMY&PAGE=Rank

would be an army CDF that would hold that top rank though

[Indiana_Jones]

Field Marshall Haig's "Grand Plan" is still in action

-Indy

[Blakamin]

(My unit demonstrating a LAV3 assault at Big Boys Toys '04)

Lintons new FSM was one of the asssessors that went to canada to check out the LAVs....
complain to him

[Storm]

I stand corrected. As I understand it there are several wartime only ranks as well, but I dont know what they are. As an actual working man, I have little to no interest in what the top knobs do. Generally the only time high ranks come around is those delightful little "chats" at smoko, where your immediate boss is glaring at you real close from behind the general etc, so you cant really tell him that your hq are a sack of shite, and useless pricks can you? (At least, not if you still hope to work there in peace!! )

[That Guy]

Just ranting on here....all forces have equivalent ranks -
Navy Lieutenant = Army Captain = Airforce Flight Lieutenant. (by the way Lieutenant is a french word and despite the yanks making up their own pronouciation of the word as is their way, the correct way to pronounce it is "Leftenant")

In NZ:
Chief Navy = Rear Admiral
Chief Air = Air Vice Marshall
Chief Army = Major General

Chief of Defence = Vice Admiral, Air Marshall, or Lieutenant General. Thats as high as it goes in NZ 'cause our forces aren't big enought to require anything higher, but the ranks go further:

Admiral
Air Chief Marshall
General

and then another:

Admiral of the Fleet
Marshall of the Air Force
Field Marshall

[Hitcher]

One thing that would put me off joining the Air Force is the naff uniform -- particularly That Hat. I also find the epaulette hoops for officers particularly difficult to decipher -- squity little pale blue and dark blue bands.

New Zealand is too small to have three separate services. They should be combined. That would save heaps in uniform costs and also other stuff like administration.

[That Guy]

One thing that would put me off joining the Air Force is the naff uniform -- particularly That Hat. I also find the epaulette hoops for officers particularly difficult to decipher -- squity little pale blue and dark blue bands..

Yeah Air force & Army are hard to see - Navy heapes easier.

New Zealand is too small to have three separate services. They should be combined. That would save heaps in uniform costs and also other stuff like administration.

We do really - its called the NZDF, of which three different disciplines (air, sea, land) all are a part of. Each environment requires very distinct skills so you'd end up with a bit of a mess if you tried to get a Navy person to fly a Herc, and Army person to drive a ship etc....weather you stitch up a green uniform or a blue one the cost is the same - and being a govt department thinking that by calling them all the same force would save admin costs is a bit optimisitic!

When the NZDF can buy something that suits all services they generally do to increase buying power.

[Gixxer]

that would be major general wouldnt it, 2nd highest??? But RSM and the likes are the sort of people you hold with utmost respect lest you piss them off!

It is like when you are posted to a ship and alongside, the 2nd officer of the day (maybe an ensign) could be on the flight deck, but he ain't going to ask the quarter master to fetch him a coffee.

[Gixxer]

I'm ex Navy (phew) but was a great thing to do when I was an angry 18 year old. Don't think I coulda handled the army - who wants to live in Waiuru? Guess its not too far to Manfeild or Taupo....

What rank and branch? when did you get out?

[R6_kid:Me]

One thing that would put me off joining the Air Force is the naff uniform -- particularly That Hat.

for around base they have adopted the yanks trend of baseball caps, and also bought the old rimmed floppy hat in aswell, kinda more gay than the postie hats they were now

[sAsLEX]

It is like when you are posted to a ship and alongside, the 2nd officer of the day (maybe an ensign) could be on the flight deck, but he ain't going to ask the quarter master to fetch him a coffee.

Yeah normally mid to subLt, you are the OOD when LT and above. And that would be a rapid way to making life difficult for yourself!

oh and the Navy hats are the best cause the keep the sun and the rain off!!

[Two Smoker]

Yeah normally mid to subLt, you are the OOD when LT and above. And that would be a rapid way to making life difficult for yourself!

oh and the Navy hats are the best cause the keep the sun and the rain off!!

I dont know, i think the Army SD hats are better for keeping off the sun and rain...

[Gixxer]

Yeah normally mid to subLt, you are the OOD when LT and above. And that would be a rapid way to making life difficult for yourself!

oh and the Navy hats are the best cause the keep the sun and the rain off!!

Yeah, I had a young fella who was still at the OT school doing there sea training, ask me to make him a coffee one night, the OOD laughed at him and told him to pull his head in. I could not keep the smirk off my face, and it went into the incident log for the other QM's to have a laugh at.

I think the navy blue floopy hat was pretty cool when we first got them.