Stabsfeldwebel


Stabsfeldwebel is the second highest Non-commissioned officer rank in German Army and German Air Force. It is grouped as OR8 in NATO, equivalent to a First Sergeant, Master Sergeant, or Senior Master Sergeant in the US Armed forces, and to Warrant Officer Class 2 in the British Army and Royal Navy. Promotion to the rank requires at least twelve years total active duty, of which at least eleven years have elapsed since promotion to unteroffizier, with at least ten years since promotion to stabsunteroffizier, and nine years since promotion to feldwebel.
In army/ air force context NCOs of this rank were formally addressed as Herr Stabsfeldwebel also informally / short Staber.

History

Austria-Hungary

The ranks Stabsfeldwebel, Stabsoberjäger, Stabsfeuerwerker and Stabswachtmeister were introduced to the Austro-Hungarian Army in 1913.
;See also:
⇒ main article Rank insignias of the Austro-Hungarian armed forces

Germany

The rank was introduced by the German Wehrmacht equivalent to the German Kriegsmarine Stabsoberfeldwebel grades in 1938.
Not all Heer NCO's in this grades were called Unterfeldwebel, Feldwebel, Oberfeldwebel and Stabsfeldwebel which are ranks in the infantry tradition. In some other service branches, for example, the equivalent ranks were as follows.
The rank has been used before in the GDR National People's Army until 1990. The equivalent in the Volksmarine OR8-gradt was Stabsobermeister.

Rank information

The sequence of ranks in that particular group is as follows:
;Remark:
The abbreviation "OR" stands for "Other Ranks / fr: sous-officiers et militaires du rang / ru:другие ранги, кроме офицероф"!
junior Rank
Hauptfeldwebel


Stabsfeldwebel		senior Rank
Oberstabsfeldwebel
Oberfähnrich


Stabsfeldwebel		senior Rank
Oberstabsfeldwebel

Equivalent in other NATO countries Army/Air Force