Posted on Jul 9, 2014
SFC Steven Borders
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Out of curiosity how many members have saluted the wrong rank working on a Joint Base or Assignment. With me working on JBAB (Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling) it has happened a couple times. I find it hard to recognize the Navy ranks sometimes at a distance. And found myself saluting a Chief. I have always followed the rule "when in doubt whip it out". Most just laugh and we carry on about our day. Would love to hear some stories.
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Capt Dana Mar
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Wow, I remember being part of the USMC class at artillery school, Ft Sill. The Army still wore OD green at that time, and someone was approaching us with more shiny stuff than a Christmas tree. We were trying to figure out what he was when he whipped out a salute to us, so problem solved. However, I never did figure out the foreign officer rank insignia. Diamonds and little quail or whatever they were still baffle me.
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PFC Steven Kleiner
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I was stationed at Ft. Ord, so we were right by the Presidio and has all members of the armed service around. The Navy Ranks always tripped us up constantly.
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Capt Dana Mar
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I can recall Artillery school at Ft Sill. This was back when the Army was still wearing OD green uniforms. Someone coming towards us had more shiny stuff than a Christmas tree, and we were all trying to figure out what he was when he whipped out a salute to us! Problem solved. Now foreign officers, we never really did figure out how 3 birds or whatever translated in the rank structure.
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PO1 Sam Deel
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Being a JRB Sailor, myself, I had a heck of a time with the Marine subdued Rank insignias. I would have to get close and stare for a bit to recognize them. Never caused any guff as that is exactly what they were designed to do.

As for the Navy, anything on top of the shoulders,epaulets (shoulder boards or embroidered tape) is an O. Seaman Apprentice (E-2) and up wear collar devices and embroidered tape insignias on certain Uniforms. Hash marks (Service stripes) are similar Time In Service marks as the other Branches. They are worn only on the lower left sleeve of Enlisted Dress Blue, Dress White, Dinner Dress Blue Jacket, and the Dinner Dress White Jacket.

This is what I remember from over a decade ago when the Blueberries (Blue Digitial BDUs) were issued. So many changes to the Uniforms since therm I can't keep up. It is like a dang fashion show.

Always Salute, when in doubt. My first time to ever see a Navy Warrant in person was in the ladder well to Medical at Great Lakes Boot. Needless to say, he could see the dumbfounded look as I fixated on figuring out what that collar device was. Luckily, I had already instinctively rendered a Salute. He ended up just having a laugh with me in the privacy of that ladder well.
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SSG Dave Johnston
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Spend a year assigned to the Multinational Force and Observers, did that a number of times... Wasn't too confusing my last year in uniform,,, wandering around the DC area... I'd just pull the marbles out of my left pocket and salute with my right and ask,,, "Got yours"?
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Cpl Craig Howard
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That Darn Navy! I was stationed in the Chiefs Mess for two weeks on a warm up cruise. Being in the Marine Air wing, I was used to my Staff NCO's, and now I had to remember the Ground side as well as the Chief ranks. At least there was no saluting as we were inside.
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Didn't salute or be saluted, but in 1971 our aircraft had to land at a Royal Canadian Air Force Base to await personnel from our base to arrive and commence repairs. As a AiC with two stripes they were continuously calling me Corporal. And no matter how many times I corrected them, they continued to do so. Later that 1st evening when both Canadian and US were heading to their form of an NCO Mess I lagged behind. A Canadian Sgt asked my Crew Chief where I was and again it was explained I wasn't a Corporal. That Sgt stated that as long as there were two stripes on my sleeve, I was welcome as a Corporal. Until we flew out two days later it was one of the best TDY's I have ever had!
SPC Lyle Montgomery
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When I got back from Nam I was stationed at Fort Hood Texas. My 201 file and finance records went to Fort Carson Colorado. It took about a month to get the records to Fort hood. All I had to wear was my class a uniform. It was in need of a good cleaning but I had no money to pay for it. While helping the supply sargent, he took pity on me and gave me several pairs of fatigues that had been taking up space. They were good clothes but didn't have my name on them yet. When returning from a stupid convocation telling us about Vietnam which I didn't need I was walking back to my unit when I passed a female Navy officer. I didn't salute. I did not know Navy rank. She started to chew me out. I apologised but that wasn't enough for that bitch. She took down my name from my uniform shirt which said Kowalski. I had enough of her bullshit and tolf her to shove it and worse things and ran away. I was in good shape then and knew that she could not catch me in a dress. I had just got back from Nom and had a real attitude problem and was not about to take any guff from a female, especially a navy one.
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Lt Col Charlie Brown
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I didn't have to work on a joint base, just visit another service's base back in the day...the Army and Navy ranks of the enlisted often made me do a double take.
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PO2 Ronnie Chandler
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I once saluted a marine gunny and he laughed called me over shook my ha d explained the marine ranks and we went and had a drink together. Started school the next day and he was the Instructor. Great guy
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Col Retired From Active Duty
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Edited >1 y ago
Yes, but as a captain (O-3) I saluted the E-2 on purpose.

I was at a training base and made a stop at the post office. I was walking toward the post office door and I watched as the airman was coming out of the building, heads down, engrossed in a letter he was reading. I instantly knew he was going to miss the salute. Not a big deal to me, because he was so into the letter he was reading while walking.

While it wasn't a big deal to me, it was a big deal to all the other enlisted folks who were there at the post office, too. As I saw the situation unfolding, I scanned the area and saw many people who also saw this unfolding. I'd never seen so many wide-eyed folks wondering what the captain was going to do when this airman screwed up and didn't salute the officer. I didn't want to be a jerk about it, but I needed to do the right thing.

At that moment, I figured out the "right thing". As the airman moved within saluting range, I snapped to attention with my back to the post office wall, popped my sharpest salute, and in a command voice projected, "Good afternoon, SIR!" (After all, if he was not saluting me, he must outrank me.)

He looked up, looking a bit confused, and returned my salute. He kept on walking but still a bit unaware of what happened.

At that point I scanned the crowd and saw many smiles and a few thumbs up from the primarily enlisted audience.

While others will disagree with what I did that day, I've thought back to it many times during my career. I think about empathy. I think about kindness. Yeah, these are not two words often associated with the military. But, I was in the Air Force.

Could I have stopped the airman and corrected him? Yes.
Would it have made any difference to him? Probably not, other than the embarrassment.
Did I win goodwill with the rest of the audience that day? Absolutely.
Would I do it again the same way? Yes.
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Guilty as charged Marine Cpl 1984 Pearl Harbor. Dang Master Chief with all that shinning stuff on his collar.
MSG Intelligence Analyst
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I saluted the correct rank, but they chose to not return it. I think they were not used to getting salutes from US Army soldiers
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CDR Tom Davy
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There are worse things than saluting a Chief. When I was an E-6 Corpsman on an Army Post, people sometimes thought I was an officer as I had a caduceus on my left collar.
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SSG Gregg Mourizen
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When I was an E-4, my Sham-Shield caught a lot of salutes from LT's and Catains, who thought it was a black oakleaf.'

Damned Petty Officers, always caught me. I would see that bird, way before I saw the stripes.

The worst time was after returning from Japan, where all the soldiers salute everybody.
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SPC Military Intelligence Systems Maintainer/Integrator
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i know foreign officers get a little annoyed when they don't get saluted.
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LCDR Alan Darr
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Was at a special ops effort in Hawaii, the Australians uniforms are so ornate--easy to misunderstand the saluting correctly. For U.S. junior enlisted---taught at boot camp to salute everything that walks--not taught before they go to next assignment appropriate saluting.
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LT Search & Rescue Coordination
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Not a salute, but as a young fresh-faced 21-year-old Cadet at the Coast Guard Academy, I had a port call in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The collar devices for First Class Cadets are a blue shield (which somewhat matches the blue of the Operational Dress Uniform), upon which there is a fouled anchor with a star at the top of it. Walking out of the Exchange, two petty officers walk out, look at me oddly, then say "Have a good morning, Senior Chief". I laughed it off; but given that most Senior Chiefs have been in the service longer than I had been alive at that point, I hoped it would be pretty obvious from my baby face that I wasn't an E-8; even if their insignia is also a (much larger) fouled anchor with a star.
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LTC Force Development
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As a private just out of basic training, I once saluted an NCO in class Bs thinking his unit crest was officer rank. To his credit, he laughed it off.
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TSgt George Austin
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Joint bases are easy. Try NATO when the French bring a ship in. Looks like a ballet troupe.
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