Hauptfeldwebel (rank)

Hauptfeldwebel
(Heer / Luftwaffe)

Rank insignia

German NCO rank

Introduction

1957

Rank group

Non-commissioned officers

Army / Air Force

Hauptfeldwebel

Navy

Hauptbootsmann

NATO
equivalent

OR-7

US

Army: Sergeant First Class
Air Force: Master Sergeant

UK

Army: Staff Sergeant
Air Force: Flight Sergeant

Hauptfeldwebel (HptFw or HF) is the third highest Non-commissioned officer (NCO) rank in German Heer and Luftwaffe.^[1]

It is grouped as OR7 in NATO, equivalent to a US Army Sergeant 1st Class, US Marine Gunnery Sergeant, or US Air Force Master Sergeant, and to Warrant Officer Class 2 in the British Army and Royal Navy.

In army/ air force context NCOs of this rank were formally addressed as Herr Hauptfeldwebel also informally / short Hauptfeld.

The sequence of ranks (top-down approach) in that particular group (Senior NCOs with portepee) is as follows:

OR-9: Oberstabsfeldwebel / Oberstabsbootsmann
OR-8: Stabsfeldwebel / Stabsbootsmann
OR-7: Hauptfeldwebel / Hauptbootsmann
OR-6a: Oberfeldwebel / Oberbootsmann
OR-6b: Feldwebel / Bootsmann

Remark

The abbreviation "OR" stands for "Other Ranks / fr: sous-officiers et militaires du rang / ru:другие ранги, кроме офицероф"!

junior Rank Oberfeldwebel	(German NCO rank) Hauptfeldwebel	senior Rank Stabsfeldwebel
	Oberfähnrich

History

The Hauptfeldwebel was introduced by the German Wehrmacht in 1938 not as a military rank but as the assignment to “company sergeant (de: Kompaniefeldwebel or Spiess). Most experienced Protégée-NCO with the rank Stabsfeldwebel or Oberfeldwebel (more seldom Feldwebel) have been assigned to that distinguished position.

The assignment Spiess/Hauptfeldwebel, equivalent to the company sergeant major in Anglo-phonic armed forces, has been used before in the GDR National People's Army from 1956 until 1990 as well.

The equivalent assignment to the company sergeant major in the Waffen-SS was the SS-Stabsscharführer from 1938 until 1945 .

Equivalent in other NATO countries Army/Air Force

– Rreshter/no equivalent
– 1er sergeant-major; 1ste sergeant-majoor
– Старши сержант (en: Strshi sershant)
– Warrant Officer; Adjudant
– Nadnarednik
– praporčík/
– Oversergent
– Vanemveebel/
– no equivalent
– Επιλοχίας; Epilochias/N.N.
– Főtörzsőrmester/N.N.
– no equivalent
– Sergente maggiore capo
– Štāba virsseržants/N.N.
– Štabo seržantas/N.N.
– N.N.
– Sergeant-majoor; Opperwachtmeester/Sergeant-majoor
– no equivalent
– Pomocnik dowódcy kompanii
– Sargento-ajudante
– Maistru Militar clasa III
– rotmajster
– štabni vodnik
– Sargento primero
– Astsubay Kıdemli Üstçavuş and Astsubay Üstçavuş/
– Старшина (en: Starshina)
– Staff Sergeant and Colour Sergeant/Flight sergeant, Flight sergeant aircrew and Chief sergeant
– Master Sergeant/Sergeant First Class