"Underofficer" redirects here, although it can also mean non-commissioned officer when translated from certain other languages.

Under Officer is an appointment held by senior cadets at some Commonwealth officer training establishments and in University Officers' Training Corps in the United Kingdom, and also a rank used in some Commonwealth cadet forces.

[edit] Australia

The Royal Military College, Duntroon uses the appointments of Senior Under Officer and Under Officer for senior Staff Cadets.^[1]

In the Australian Army Cadets and Australian Air Force Cadets, the rank of Cadet Under Officer is the highest cadet rank. They are saluted and addressed as "Sir" or "Ma'am" by their subordinates but not by adult officers or instructors or members of the Australian Defence Force.

AAC CUOs may hold many appointments, including National Cadet Under Officer, Regional Cadet Under Officer, Battalion Cadet Under Officer, Quartermaster, Company Commander, and Platoon Commander. The rank badge is a lozenge, which contains 27½ chevrons. The National Cadet Under Officer has red in the centre of the lozenge. Regional Cadet Under Officers have blue in the centre of the lozenge.

To become a CUO, a cadet must have completed the Senior Leaders Course Module Two, otherwise known as the CUO/WO Course, often held either at a mid or end of year session. The course runs for one week on a military base, and during this course a prospective CUO will learn platoon and company level command. To gain entry to the course the Cadet must have successfully completed the Senior Leaders Module One Course or the Sergeant Course, which entitles them to bear ranks up to Staff Sergeant.

The insignia for an AAFC CUO is a white stripe. To achieve the rank of CUO, an AAFC Cadet Sergeant, Cadet Flight Sergeant or Cadet Warrant Officer must complete the CUO course, which typically takes 3–4 weeks at a Royal Australian Air Force base in their home state.

[edit] New Zealand

A New Zealand ATC Under-Officers shoulder Insignia

Cadet Under Officer is also a rank in the New Zealand Air Training Corps and the New Zealand Cadet Corps. It ranks between Cadet Warrant Officer and Pilot Officer/Second Lieutenant, thus making it the highest rank a cadet can reach. Cadet Under Officers are normally aged between 17 and 21, and to be eligible for a commission one must be at least 20 years of age. Hence, Under Officers are generally treated as understudy officers. They often perform roles similar to commissioned officers, but do not have nearly the same legal responsibilities. Cadet Under Officers wear insignia similar to that worn by Officer Cadets, except that the thin blue braid is replaced by a piece of NCO chevron cloth. This emphasises their official status as cadets rather than adult leaders.

[edit] United Kingdom

Under Officer is an appointment held by senior Officer Cadets at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS) and in the University Officers Training Corps (authough these latter are not stictly trainee officers), and is also the highest rank that can be held by cadets in the Combined Cadet Force and Army Cadet Force. There are two separate appointments: Junior Under Officer (JUO) and Senior Under Officer (SUO). They are usually addressed as "JUO" or "SUO" as appropriate, but are not saluted as they do not hold the Queen's Commission. RMAS typically appoint two JUOs per platoon in the final term of the Commissioning Course. The use of SUO is not currently used at RMAS.

At RMAS and in the UOTCs, JUOs wear an Austrian Knot above a single bar on their rank slide and SUOs wear an Austrian Knot above two bars. Each UOTC usually has a single SUO.^{[citation needed]}

The use of the term in CCF contingents is inconsistent, with some having JUOs^[2][3] and sometimes also SUOs,^[4][5] and others simply having Under Officers.^[6] The ACF only has the single appointment of Cadet Under Officer (CUO).^[7] The rank badge is a white bar on the rank slide.^[8][9][10]

[edit] References