Chilean Military Ranks: Complete Guide to Ranks, Insignia and Badges (2026)

Chile’s armed forces wear some of the most distinctive rank insignia in South America. An Army general is recognised by the red shoulder strap with white stars, a Navy officer by the gold stripes on the sleeve, and an Air Force general by the condor eagle on the shoulder. This guide explains every Chilean military rank with its insignia and badge, covering the Army, Navy and Air Force.

Chilean ranks are given in Spanish, and they do not translate neatly into English — a Capitán de navío is not a captain in the army sense, and an Alférez is not quite an ensign. The three services also follow three different traditions: the Army a Prussian and German model, the Navy the British Royal Navy, and the Air Force the Royal Air Force. Where a NATO-style grade helps, we give it: officers run from OF-1 to OF-9 and enlisted personnel from OR-1 to OR-9.

Chilean Army Officer Ranks (OF-1 to OF-9)

The Chilean Army (Ejército de Chile) is the largest of the three services, organised into six divisions plus a special operations brigade and an army aviation brigade. Its officer ranks run from Alférez to General de ejército — eleven grades, set by a 2002 reorganisation that rebuilt the general-officer ladder with three general ranks instead of four.

Army officer insignia is worn on shoulder boards. For generals it follows a French-inspired design: a red shoulder strap carrying two to four white stars. Field-grade and junior officers wear German-influenced shoulder-board insignia of gold stars and bars.

One rank no longer exists: Capitán general, held by Bernardo O’Higgins and later by Augusto Pinochet, is now inactive — the equivalent of a five-star rank (OF-10).

Chilean Army Enlisted Ranks (OR-1 to OR-9)

Army enlisted personnel climb from Soldado de tropa profesional to Suboficial mayor through eight grades. The senior grades are the suboficiales (sub-officers), the backbone of every unit. A new recruit wears no rank insignia at all; chevron-style sleeve insignia appear from Cabo upward.

Future Army officers study at the Gen. Bernardo O’Higgins Military School in Santiago, while future NCOs train at the Sgt. Daniel Rebolledo Sepúlveda Army NCO School in Maipú. On graduation an officer becomes an Alférez and an NCO becomes a Cabo.

Chilean Navy Officer Ranks (OF-1 to OF-9)

The Chilean Navy (Armada de Chile), headquartered in Valparaíso, guards one of the longest coastlines in the world. Its officer ranks follow the British Royal Navy tradition: rank is read from gold stripes worn around the sleeve cuff on summer uniforms, and from shoulder boards on winter and service uniforms. The stripes grow in number and width with seniority, and flag officers add stars above the braid.

The three senior captain grades — Capitán de corbeta, Capitán de fragata and Capitán de navío — are named after the ships they once commanded: corvette, frigate and ship of the line. The Navy’s most junior officer is the Guardiamarina, the midshipman.

Chilean Navy Enlisted Ranks (OR-1 to OR-9)

Navy enlisted personnel are known collectively as the Gente de Mar — the “men of the sea”. They share the Army’s senior NCO titles (Suboficial mayor down to Cabo segundo), but their two junior grades are sailors: Marinero primero and Marinero segundo.

Naval officers train at the Arturo Prat Naval Academy and NCOs at the Seamen’s School “Alejandro Navarrete Cisterna”. The Navy also includes the Marine Corps (Cuerpo de Infantería de Marina), whose members add the title Infante de Marina to their ranks from seaman upward.

Chilean Air Force Officer Ranks (OF-1 to OF-9)

The Chilean Air Force (Fuerza Aérea de Chile), headquartered in Santiago, flies fighters, transports and helicopters from five air brigades and supports the Antarctic station at Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva. Its ranks follow the Royal Air Force pattern: rank is worn as braid on the cuffs and shoulder boards, and general officers wear the condor eagle on their shoulder collars.

The Air Force has twelve officer grades — one more than the other services. Instead of colonel and major it has Coronel de aviación, Comandante de grupo (group commander), Comandante de escuadrilla (squadron commander) and Capitán de bandada (flight captain), each named for the unit the officer commands. Its three general grades borrow from the Spanish and French air forces.

Chilean Air Force Enlisted Ranks (OR-1 to OR-9)

Air Force enlisted personnel use the same senior titles as the Army — Suboficial mayor through Cabo — but only the two sub-officer grades wear both shoulder and cuff insignia. The most junior airman, the Alumno (student), wears no insignia. NCO cadets wear a double letter “E” on their shoulder collars for the Air Force Specialties School.

How to Read Chilean Military Insignia

Each service has its own code, but the logic is the same everywhere: more metal means more seniority.

• Army — count the stars on the red strap. Generals wear a red shoulder strap with white stars: two for General de brigada, three for General de división, four for General de ejército. Below general rank, read the gold stars and bars on the shoulder board.
• Navy — count the gold stripes on the sleeve. Officers wear gold braid around the cuff; the stripes get broader and more numerous as rank rises, and flag officers add stars above the braid. On winter uniforms the same rank appears on shoulder boards.
• Air Force — look for the condor and the braid. General officers wear the condor eagle on the shoulder collar. Everyone else wears RAF-style braid on cuffs and shoulders — the wider the braid, the more senior the officer.
• Enlisted — count the chevrons. In all three services, NCOs wear gold chevron-style sleeve insignia. The lowest grades — Soldado de tropa profesional, Marinero segundo and Alumno — wear no insignia at all.
• Don’t confuse the three services. A Capitán in the Army is a company commander (OF-2), but a Capitán de navío in the Navy is a ship’s captain (OF-5). Always check the service — and the full title.

Chilean Military Badges

Rank insignia shows a service member’s grade. Badges show what they are qualified to do — and in the Air Force, the badge system is unusually detailed. Officers wear a letter badge for their arm of service: (A) for aviation — fighter, helicopter and transport pilots; (I) for engineering; (DA) for air defence; (TI) for telecommunications and IT; (AD) for administration; and (BA) for air base and logistics duties.

Staff corps officers wear their own badges: (J) for justice, (S) and (SD) for medical and dental, (SR) for chaplains, (B) for bands and (SG) for general services.

Air Force NCOs wear badges for their own specialties too: weapons (air defence, intelligence and aircrew), technical support (maintenance, armaments and communications), administration and combat medicine. In the Navy, members of the Marine Corps add Infante de Marina to their rank.

How Promotion Works in the Chilean Military

Promotion is built on time in grade, professional schooling and selection, and the Army’s published career ladder shows the shape of it. A new Alférez serves about a year before promotion to Subteniente; Teniente follows after five to nine years of service, Capitán after ten to fifteen, Mayor after sixteen to twenty, Teniente coronel after twenty-one to twenty-five, and Coronel after twenty-six to thirty. General de brigada is reached after thirty-one or thirty-two years.

The enlisted ladder is just as long. A Cabo is made two or three years after graduating from NCO school; Cabo primero follows after eleven to eighteen years, Sargento segundo after nineteen to twenty-three, Sargento primero after twenty-four to twenty-six, Suboficial after twenty-seven to twenty-nine, and Suboficial mayor after about thirty years. Each step needs the right NCO-school course and a favourable selection board.

A Note on Chilean Military Tradition

Chilean ranks tell the story of the country’s military history. The Army’s officer ranks — and the very word Alférez, from the Prussian Fähnrich — come from the German military mission that rebuilt the Chilean Army in the late nineteenth century. The generals’ red straps with white stars follow the French Army, the Navy’s sleeve stripes the British Royal Navy, and the Air Force’s braid the Royal Air Force.

The condor — the great bird of the Andes — appears in the Air Force generals’ insignia, and the founding hero Bernardo O’Higgins gives his name to the Army’s officer school and to the long-inactive rank of Capitán general he once held. The result is a rank system that is part German, part French, part British and entirely Chilean.

For comparison with other services, see our guides to US Navy ranks, the US military uniform and the US military branches, and for another South American system see our guides to Brazilian military ranks and Peruvian military ranks.

FAQs

What is the highest rank in the Chilean military?

The highest active rank is General de ejército in the Army, Almirante in the Navy and General de aire in the Air Force — all OF-9, each held by that service’s commander-in-chief. The historic rank of Capitán general (OF-10) is inactive.

What does OF-9 mean in Chilean ranks?

OF-9 is the NATO-style officer grade for the most senior rank: General de ejército, Almirante and General de aire. Chile is not a NATO member; the OF/OR scale is used here as a comparison with US and NATO equivalents.

Why do Chilean Army generals wear red shoulder straps?

Chilean Army general-officer insignia follows the French Army tradition: a red shoulder strap carrying two to four white stars. Under the Pinochet government the stars were gold; in December 2005 the Army returned to the original white-star design.

What is an Alférez in the Chilean military?

Alférez is the entry-level commissioned officer rank (OF-1) in the Army and Air Force, held for about a year after graduation. It comes from the Prussian Fähnrich, reflecting the German influence on Chilean Army ranks. The Navy’s equivalent is Guardiamarina (midshipman).

What is the difference between a Suboficial mayor and a Suboficial?

Both are senior NCO grades, but Suboficial mayor (OR-9) is the most senior enlisted rank in each service — roughly a command sergeant major — reached after about thirty years. Suboficial (OR-8) is one step below, roughly a sergeant major, reached after twenty-seven to twenty-nine years.

Do Chilean Navy officers wear their rank on their sleeves?

Yes — on summer uniforms, Navy officer rank is shown by gold stripes around the sleeve cuff, in the British Royal Navy style. On winter and service uniforms the same rank is shown on shoulder boards.

What is the Condor eagle on Chilean Air Force uniforms?

Air Force general officers wear the condor eagle — the great bird of the Andes — on their shoulder collars. It marks general rank at a glance; officer cadets instead wear the symbol of the Air Force Academy “Captain Manuel Ávalos Prado”.

All insignia diagrams and images in this article are original graphics created for Forces Guide.